Kuiper Loses Technip Prelude Contract to Wood Group – July 2024
In a sharp blow to job security and conditions in the offshore maintenance sector, nearly two dozen Kuiper employees have been informed their employment is ending, following the transfer of part of the Technip Prelude maintenance contract to Wood Group.
At first glance, this may look like a routine reshuffle in the contracting cycle. But the real story runs deeper — and it’s raising serious concerns among workers and unionists alike.
Back to Work — on Worse Terms
Ex-Kuiper workers are now being offered their jobs back by Wood Group, but under significantly inferior terms and conditions. The catch? These roles fall under the Wood Group Offshore Brownfields Agreement — one of several recent single-union agreements signed by the Australian Workers’ Union (AWU).
A direct comparison shows just how bad the hit is for workers:
- A Level 2 casual tradesperson will be paid $3.51 per hour less under the Wood Group agreement than under the Kuiper Aust Pty Ltd Maintenance Agreement ($97.59 vs $101.10).
- Because superannuation and severance pay are calculated on base hourly rates, workers will not only earn less per swing — they’ll take home less overall and lose out on long-term entitlements.
Even with an improved offshore allowance ($7.66/h vs $5.39/h), the net effect is a downgrade in pay and conditions.
Income Protection: A Downgrade in Security
Perhaps the most disturbing downgrade lies in income protection. Under Kuiper’s agreement, injured workers were entitled to $2,360 per week for up to 104 weeks if hurt off the job (Clause 3.6). In contrast, the Wood Group agreement (Clause 27) offers no guaranteed amount or duration — leaving injured workers in limbo at their most vulnerable.
AWU’s Role: Deals That Undercut Workers and Lock Out Others
This development follows a troubling trend. Over the past year, the AWU has signed several exclusive, single-union offshore agreements with companies including Atlas, Legeneering, and OSM. Each one:
- Undercuts existing rates and conditions, and
- Locks out other unions from representing workers in the offshore maintenance, decommissioning, and hookup/commissioning space.
With many of these deals running up to four years, they effectively hand companies a free pass to operate on weaker terms — while ensuring the AWU can claim “organising wins” and collect dues.
Who Really Wins? Follow the Money
While workers take home less, someone is still making gains — and it’s not hard to trace the financial trail.
The AWU has a known stake in Chifley Insurance, the provider of many income protection policies now being written into these new agreements. That raises serious questions: Is the AWU brokering weaker deals in return for a cut of the policy pipeline?
It’s a stark image: workers losing jobs and being rehired on lesser terms, while their supposed representatives enjoy financial rewards in the background.
The Same Old AWU
For all the PR spin about the AWU “fighting for workers,” this is just another chapter in a long history of backroom deals and employer-friendly agreements.
Since the early 2000s, the AWU has signed off on virtually every major offshore construction agreement — rarely with meaningful consultation from rank-and-file workers. Now, with a new wave of industrial activity on the horizon, the union appears more focused on consolidating control and pleasing employers than defending members’ rights.
Expose the Deals, Not the Memes
Workers deserve the truth — not social media spin, not vague slogans, and certainly not the AWU’s chest-beating while quietly cutting deals behind closed doors.
As offshore workers prepare for the next phase of industry expansion, transparency and solidarity are more important than ever. It’s time to demand union accountability and restore power to the workers — not just the union office.