Stop British Petroleum’s Cuts. End The Illegal Lockout!
Your official hub for the latest USW 7-1 negotiation updates.
Stop British Petroleum’s Cuts. End The Illegal Lockout!
Your official hub for the latest USW 7-1 negotiation updates.
British Petroleum is pushing cuts that threaten our families and our community. USW 7-1 is united for a fair contract.
Generations of local union workers have dedicated their careers to working at the Whiting refinery. British Petroleum has cut hundreds of those jobs and is now demanding to eliminate hundreds more, while cutting pay across the board. We stand united in demanding a fair contract for USW 7-1.
Frequently Asked Questions
We are USW 7-1 – the union representing more than 800 men and women who operate British Petroleum’s refinery in Whiting, Ind. At 1,400 acres, it’s the largest inland refinery in the country. We provide maintenance, operations, fire safety and environmental responsibilities that allows the company to process about 440,000 barrels of crude oil daily, which produces about 10 million gallons of gasoline every day.
We have had a contract with British Petroleum for decades and the most recent contract expired Jan. 31. As we continued negotiations, we mutually agreed to rolling 24-hour extensions of that contract. Our union accepted many provisions in their proposals, but with the complexity and length of each, we were unable to accept many in their entirety. On March 2, they presented us with their “Last, Best and Final Offer.” It was rejected by the membership on March 12. The company then presented a “revised settlement offer” on March 13 that was worse than their “Last, Best and Final Offer.” We again rejected that and presented a counterproposal on March 17. Just four hours later, the company
rejected our counterproposal, issued notice of the cancellation of rolling extensions and a notice of intent to lock us out of our jobs, effective at midnight on March 18.
USW 7-1 has accepted many aspects of the company’s proposals, but not in their entirety. They insist on taking actions we are unwilling to compromise on, including:
- Eliminate more than 100 local jobs
- Nearly all job classifications accept pay cuts
- Give up seniority and bargaining rights
Those three points are non-starters for our union members.
Non-union workers from Texas, Louisiana and elsewhere have been hired to fill many of the manual and maintenance roles, most stepping into the refinery for the first time. In addition, British Petroleum managers and administrative staff are “locked in” and trying to perform skilled work, attempting to carry out operations and technical roles.
It is incredibly dangerous for people with no experience in our refinery to be asked to operate it 24/7. It is dangerous for them and for our community.
We have always wanted to continue negotiations, in fact, we sent the company a letter on March 18 th – the day the lockout was to become effective – requesting to return to work and to return to the bargaining table. Unfortunately, British Petroleum has said the only way to end the lockout is for our members to accept their last proposal which includes their demands to cut more than 100 jobs, slash pay across most job classifications and give up our bargaining and seniority rights. That’s not negotiating, that’s making a demand. We remain hopeful the company will return to the table and negotiate a fair contract.
That’s up to the company. We have repeatedly asked British Petroleum to lift the lockout and allow our members to return to work under the previous contract terms. As of March 31 st , they have refused and they have not communicated further.
You can help in many ways. As our members go without paychecks due to British Petroleum locking us out of our jobs, we appreciate any offers of support.
- Food donations can be arranged by contacting our office at officemanager@usw7-1.com and scheduling a delivery, as we have limited refrigerator/freezer space.
- Donations of grocery or warehouse club gift cards so we can purchase bulk items and prepare meals in the kitchen at our hall
- Gas cards are welcome, as we transport members to picket sites in our van, 24/7
- Monetary donations can be written and sent to:
United Steelworkers Local 7-1, Inc.
STRIKE AND DEFENSE FUND
2045 Schrage Ave
Whiting, IN 46394 - Clean, dry, seasoned and split firewood for overnight picket lines
- You are always welcome to join our picket line in solidarity by contacting us at officemanager@usw7-1.com
Follow us on social media – www.facebook.com/USW71Oilworkers and Instagram https://www.instagram.com/usw7_1/ or here at www.supportoilworkers.com
HOW YOU CAN HELP
Join a picket line
Our members are picketing in assigned shifts and welcome fellow picketers who support a fair contract. Contact officemanager@usw7-1.com or stop by our union hall at 2045 Schrage Ave. in Whiting for a picket location you can join and show solidarity!
Show solidarity
Click the button below to download a PDF and print a sign showing your support for USW 7-1 workers at BP. You can also pick up a sign at our union hall, 2045 Schrage Ave. in Whiting.
Social media
Rally With Workers
We are your friends, neighbors, coaches and community volunteers – and we need your support. Contact us at officemanager@usw7-1.com to find out when we are rallying
Display a Sign
Display a sign in your business’ storefront; sign a petition showing your support – to request a sign email officemanager@usw7-1.com directly. See video below to see a list of all of our supporters.
Make a Donation
The support from The Region has been incredible. We appreciate it. But we also expect to be locked out for weeks, if not months. Our members will go without a paycheck during that time, walking picket lines and demanding that British Petroleum end the lockout and resume bargaining.
Among the items you can drop off:
- Coffee
- Bottled water
- Clean, dry, split firewood
- Diapers and formula for those with infants at home
- Gas cards for our vans shuttling members to picket sites
- Grocery store or warehouse gift certificates so we can purchase food, toiletries and related items
- Make a donation to our Strike & Defense Fund. We accept cash or checks by dropping off or mailing to: United Steelworkers Local 7-1 Strike & Defense Fund, 2045 Schrage Ave., Whiting, IN 46394
We appreciate food donations from residents and restaurants, but we only have so much refrigerator space. Please contact us at officemanager@usw7-1.com to schedule a time to donate food.
“For the sake of the country, BP needs to bring some good faith back to the bargaining table.”
—Peter Navarro, White House senior counselor
“If you’re not listening to them, you’re going to have trouble keeping them, and in this particular dynamic, when you’re dealing with a super-large corporation, it’s got to be a reasonable, honest broker discussion, and I don’t think we’re doing that when you lock out employees.”
– Indiana Gov. Mike Braun
“The greatest asset any company has is the workers. They deserve to be paid, work in a safe place and have the dignity of a good retirement. We’re concerned about the 100 members that could get laid off, AI tracking workers wherever they go and having all the power go to the corporation and the workers being left behind. We’re here to fight for the families of Northwest Indiana.”
– U.S. Rep. Frank Mrvan
USW 7-1 Sign Downloads
Latest Videos
Lockout Updates
USW president vows full weight of international union behind BP Whiting workers
USW president vows full weight of international union behind BP Whiting workers
USW president vows full weight of international union behind BP Whiting workers
March 27, 2026
From nwitimes.com
BP Whiting refinery lockout nears second week as safety fears mount
USW president vows full weight of international union behind BP Whiting workers
USW president vows full weight of international union behind BP Whiting workers
March 25, 2026
From healthandsafetyinternational.com
BP to lock out workers at Whiting refinery starting Thursday
USW president vows full weight of international union behind BP Whiting workers
BP to lock out workers at Whiting refinery starting Thursday
March 18, 2026 4:49AM
From abc7chicago.com
BP locks out union workers at its Midwest oil refinery
BP revises Whiting oil refinery contract offer after union members reject proposal
BP to lock out workers at Whiting refinery starting Thursday
March 17, 2026 5:58 PM
From reuters.com
USW rejects bp's final offer to Whiting refinery (U.S.) workers
BP revises Whiting oil refinery contract offer after union members reject proposal
BP revises Whiting oil refinery contract offer after union members reject proposal
March 13, 2026 12:00 PM
From HydroCarbonProcessing.com
BP revises Whiting oil refinery contract offer after union members reject proposal
BP revises Whiting oil refinery contract offer after union members reject proposal
BP revises Whiting oil refinery contract offer after union members reject proposal
March 13, 2026 10:46 AM
From reuters.com
Media Contact: Steve Patterson, steve@arrowstrategygroup.com
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British Petroleum locked out more than 800 union members from their Whiting refinery at 11:59 PM on March 18, after we refused their demand to cut more than 100 local jobs, accept pay cuts to almost all other positions and give up basic bargaining rights. We stand in solidarity in our demand for a fair contract!