You will be aware of the Scottish energy jobs task force. Along with a couple of people from industry, I led an engagement on 22 May that got what I call the whole system together. I insisted that we had offshore workers, safety reps and the unions in the room. That worked well, because their voice is vital to the debate.
I meet the unions regularly. I think that they would be the first to say—as I think they said last week—that, although industry leaders walk the talk on safety, there may be unintended consequences, particularly during downturns such as the one that we are experiencing.
Three weeks ago, I had a good meeting with six of the union chiefs and I asked how the regulator could help. I explained that we have, as you would expect, close relations with the Health and Safety Executive, which takes the lead on regulatory capacity. However, it is vital that we also do our bit. I explained that Richard Judge, the chief executive of the HSE, and I have agreed a memorandum of understanding. We have regular meetings with the HSE to ensure that we are joined up and, in particular, to ensure that we are not doing anything—for example, in our primary aim of maximising economic recovery—that could go against safety. I am confident that we are not.
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The unions asked me to hold the industry to account on its commitments. I am happy to do that; that is something that a regulator should do. We have a role around stewardship, for example. In part, that will examine how the industry is managing its operations and whether that is efficient.
The unions also asked me to spread positive stories, of which there are many. Some operators are doing outstanding work.
Another issue—it links to a previous one and is something that I am passionate about, having managed operations—concerns the fact that operations are safest and most efficient when operators engage with their workforce. Now, more than ever, is the time when operators should be going offshore and listening to workers, because that is where the smart ideas come from. On safety concerns, if someone spends a couple of nights offshore and sits down in the tea shack with people, it is pretty hard not to find out what is going on. In my experience, offshore workers are open with you when you spend time in their workplace.
We are passionate about engagement with the workforce. Nexen has done that brilliantly over the past two quarters. It has demonstrated continued safe operations while securing a remarkable 40 per cent increase in offshore productivity. Wrench time, which is the productive time that is spent per shift, has gone from five and a half hours to eight hours. Other companies have been talking about that for years, and Nexen has shown how that is delivered through brilliant offshore engagement. Of course, the unions fully support that approach.
There are strong clues about what works well. We also know what does not work well, which is rapid changes without workforce engagement. We absolutely support good engagement, which is good for business and for safety.