Oil Terminal Trade Union announces the start of a collective labor dispute beginning August 24, after salary negotiations failed

The Oil Terminal Trade Union has announced the initiation of a collective labor dispute, set to begin on August 24, 2026, following the collapse of salary increase negotiations. Union members are now preparing for a potential strike after discussions with the company's management concluded without a resolution. The core of the dispute lies in the government's refusal to approve a memorandum for a 6.5% salary increase across the company, a figure that unionists argue is below the current inflation rate.

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The collective negotiations failed due to the government's refusal to approve the memorandum for a 6.5% salary increase at the company level (below the current inflation rate), as provided for by the legislative framework.

Representatives from the union have been actively engaging with various government bodies, including the Ministry of Energy, the Constanța County Council, and the Prefect's Institution of Constanța County, in an effort to unblock the memorandum for salary hikes. The National Trade Union Confederation "Cartel ALFA" has expressed solidarity with the Oil Terminal union, criticizing the interim government's economic approach. Cartel ALFA stated that the government is demonstrating "obtuseness and a lack of economic sense," pushing a labor conflict that could result in greater financial losses than the requested salary increase.

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We consider that the interim government is demonstrating obtuseness and a lack of economic sense.

Cartel ALFA highlighted that the additional cost for the approved salary increase would be approximately 4 million lei by the end of the year. In contrast, they estimate that a five-day strike could inflict damages exceeding 6.5 million lei. The confederation further warned that the repercussions of a labor conflict could extend beyond Oil Terminal, impacting the entire supply chain for petroleum products, refinery operations, and Romania's energy security, particularly in the current sensitive energy climate. The union organization stressed that such actions undermine employee morale and discourage performance, attributing the situation to governmental failures and poor governance decisions.

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If we factor in the indirect effects on the entire petroleum product supply chain, refinery operations, and Romania's energy security, in an already sensitive context for the energy sector, not to mention the demotivation of employees and discouragement of performance, then the damage is much greater than the supposed 'savings' to the budget.

The union is urgently calling on the Executive to implement measures to prevent the escalation of this labor conflict, urging an end to practices that they claim sabotage the functioning of the economy. The potential economic and social consequences are described as difficult to assess, underscoring the gravity of the situation.

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Such actions clearly show how today's rulers are trying to transfer their political failures and bad governance decisions entirely onto the workers.