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* Shell considers mandate for offshore operations
* Some U.S. operations already have 'soft enforcement'
* Trading floors exploring vaccination mandate
* Chevron, Valero require shots for some workers
(Adds further company responses, updates bullet points)
By Ron Bousso and Sabrina Valle
LONDON/HOUSTON, Sept 9 (Reuters) - Royal Dutch Shell
is considering making it mandatory for workers in some
operations to get COVID-19 vaccinations or risk being fired, an
internal company document seen by Reuters shows.
Shell, which employs some 86,000 workers in more than 70
countries, will weigh the pros and cons of the policy at an
executive committee meeting on Friday, said two sources who
declined to be identified. Shell declined to comment.
Companies around the world are grappling with their response
to COVID-19 vaccinations as some countries struggle to inoculate
their population and as some people refuse to be vaccinated.
Numerous energy companies witnessed heavy outbreaks beginning in
2020, particularly on offshore facilities, where workers are
susceptible to infection because they work in close quarters for
weeks at a time.
Chevron Corp, the second-largest U.S. oil producer,
and refiner Valero Energy Corp are requiring
vaccinations https://www.reuters.com/business/energy/chevron-begins-covid-19-vaccination-mandates-wsj-2021-08-23
for certain field workers or new workers, while leading Permian
producer Pioneer Natural Resources is requiring newly
hired employees to be fully vaccinated before their first day of
work.
The largest U.S. producer, Exxon Mobil, does not have a
vaccine mandate, it said on Thursday.
Shell's internal memo, dated Sept. 1, recommends that the
company should overall "stay the course with our current policy
of strong advocacy for vaccination, but no compulsion," adding
however that it should consider introducing a vaccine mandate
for specific operations.
That would include employees on offshore rigs where
self-isolation and evacuation are complex and highly disruptive,
the document said.
Those who refuse could face dismissal.
"For staff who refuse to comply with a vaccine mandate we
would make all reasonable efforts to avoid terminating their
employment but will be faced with no alternative but to do so,"
the document said.
Shell's trading division has already requested a vaccine
mandate "because social distancing is impossible to achieve on a
trading floor."
The company is also already actively exploring the
introduction of the policy for offshore workers in the Gulf of
Mexico, the document said.
Shell has already adopted a "soft enforcement" vaccination
policy in the Gulf of Mexico and in the onshore Permian shale
basin operations under which employees and contractors must
produce a negative COVID-19 test or proof of vaccination to
access Shell sites, the document said.
Shell rival BP Plc said in a statement that for now
it doesn't have any specific vaccination mandates in place,
other than where required under any national or local rules.
The internal Shell document was first reported by the
Financial Times on Wednesday.
Exxon Mobil Corp, which has no mandates in place,
said on Thursday it strongly encourages COVID-19 shots and
expects non-vaccinated staff members to wear masks indoors when
six feet of social distancing is not possible.
The company is deferring to those vaccinated to use their
best judgment and consider wearing masks when in crowded areas
for extended periods of time.
"We will continue to monitor guidance from health
organizations and the effectiveness of our mitigation efforts,
and make adjustments if and when they are needed," Exxon's
spokesperson Casey Norton said.
Suncor Energy, Canada's second-largest oil company,
said on Thursday it is expanding mandatory COVID-19 testing at
locations across North America for people who have not received
two doses of vaccine, but is not mandating vaccinations.
Canadian Natural Resources Ltd, the country's
biggest producer, introduced daily COVID-19 tests for
unvaccinated workers at its oil sands sites in late August.
Some smaller Gulf of Mexico producers, including
QuarterNorth Energy Holding Inc, have not yet introduced vaccine
mandates.
(Reporting by Ron Bousso and Sabrina Valle; additional
reporting by Jessica Resnick-Ault and Nia Williams; editing by
Elaine Hardcastle, Bernadette Baum and Jonathan Oatis)
