Collective Action

The Tripoli Oil Installation workers’ syndicate issued a statement announcing the start of a strike Wednesday that would continue until “justice is reached” to protest the “energy minister’s refusal to grant wages that match living expenses,” the state-run National News Agency reported. The workers noted that they would be “incapable of continuing their work with the loss of purchasing power,” noting that until now they had persisted in meeting demand for oil despite the crises in the country. Among these crises, they specifically cited the COVID-19 pandemic and road closures. The strike announced “the suspension of work in all sections of the oil installations in Tripoli (delivery of diesel fuel, guards, finance, technicians, tank maintenance work and maintenance of the Arab gas pipeline).” The syndicate said that the beginning of the strike came after numerous “failed attempts at discussion” with the Energy Ministry, including the mediation of the General Confederation of Lebanese Workers’ head Bechara al-Asmar. The workers indicated that the strike had been delayed to avoid “harming the country and vital institutions (telecommunications, hospitals, bakeries, the army) by providing them with emergency supplies.” The Tripoli Oil Installation, along with its Zahrani counterpart, comprise the main routes of state-supervised fuel imports.