ABOUT 60 essential workers in the North Sea oil and gas sector will strike later this month in a long-running dispute over short-staffing and burnout.

Heating and ventilation engineers working for IES Callenberg working on platforms run by oil giants such as BP, TAQA, CNR, Repsol, Serica and CNOOC, and chemists working for SGS UK on BP’s Clair Ridge platforms will begin strike action March 25.

Workers for both contractors voted overwhelmingly for strike action earlier this month in a long-running dispute over staff shortages and rotations, which they say are putting lives at risk through mental and physical fatigue.