On 13 June 2024, the Offshore Alliance published a Facebook post brimming with outrage and hyperbole, claiming that the AMWU had “ripped the guts out of employment standards” in a 2016 Greenfield Agreement signed with Kuiper Construction. They alleged that $2,500 per week was stripped from workers’ pay and painted a dramatic picture of allowances lost and rights —without referencing what they are comparing the Kuiper agreement to. But the facts tell a very different story—one the Alliance would prefer workers forget.
Let’s start with the central claim: that the 2016 agreement was a secret betrayal by the AMWU, conducted without worker involvement. This is false. This publication has received emails and bargaining documents that clearly show the Offshore Alliance—operating under the AWU banner—was not just aware of the negotiations but was directly involved in shaping the agreement. In fact, we are in possession of a joint log of claims submitted by the AMWU, AWU (Offshore Alliance), and ETU.
The Alliance’s assertion that they had no role in the agreement is as dishonest as it is self-serving. Emails from 2016—signed by key Offshore Alliance representatives—demonstrate their active presence in the offshore construction space. Their involvement in related matters even dates back to 2014. It’s laughable to now see them pointing fingers at others for the very deals they helped negotiate.
This isn’t the first time the Offshore Alliance has rewritten history to suit their narrative. As this publication has pointed out time and again, the Alliance struggles with the truth. Half-truths are a powerful propaganda tool—but this Facebook post doesn’t even rise to that level. It’s a full-blown fabrication designed to boost membership numbers and direct funds into the AWU, the Alliance’s political vehicle of choice. And let’s be clear: those political ambitions have consistently failed to align with the best interests of workers.
So why the grandstanding now? Simple—there’s an EBA campaign on the horizon, and the Alliance wants to distract workers from its own track record of substandard agreements by manufacturing villains out of other unions.
The real question offshore construction workers should be asking is this: why is the Alliance trying to erase its own past? Could it be that they’re more interested in controlling the narrative and increasing membership in classifications that they traditionally did not cover? Because the facts show that when the 2016 agreement was struck, the Alliance was not only at the table—they had a hand on the pen.
It’s time for some honesty. Workers deserve facts, not fiction. And they certainly deserve better than a union that rewrites its own history.
Open the below Agreement and head to the signing page to see the AWU’s (Offshore Alliance) signature for yourself.
