Coryton Refinery Workers Plan To Disrupt London Olympics [1]

On Wednesday July 11, hundreds of workers from the threatened refinery facility said they would hold protests in order to disrupt fuel supplies the weekend before the Olympic Games begin in a last-ditch bid to save their jobs.

In a meeting at the Pegasus Social Club in the grounds of the refinery, about 120 workers urged the British Coalition government to conduct an inquiry into the closure of the plant.

"The only way to get the [UK] government to take notice is to threaten them," said Russ Ball, regional representative for Britain's largest trade union, Unite.

Furthermore, Ball called on the workers to "mount a campaign of direct action" outside the Vopak terminal in Purfleet over the weekend of 21-22 July.

Being asked whether actions will continue over the period of the 2012 London Olympics, he replied, "We can't rule it out. We're fighting for our community, for the jobs of our members. We can't let it go without a fight."

Earlier on June 15, the Unite union accused the Tory-led government of hypocrisy by refusing to support the Coryton oil refinery by state cash while at the same time pumping billions of pounds into the country’s banking industry.

Moreover, workers, families and supporters from the threatened Coryton oil refinery held a demonstration titled “Stop the jobs massacre! Support the Coryton oil refinery workers!” in Central London on June 18.

SSM/HE