Overview
- The lockout took effect at 11:59 p.m. Wednesday, with more than 800 United Steelworkers barred from the site as picketing began.
- Union leaders say BP is demanding elimination of over 100 jobs and broad pay cuts, positions they reject after months of bargaining.
- BP says operations will continue safely with qualified employees and outside contractors and that it expects no impact on production.
- A revised six-year company offer includes restructuring affecting about 20% of roles and smaller lump-sum payments, and BP says it withdrew part of an earlier job-transfer plan.
- The Whiting refinery supplies gasoline, diesel and jet fuel across the Chicago region and neighboring states, and analysts say only a prolonged dispute would heighten outage or price risks.