The state budget has been presented. And this is what it means for you. – One of the reasons why the oil fund is so large is that we have contributed. We have ruined our lives to fill that coffers. And we now get nothing in return. Bjarne Kapstad is an oil pioneer. He was thus early involved in the development of the oil industry, especially in the start-up phase of exploration and extraction of oil. There has been a clear expectation from these that they should receive money in the state budget as compensation for their occupational injuries. But they don’t get that. The government has been clear that the oil pioneers will receive compensation. More about that a little further down in the article. Contact with dangerous chemicals As a 32-year-old, Kapstad began to lose his memory and started shaking and stuttering after working outside on an oil platform. Cape Town got worse and worse and finally collapsed. He was sent ashore for good in 1997. Many of those who worked in the oil industry in the 60s, 70s and 80s have serious health problems as a direct consequence of their work. This is because they have worked without protective equipment against toxic gases, oil and steam. Many oil workers have worked close to oil spills and chemicals. Here from the Valhall field in 1996. Photo: Halvor Erikstein / SAFE Waited for almost two years for the money That is why the government has been recommended to put in place a compensation scheme. The oil pioneers will receive money for the work they have done to build up the country – and the damages they have had to suffer as a result. But the oil pioneers are sick. And many die. Simon Elias Bogen / news Øyvind Myrene Damage to the nervous system (polyneuropathy) and brain. Cancer of the rectum. Simon Elias Bogen / news Jan Birger ÅrslandProblems with the skeleton and memory. Has nerve damage and cannot move properly. – If you hadn’t had courage, we wouldn’t be here today, he says. Simon Elias Bogen / news Jan Terje BiktjørnProblems with the central nervous system. He has also had a stroke and several infections. Simon Elias Bogen / news Tord Lillehavn Cracked his back after substances and chemicals ate up his skeleton. Became six centimeters shorter, had bone marrow cancer and kidney failure. – I don’t understand how they can overlook us like they do, says oil pioneer Kapstad. The Ministry of Labor and Inclusion has started work on establishing a compensation scheme for the oil pioneers. But it is still under political consideration, and payments have not yet taken place. – We had hoped we would get it this year, but it looks bad. We’d rather bet on there being a new government next year so that they can get something done, says Kapstad. The compensation scheme The government has not explicitly promised a completed compensation scheme, but a process has been initiated to possibly develop such a scheme. In 2021, the Storting asked the government to set up a commission to investigate a compensation scheme for the oil pioneers. This commission presented its report in December 2022, where compensation was recommended for the oil pioneers who have suffered health damage from chemical exposure in their work offshore. The proposal has been out for consultation, and it is now up to the government and the Storting to adopt and implement the scheme. Sylvi Listhaug: – Die before they get compensation Frp leader Sylvi Listhaug reacts: – The oil pioneers have unfortunately been let down by the government once again. And I think it is terrible that more and more of those who have given us wealth are now dying before they receive compensation. She thinks the government is procrastinating and that they don’t seem to be in any hurry. – The thanks the oil pioneers get is a government that spends years and days without being able to present a compensation scheme to the Storting, she says. FRP leader Sylvi Listhaug says the government is way overtime and believes the oil pioneers must be compensated quickly. Photo: Liselotte Sabroe / NTB Listhaug wants them to put an arrangement in place before the new year at the latest. She had hoped that they would receive compensation through the state budget, as so many strong stories from the oil pioneers have been shared. – I thought that this might have affected the government. We will do everything we can to press into place a scheme for the oil pioneers that they really deserve, says Listhaug. Ministry of Labor and Inclusion: – Understood State Secretary Per Olav Skurdal Hopsø (Ap) in the Ministry of Labor and Inclusion says the government is concerned that everyone should receive the compensation they are entitled to as a result of illness or injury that they have sustained at work. – The oil pioneers made a great effort for which they deserve recognition. We understand that many feel that the process has taken a long time, he says. State Secretary Per Olav Skurdal Hopsø (Ap) in the Ministry of Labor and Inclusion. Photo: Håvard Greger Hagen / news Before the government gives a final answer on whether there should be a separate scheme for the oil pioneers, they must map out what opportunities exist for them already within the current occupational injury scheme. – The government will ensure that assistance is quickly established in the occupational injury track for former oil workers, says Skurdal Hopsø. Published 07.10.2024, at 20.23
ttn-69
The oil pioneers do not get a penny – news Rogaland – Local news, TV and radio
