Workers at the Rimelan oil fields stage protest against transfer to HKN under temporary contracts
Workers at the Rimelan oil fields staged a protest today outside the fields’ administration, rejecting measures to transfer them to the American company HKN under temporary contracts, amid concerns over their professional future and the protection of their financial and employment rights.
The protest, held in the town of Rimelan, which belongs to the city of Qamishlo in the Jazira Region, was attended by oil field workers.
During the protest, the workers read a statement affirming their rejection of being transferred to the company under temporary contracts without legal guarantees protecting their acquired rights and previous years of service. They noted that they had worked in the oil sector for between 15 and 37 years, and that the professional experience they had gained over those years required their rights to be preserved and not diminished.
The statement explained that subjecting workers to a six-month probationary period in exchange for submitting their resignations from the Syrian Petroleum Company did not provide sufficient guarantees for job security. It called for the issuance of a clear official decision safeguarding their employment and financial rights, ensuring continuity of service and full recognition of their previous years of work.
The workers also demanded payment of salaries and outstanding financial dues that had been withheld for two months, as well as the preservation of all their acquired rights, including health insurance, medical care, compensation, and social security and pension benefits.
The statement stressed the need to stop any threats, pressure, arbitrary dismissal or transfer targeting workers because of their participation in the protest, calling on the relevant authorities to respond to their demands within no more than 72 hours from the date of the statement.
The workers affirmed their commitment to peaceful protest action, warning that they would take broader and escalatory protest measures if their demands were not met within the specified deadline
Sh-S
ANHA