MOSCOW (MRC) -- On 12 March, workers at INEOS Pigments’ production facility in Ashtabula, Ohio, went on strike over disputes in labour practices, as well as prolonged attempts by unionised employees to negotiate their first contract after forming a union, said Plasticsnews.
INEOS Pigments is a subsidiary of INEOS, British multinational chemical company with its headquarters in London.
In September 2021, INEOS Pigments employees at Plant 2 in Ashtabula voted to form a union. In a news release, Ralph "Sam" Cook, Secretary-Treasurer of the Teamsters Local 377 union, said the company has stalled in negotiating the first contract with employees since the union was formed, and is preventing workers from collective bargaining.
INEOS workers are represented by Teamsters Local 377, as well as Local 1033C of the International Chemical Workers Union Council.
According to the news release, the INEOS facility employs more than 400 workers, although the number of unionised workers is not known.
Neither INEOS nor the Teamsters Local 377 immediately responded to questions about the strike, including how many workers were involved and whether operations at the facility had been impacted by the walkout.
According to media reports, management employees, as well as non-union represented workers, have continued to work at the site.
The Ashtabula facility has two plants that produce titanium dioxide (TiO2). The second plant - where workers went on strike on 12 March - has a nameplate capacity of 120,000 tonnes per year. Chlorine is also produced there, with a nameplate capacity of 60,000 tonnes annually.
We remind, INEOS has secured EUR3.5bn in financing for its Antwerp, Belgium, cracker project, set to have the lowest CO2 output of any unit in the continent. The plant, expected onstream in 2026, has the capacity to operate entirely on low-carbon hydrogen, with scope for the addition of a carbon capture facility and electric furnaces in future, according to INEOS. The estimated budget for the project, which INEOS made a final investment decision (FID) on last year, currently stands at EUR4.0bn.
mrchub.com