DNO Yemen union wins case against Norwegian oil company

The labour court of Yemen has found in favour of the union after 200 staff were sacked by text message. The Yemeni labour court in Sana’a ruled on 3 August 2016 that Norwegian oil company DNO should pay the wages of the workers it sacked, or have its property confiscated and assets seized…

The law in Yemen states that if a company is granted a license to operate an oil field, it must pay wages and social obligations for as long it has the license. DNO used the war and political situation in Yemen to avoid responsibility for its staff, terminating its operations on 27 April 2015. The company paid no redundancy or compensation, and staff were left without a social and economic safety net in a country that stands on the brink of collapse. “DNO workers have nothing, and many of them are struggling terribly. There is a war and lack of food, and several of the families of workers now have no money to buy food and go hungry. The situation for workers with families with small children is serious,” said union leader Ryadh Al-Gharady…

DNO has around 260 workers in Yemen and a license to operate six oilfields. The company has extracted over 100 million barrels of oil from Yemen. DNO began operation in Yemen in 2000.