London — UK trade union Unite ended a strike at Total's North Sea platforms Wednesday after support staff employed by service companies Aker and Petrofac decided to accept new offshore work rotas. Receive daily email alerts, subscriber notes & personalize your experience. In a statement, Unite regional industrial officer John Boland said: ?Under intense pressure and threats of termination from Aker and Petrofac most of our members have now signed up to the new contracts that include the changes to Rota and Terms and Conditions. With members now agreeing to the new contract that includes these changes, the dispute is ended." Last year Total settled a similar dispute in which its own North Sea employees tried to resist moving to longer stints offshore, of three weeks, known as the '3:3' rota. The latest dispute by staff employed by Aker Solutions and Petrofac also involved Total's onshore Shetland Gas Plant. Total has defended the rota change as enhancing safety and efficiency, particularly as longer offshore stints help reduce helicopter flights. A separate dispute involving Petrofac workers at BP's North Sea platforms remains unresolved, with industrial action under discussion, Unite said. -- Nick Coleman, nick.coleman@spglobal.com -- Edited by Dan Lalor, daniel.lalor@spglobal.com
Planned strike action at Total’s North Sea platforms has been called off by trade union Unite after London and BP workers agreed to accept new offshore work rotas. Total defended the 3:3 rota, claiming it enhances safety and efficiency since longer shifts helped reduce helicopter flights. Another, separate dispute over rotas involving Petrofac workers at Aker Solutions ’s North Sea platforms remains unresolved.