Petrol shortages are expected to unleash travel chaos across the North West and Scottish borders next week as forecourt delivery drivers walk out over poor pay.
Planes could be grounded and drivers left struggling to fill up at the pumps when dozens of refinery-based delivery drivers working for fuel logistics company Oxalis strike from June 6.
It could spell a headache for holidaymakers at the start of the busy summer season, as the striking drivers deliver petrol to airlines including Jet2 at Liverpool airport.
Shell, BP and Esso forecourts are also among those reliant on Oxalis for petrol deliveries, with the Unite union warning the strike will cause ‘significant disruption to fuel supplies across the North West and Scottish borders’.
There is a risk the petrol crisis could become even more widespread if other drivers operating out of the terminals used by Oxalis refuse to cross the picket line, according to one source.
Planes could be grounded and drivers left struggling to fill up at the pumps when dozens of refinery-based delivery drivers working for fuel logistics company Oxalis strike from June 6
Shell (pictured), BP and Esso forecourts are also among those reliant on Oxalis for petrol deliveries
This could lead to petrol supplies being disrupted at forecourts of the region’s major supermarkets, it was claimed.
‘It’s very frowned upon within the industry to cross the line,’ a source at the refinery told the Mail. ‘It is taken seriously.’
The strike will last from June 6 to June 8 at the Stanlow oil terminal, before starting again on June 13 to June 15, according to Unite.
Further strikes could follow if the dispute is not resolved. The union said 50 drivers were involved.
The dispute centres on pay for the drivers in the region, who claim to have been offered significantly less than colleagues in other parts of the country.
Unite claimed that Oxalis drivers in Thurrock and Birmingham have been offered £2 an hour more than the Stanlow drivers.
Unite general secretary Sharon Graham said: ‘Oxalis is treating its Stanlow-based drivers as second-class workers.
‘There is absolutely no reason why this profitable company should not be paying these workers the same rates as pay as their colleagues based elsewhere. They will receive Unite’s total support as they strike for equal pay.’
A tanker makes a delivery at a Shell petrol station in Basingstoke
The price of diesel and unleaded petrol are displayed on a sign outside a Shell petrol station in Newscastle
Unite regional officer Paul Lomax said: ‘Oxalis’ clients will not be happy that their customers face fuel shortages because the company is trying to pay its Stanlow-based drivers less than their colleagues doing the same job elsewhere.
Oxalis needs to put forward an equal offer or this dispute will escalate.’
A spokesman for Oxalis said: ‘Oxalis has offered drivers a 19 per cent pay increase over two years.
‘Any further increase severely compromises the viability of the operation and puts jobs at risk.
‘Further talks are planned with the Union and whilst we hope we can reach a mutually agreeable deal, contingency plans are fully developed and we are confident all our operations will continue should industrial action take place.’
BP, Shell, Jet2 and Esso were contacted for comment.