Layoffs kick in at shuttered Philly refinery
PHILADELPHIA >> There will be no more reprieves for workers at the shuttered Philadelphia Energy Solutions refinery.
The pink slips are going out for workers at the facility that was rocked by an explosion and fire back in June.
After delaying scheduled layoffs for six weeks in July, the company notified the union Tuesday that most of the workforce will be terminated immediately.
The refinery employs more than 1,000 workers, many of whom live in Delaware County.
Ryan O’Callaghan, president of Steelworkers Local 10-1 based in Norwood, which represents most of the unionized workforce, confirmed the news and said workers were being notified.
Employees likely will be paid only through the end of this week, at which time their benefits also will end. Workers are not receiving severance packages.
A massive explosion at the refinery on June 21 shook the plant and rattled neighbors’ homes, instilling new fears about the dangers posed by the refinery. Four workers suffered minor injuries. Philadelphia Energy Solutions, the company created to take over the firm by the Carlyle Group when Sunoco got out of the refinery business back in 2012, almost immediately indicated they would shut down the plant and seek a buyer. A few weeks later they filed for bankruptcy protection for the second time.
Several groups have expressed an interest in the site, though it is not known if they would try to utilize it as a refinery.
Earlier this week, the first in a series of public hearings about what the future of the plant and site should be was held. Several more hearings are on tap.
Some workers actually were told they would be losing their jobs last week.
Since the blast, workers, along with state and federal officials, have been working to prepare the plant for shutdown and neutralizing the plant’s cache of hydrofluoric acid, a volatile chemical used in the refining process. Investigators have been prevented from accessing the site because of the volatility of the materials that remain inside.
The cause of the explosion at the sprawling site, the largest refinery on the East Coast, remains under investigation. The refinery procuded 335,000 barrels of fuel a day.
In late July, Delaware County officials rolled out programs to help idled workers at both the refinery and Hahnemann Hospital, which also is shutting down.
John J. Daly, executive director of the Delaware County Office of Workforce Development, placed the number of affected workers at the refinery at 1,044, 634 union staff and 410 non-union.
Daly explained that Rapid Response Sessions were held for workers at PES headquarters and at the refinery from July 8 through July 11. Forty-five employers attended the job fairs.
A session also was held at the Delaware County Community College’s STEM Center.
Daly noted his services are more commonly known as Pennsylvania CareerLink with locations in two places, where services from resume building to applying for positions are provided for those looking for employment.
The Chester office at 701 Crosby St., Ground Floor is open 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Friday. Their telephone number is 610447-3350.
Officials from the United Steelworkers Union Local
10-1 based in Norwood said about 700 of their members work at the site in addition to another 500 salaried personnel and 800 members of the Building Trades unions.
Referring to studies generated by state and private analysts, union officials estimate the local economy could face up to a $10 billion impact with up to 36,000 other indirect workers experiencing a full or partial effect.
At a recent meeting, federal, state and local elected officials packed the United Steelworkers hall to express their support for the workers and to talk about the next steps to take to find a new owner for the facility.
“The economic impact is going to spread far and wide,” said Callaghan. “We just can’t find jobs around the corner. It’s a specialty occupation.”
The union leader referenced a 2017 analysis completed by Alex Holcomb of the University of Texas at El Paso.
Using data culled by Pennsylvania’s Center for Workforce Information & Analysis, the Holcomb report estimated that “the loss of every 100 refinery jobs could reduce the output of the local economy by as much as $1 billion.”
USW officials said on any given day, there were 2,000 employees at PES – about 700 Steelworkers, 300 salaried personnel and an estimated 1,000 workers from the Building Trades. That translates to a $10 billion blow to the region’s economy.
O’Callaghan spoke of the benefit the trade unions have seen from their work at PES.
“Individual units in the refinery come down all the time for maintenance,” he said, adding that the 150-year-old facility constantly was being improved through capital investments. “That’s where the Building Trades come in and work 8 million man hours in the past six years.”
But, O’Callaghan warned, it won’t just be the men and women inside the yard that will feel an impact.
“There’s more people going to lose their jobs,” he said. “In that analysis for every one direct refinery employee that loses their job, up to 18 other people will lose part or all of their salary. There’s a whole lot of people that are going to be affected - tens of thousands - not a couple hundred.”
The refinery operation was saved back in 2012 when Sunoco entered into a agreement with the Carlyle Group. After last year’s bankruptcy, it is owned mostly by its creditors. Carlyle and Energy Transfer Partners LP, Sunoco’s parent, have a combined 25 percent minority share.