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Schlumberger Ignores ICEM’s Offer of Dialogue

21 March, 2012

Schlumberger, the world’s largest oilfield services company, has sent a clear indication of its unwillingness to seek solution to a damaging labour relations situation at its Egyptian operations.

Management of the French-based company in numerous locations and levels throughout the world responded over the past month to letters of different trade unions and activist organisations with a similar response each time, outlining their supposed readiness to solve the dispute in Egypt and launch an investigation.

However, when ICEM General Secretary Manfred Warda offered to come to Egypt to meet Amr Essawi, the Area Manager for Schlumberger in Cairo on 8 March, the offer was ignored.

In May 2011, the process to establish an independent company-level trade union at Schlumberger Egypt was finalised, as part of the Egyptian Federation of Independent Trade Unions (EFITU), the trade union centre established during the final days of the Mubarak regime.

  

EFITU Founding Congress, February 2012

On 11 May, when local management was informed of the new union structure, it responded with threats and dismissed the union branch’s General Secretary Mohamed, Abd Elrahman. On 3 July, the day of the union’s founding general congress, local management then dismissed the union’s President, Brother Essam.

On 5 July, local management summoned union members to the head office and threatened them with dismissal if they did not leave the union. And then on 7 July, local management followed through on an earlier threat and dismissed the union’s Assistant General Secretary, Ayman Abd Elmonem.

No reason or dismissal letter was given to Abd Elmonem. He was simply blocked from entering the workplace. On 12 July, another union member was dismissed in similar circumstances, Mr. Hossam Al-deed Mostafa, again with no written dismissal notice.

ICEM affiliates who represent Schlumberger employees in Europe and North America have approached management at their prospective national level, each have been promised that the company is committed to find a solution and establish mature systems of industrial relations throughout the company’s operations and specifically in Egypt.

But the leaders of the nascent company-level union for Schlumberger workers in Egypt remain sacked from their positions and refusal to discuss the situation with the ICEM is concerning.

The ICEM, therefore, intends to expand its campaign with the next phase targeting Schlumberger’s clients, the major oil and gas multinationals. Schlumberger employs 2,500 workers in Egypt, 40% of who work for subcontractors at 10 different worksites. 

Register your protest to Schlumberger Chairman Andrew Gould, CEO Paal Kibsgaard, and Egypt Area Manager Amr Essawy by clicking here.