As hundreds of offshore workers prepare to strike, dozens of oil and gas platforms in the North Sea of the UK may halt.

Major oil and gas operators on the UK Shelf face a ‘tsunami’ of industrial unrest in the coming weeks, as 1,400 offshore workers from five companies demand a better deal in terms of jobs, pay, and working conditions.

The action will affect massive oil and gas operators, including BP, CNRI, EnQuest, Shell, and Total.

Sharon Graham, general secretary of Unite, stated, “Oil and gas companies have been granted carte blanche to reap enormous windfall profits in the North Sea; drilling concessions are, in essence, licenses to print money.” “1,400 offshore workers are planning a strike against their employers, who are raking it in but refusing to give them their fair share. This will result in a tidal wave of industrial unrest in the offshore sector.”

The prospective action includes electrical, production, mechanical technicians, Bilfinger UK, Stork, Petrofac, Wood, Sparrow’s deck crew, scaffolders, crane operators, pipefitters, platers, and riggers.

Unite industrial officer John Boland added, “Unite has received unprecedented support for industrial action on the UK Continental Shelf.” “It is the largest offshore assignment we have received in a generation. This is unquestionably a direct result of oil and gas companies reaping record profits while the workforce receives scraps.”

Unite stated that two additional industrial action ballots are scheduled for this week at Petrofac BP and Worley Services UK on Harbour Energy platforms, which could bring the total number of offshore workers participating in industrial action to around 1,500.