Exxon Mobil Corp rejected three proposals in August made by the union representing 650 locked-out workers at the company’s Beaumont, Texas, refinery, the company said, as reported by Reuters.
“Over 120 days have passed since the initiation of the lockout, and the union has not presented an offer that came close to meeting the company’s objectives,” Exxon said in a message posted its website.
A spokesperson for the United Steelworkers union (USW) local 13-243, which represents the locked-out workers, was not immediately available for comment.
Exxon locked out the hourly employees at the 369,024 barrel-per-day refinery and adjoining lubricant oil plant on May 1 to avoid a strike as a 75-day labor peace period came to an end following the expiration of the contract.
The USW has said the company's last proposal, made in January, requires its members to give up long-standing seniority and would create a separate contract for workers in the lube oil plant from that for workers in the refinery.
Exxon has said the proposal would give it flexibility to be profitable in low-margin environments.
On Wednesday, Exxon said it was following through with previously announced plans to recruit a third group of basic refinery operators, which began training on Aug. 23.
Exxon said the operators would augment the refinery managers and supervisors who have been running the refinery since the lockout began.
