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Norwegian oil service workers end five-week strike
AFP
OSLO
Petroleumworld.com 07 25 06
Norwegian oil service workers have ended a five-week strike after reaching a wage agreement with employers, the two sides said.
The agreement was reached late Monday.
Nearly 90 members of the Nopef union walked off the job on June 21 to demand parity with offshore oil workers, with two weeks' work followed by four weeks' rest, and a pay increase.
The strike affected exploration activities and the maintenance of production facilities, but not production itself. Norway is the world's third largest oil exporter.
The employers' organisation OLF had argued that meeting the union's demands would hamper the flexibility of companies at a time of shortage of skilled staff.
The oil services sector has been booming in Norway thanks to high oil prices, which have prompted oil companies to invest more in exploration and also in production in areas previously seen as unprofitable.
The two sides agreed to raise annual salaries by at least 43,000 kroner (5,411 euros, 6,850 dollars) over two years and to begin local-level negotiations within each company on the so-called two-four system.
AFP 25 1102 GMT 07 06
Copyright ©2006 AFP. All Rights Reserved.
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