Teamsters, Marathon Petroleum no closer to deal as strike continues

Union members are still off the job at the Marathon Petroleum refinery in Southwest Detroit. More than 250 members of Teamsters Local 283 have been on the picket line for seven weeks as they seek a fair contract.

With the strike ongoing, the Marathon refinery is using out-of-state workers to operate. Despite that, Michigan regulators just approved the facility to increase production. 

Gina Jones is a lab technician at the refinery. She says temp workers might not fully understand how to operate the plant.

“Yeah, you can bring scabs in,” says Jones, “but each refinery has its own little quirks. Unless you’ve been around for a while – and you know how to work with those quirks – somebody who comes in fresh, they’re not going to know.”

As a result, nearby residents and striking workers, like Jones, have safety concerns.

“(Refinery) startup is one of the most dangerous times,” Jones said. “Whenever you shut down or start up a refinery, that’s when accidents can happen.”

Workers are looking for stronger union protections, such as requiring new hires to join the Teamsters. They’re also asking for pay increases that outpace inflation.

However, union members say there have been no negotiations in weeks. That’s despite the presence of a federal mediator.

“They came to us saying, ‘we’ll give you a 2% increase,’” says Jones of prior negotiations. “And that’s laughable.”

Marathon Petroleum is set put out it’s third-quarter earnings in early November.

In the second quarter of this year, the oil giant made $1.52 billion.

**Editors Note**

After this story published, a Marathon Petroleum spokesperson wanted to reiterate:

• All employees in operations roles at the refinery have demonstrated competency specific to their assigned job tasks, including passing all required tests.
• The Marathon employees currently running the refinery and supporting the turnaround have a combined average of more than 15 years of experience each, which is more than the average experience of the employees currently on strike.