The UK Offshore Sector in a $60 World: Q&A with Deirdre Michie

Oil & Gas UK fully supports the principle of broadening female participation in the oil and gas workforce, and I believe that encouraging women to join this industry is crucial if we are to make the most of the pool of talent.

Rigzone: What is your view of the “equal time shifts for offshore workers” policy being pursued by the UK industry at the moment and which is causing some unions to consider strike action? How can this matter best be resolved?

Michie: Equal time rotas are not unusual. They were the norm until about 10 years ago and, in fact, many people already work an equal time rota, particularly in the drilling sector. The cost of oil and gas operations on the UKCS has more than doubled over the last five years, making it the most expensive province in the world in which to operate and therefore the industry must look to improve its efficiency on a sustainable basis in order to restore the basin’s competitiveness and protect jobs across the supply chain for the long term.

As with all offshore operations, whatever changes are made in work patterns, HSE guidance is in place for managing the health, safety and welfare of offshore employees. We expect companies to follow current guidance for managing work and rest offshore and that will ensure safety is not compromised.

Where safety is managed in accordance with HSE guidance, changes to equal-time rotas should have no detriment to safety.

It could be said that equal time rotas may help further improve safety because crews do their handovers directly to their back to backs. This ensures any issues are passed on first hand, improving communication.

For a number of companies, changes in rota patterns can unlock highly significant savings in helicopter costs. The steep fall in oil price also means that all companies in the UK North Sea have to make difficult decisions to secure the future of their operations in the basin.

We are concerned that industrial action would only add to the real challenges facing the industry and therefore welcome the progress made between employers and unions in recent negotiations.


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