Due to an ongoing strike among oil truck drivers, petrol supplies are quickly depleting at Reykjavík stations, and representatives of major stations anticipate that supplies of diesel fuel will soon run out, Vísir reports. The CEO of N1 told the outlet yesterday that the company’s stations will close “one after the other” in the coming days. He is particularly concerned about the situation that may arise after the weekend.
Wage negotiations remain at a standstill
There is still no progress in the wage dispute between the Efling union and the Confederation of Icelandic Enterprise (SA); after Ástráður Haraldsson, the new temporarily-appointed state mediator, failed to inspire progress last weekend, members of the Icelandic Confederation of Enterprise (SA) voted to approve a lockout of some 20,000 workers. The lockout is set to begin on March 2 at noon.
Meanwhile, strikes among oil truck drivers – alongside employees at the Berjaya and the Edition hotels (in addition to the original 700 striking hotel workers and other labourers) – resumed last Sunday at midnight. Since then, petrol supplies have gradually begun to deplete.
Representatives of major stations anticipate that supplies of diesel fuel will run dry soon. The CEO of N1 told Vísir yesterday that the company’s petrol stations would close one after the other in the coming days. He also expressed particular concern over the situation that may arise after the weekend.
“The petrol situation is better, but with regard to diesel stocks, I fear that the situation will become difficult around or after the weekend … I really don’t want to imagine the situation after the weekend, but it will be serious.”
Many N1 employees are members of the Efling union. Regarding the planned lockout of SA, Hinrik stated that N1 employees were “not at all ready to stop working.”
Companies facing a similar situation
As reported by Vísir, other oil companies face a similar situation. The CEO of Olís told the outlet yesterday that the situation was “difficult” and that, in some cases, both diesel and petrol supplies had run out, or were about to run out, at some of the company’s largest stations.
Drivers can view Ólís’ inventory status at its various stations online.
As supplies slowly run dry, some drivers have resorted to hoarding fuel. Last week, a truck driver posted a video on Tik-Tok in which he filled huge plastic tanks with diesel fuel. The first reports suggested that the man had pumped approximately four thousand litres, but it now seems that the quantity was even greater. Such a thing is both illegal and highly dangerous,
Þórður Guðjónsson, CEO of Skeljungur, told Fréttablaðið yesterday that it was a matter of “grave” concern when drivers carry more fuel on board their vehicles than the law allows. He also maintained that records were broken at petrol pumps last week.
Lockout to have a greater impact than strikes
Þórður also told RÚV that the effect of SA’s lockout would be much greater than that of the strike. “Contractors who drive for us belong to Efling, and as a result, they will not be able to distribute anymore … as soon as the lockout begins, pretty much everything will come to a standstill.”
RÚV also noted that SA’s lockout would also have a major impact on oil companies’ service stations and lubrication and tire services, which the Efling strikes have thus far not disrupted.
Participation in lockouts “not optional”
SA issued a statement yesterday, stressing that the participation of companies in the lockout was not optional. The Confederation also published a list of exempt parties from the lockout that will be imposed on Efling members. These include all those who work in health and geriatric services, as well as the police, the fire brigade, ambulances, and search-and-rescue teams, in addition to civil defence and educational institutions.
As noted by Vísir: “In the event of a lockout, no one who works according to the collective agreements between SA and Efling may come to work unless they receive an exemption from SA’s executive board. Salary payments are cancelled during the lockout, as in the case of strikes, as stated on SA’s website.”
