FEARS over more than 2,000 jobs at three oil rig fabrication yards in Fife and in the Outer Hebrides are to be discussed between First Minister Nicola Sturgeon and the trade unions GMB and Unite.
According to the unions, Burntisland and Methil yards in Fife and Arnish on Lewis owned by Burntisland Fabrications Limited (Bifab) have missed out on contracts supported by the Scottish Government.
BiFab employs a total of 2,500 workers at its three yards and there have been concerns for some time about jobs at all three due to the downturn in the oil and gas industry.
After the union complained that Nicola Sturgeon had refused to meet them, Alasdair Allan, SNP MSP for the Western Isles, confirmed yesterday that the First Minister’s office was making arrangements for a meeting.
The GMB and Unite said they have had to make repeated requests for a meeting with Sturgeon.
Allan said: “I am happy to confirm that there will be a meeting between representatives of the workforce and the First Minister. That is something her office is presently arranging.”
The MSP told Radio Scotland the yard at Arnish, near Stornoway, was an important employer in the area.
A Scottish Government spokeswoman said: “The request for a meeting with the First Minister has been received and will be responded shortly.
“The Scottish Government will continue to do everything we can to safeguard jobs and ensure that in the current challenging times for oil and gas and related sectors, we provide the support they need to continue to contribute strongly to the economy.”
Bifab’s yards build modules for the oil and gas industry, and it is known that in February, the company held talks with Highlands and Islands Enterprise and Scottish Enterprise on how jobs at Arnish could be safeguarded
According to GMB, contracts heavily supported by the Scottish Government are not being awarded to the three yards and are going overseas instead, placing jobs and skills at risk.
There is a recent example of such a contact being awarded to a yard in Spain.
The unions said on Wednesday that they were “extremely disappointed” that they had not received a response to an earlier request for a meeting with the First Minster on this issue.
Dave Hulse, GMB National Officer, said: “We are disappointed that we have not had a response from the First Minister’s office to meet with the trade unions to discuss the current circumstances at the Burntisland Fabrications Limited three yards in Scotland.
“Contracts heavily supported by the Scottish Government are going overseas.
“We need to emphasise the importance to the Scottish economy of the skilled jobs that are being lost with these decisions.
“If contracts are not awarded very soon to Burntisland Fabrications Limited we face the real possibility of these yards being mothballed and jobs lost forever to the industry.”
Bernard McCaulay, Unite national officer, said: “Hundreds of skilled workers face the prospect of long-term unemployment due to these major projects which are heavily subsidised by Scottish taxpayers [going] outside the UK.
“We must protect the skills of those workers to pass on to future generations to maintain Scotland as world leader in delivering these major projects for the offshore industry clients.”
The future of the Arnish yard in particular has caused concern in the past, but Bifab took a strategic decision some years ago to invest in money and facilities at all its yards to try and capture a share of the renewable energy market and it is contracts for work on renewables infrastructure which are supported by the Scottish Government.
The 94-acre site at Arnish Point is recognised as one of the best deep water quay facilities in the entire northwest of Scotland, and has been specifically aimed at providing infrastructure for the renewables industry, particularly wind and tidal power developments, having worked on the Oyster 2 Project for Aquamarine and the subsea tidal turbine for Hammerfest Strom.
Bifab has also been a major contributor to the infrastructure for offshore wind farms around the UK, making “jackets” for the structures needed to support wind turbines.
Why are you making commenting on The National only available to subscribers?
We know there are thousands of National readers who want to debate, argue and go back and forth in the comments section of our stories. We’ve got the most informed readers in Scotland, asking each other the big questions about the future of our country.
Unfortunately, though, these important debates are being spoiled by a vocal minority of trolls who aren’t really interested in the issues, try to derail the conversations, register under fake names, and post vile abuse.
So that’s why we’ve decided to make the ability to comment only available to our paying subscribers. That way, all the trolls who post abuse on our website will have to pay if they want to join the debate – and risk a permanent ban from the account that they subscribe with.
The conversation will go back to what it should be about – people who care passionately about the issues, but disagree constructively on what we should do about them. Let’s get that debate started!
Callum Baird, Editor of The National
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules here