St. Paul Park, MN – On January 21, nearly 200 members of Teamsters Local 120 who work at Marathon Petroleum Refinery in Saint Paul Park walked off the job, beginning an unfair labor practice strike.

In the lead-up to this strike, bargaining broke down when Marathon management refused to continue bargaining in good faith.

Management is trying to outsource some parts of the work that these union workers do. Additionally, they want to further increase the workloads of the union members who are overworked already. This will mean they will need to cut corners and put themselves and their coworkers in danger just so that Marathon can increase its profits.

The Marathon workers are demanding a safe workplace, which is only possible with manageable workloads so the work can be done safely and be done right.

Teamsters Local 120 President Tom Erickson states Marathon workers “won't stand for it.” Teamsters Local 120 Business Agent Scott Kroona says, “Marathon wants to use lowest bidder subcontractors for jobs that are safety sensitive.” He went on to add that “especially after the refinery explosion in Superior, Wisconsin a few years ago, we aren’t willing to take those risks.”

This is a developing story. As this strike goes forward you can look for more updates by following Teamsters 120 on Facebook or look to Fight Back! for further coverage.

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