VICTIMIZATION OF EMPLOYEES RAMPANT AT SHELL-MOTIVA NORCO SITE
The article printed below was supplied to the Company Secretary & General Counsel Corporate of Royal Dutch Shell Plc., Mr Michiel Brandjes, on Monday 15 Sept 2014. I asked Mr Brandjes to also bring the article to the attention of Royal Dutch Shell CEO Ben van Beurden and the Shell-Motiva Security Supervisor named in the working headline. The parties were given the opportunity to take issue with the stated facts, comment and/or take legal action to prevent publication. No response has been received. It follows that Shell has also not disputed the authenticity of quoted internal email correspondence. Readers are free to draw their own conclusions.
WORKING HEADLINE: SHOVE-OFF BY JO KERKHOFF – VICTIMIZATION OF EMPLOYEES RAMPANT AT SHELL-MOTIVA NORCO SITE
This is the true story of a former U.S. Secret Service Agent and former Special Agent-in-Charge of the U.S. Dept. of Homeland Security. He was hired by a contractor firm in June of this year to become Project Manager with responsibility for the security force at the Shell-Motiva Norco site in Louisiana. The site is spread over 700 acres, inclusive of a major refinery.
I have confirmed the remarkable background of this individual, who has worked in some of the most stressful operational settings. This includes his assignment as the Incident Commander for the rescue, relief, recovery and federal law enforcement activities in preparation for and in the wake of Hurricane Katrina, where he commanded vast personnel resources as well as small boats, aircraft and vehicles, for which he was granted seven high-level awards and commendations.
He has never encountered, in a career at the highest levels of the federal government, such a thoroughly unprofessional, hostile working environment, as he found at the Shell-Motiva Norco site.
The gentleman in question felt a sense of foreboding when he learnt that his immediate predecessor, Mr Kenneth Gustavis, who was employed by the same contractor, was being unceremoniously removed from the position in unusual circumstances. News that Mr Gustavis intended to file a complaint with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission against the contractor company and Shell-Motiva heightened his unease.
The likely underlying reason for the abrupt departure of Mr Gustavis (escorted off the property) soon became apparent. The alleged problem Mr Gastavis and his successor encountered can be described in two words: Jo Kerkhoff, a Security Supervisory working for Shell-Motiva.
The former Secret Service Agent alleges that her activities undermined the role of Project Manager; that she was unprofessional, power hungry, rude and consistently attempted to subordinate him, on one occasion repeatedly demanding that he should sit down (while she gave him a personal lecture).
Her emails to him were devoid of any attempt at normal politeness in communications between colleagues. The content of one email was: “You should come and see me.” Nothing else. No opening greeting. No sign off. No pretence of civility.
It soon became apparent that he was not alone in his assessment of Jo Kerkhoff. He received extremely negative feedback about her from many Shell-Motiva employees and contractor workers at the NORCO site. Her toxic reputation was widely known. Complaints were not lodged because of a fear of reprisal by her.
Since we only have the account of the former federal law enforcement officer about his dealings with her (other than internal emails I have seen, which confirm his account), I invite anyone who has worked with Ms Kerkhoff – present and past colleagues, subordinates, supervisors and contractors – to post comment on our Shell Blog about what she is like to work with. Is she a kind, considerate person of integrity, a professional who treats colleagues with respect and is a pleasure to work with, or the opposite – bullying, abrasive, rude and vindictive? There is no need to register to post a comment on the Shell Blog. All postings are anonymous unless you choose to reveal your real identify.
A contracting company is obviously in a difficult position if its employees are abused, bullied and mistreated by employees of a major global client. Appeasement is the likely outcome when multi-million dollar contracts are at stake, thereby allowing any such despicable behaviour to persist without retribution.
The gentleman in question sent a conciliatory email to Jo Kerkhoff in a genuine attempt to defuse the situation and in the hope of building a long term professional relationship. He did so after obtaining the prior approval of the contracting company and Mr Mike Cisnero, the Shell-Motiva line manager of Jo Kerkhoff.
On one occasion, a subordinate to Ms Kerkhoff, Mr. Brandon Lawler, was allegedly seen with his ear up to the office door of the former federal agent, listening for over three minutes during a conversation he was having with a Security Officer, Mr William McNeil. The decidedly low tech surveillance was reported to Mr. McNeil by another Security Officer.
The former Secret Service Agent also discovered to his astonishment that after the unpleasant meeting with Jo Kerkhoff, when she repeatedly demanded that he should sit down, Kerkhoff allegedly carried out an unauthorised and therefore potentially illegal and certainly unethical, “background investigation,” on him, claiming she had unearthed derogatory comments about him. No evidence was provided (the allegations were without foundation) and he was given no opportunity to refute the false comments, the basis on which he was allegedly removed from his post.
Naturally this gentleman of impeccable credentials and reputation is disgusted at his treatment by Shell-Motiva who apparently support the activities of Ms Kerkhoff, who remains in her position as a Security Supervisor at the Shell-Motiva Norco site.
Shell had advance sight of this article with an invitation to investigate and/or provide comment for publication on an unedited basis. I also requested that the allegations be put to Ms Jo Kerkhoff, so that she also had an opportunity for right of reply. It follows that Shell and Jo Kerkhoff also had the opportunity to seek an injunction to prevent publication.
(ANY RESPONSE BY SHELL OR JO KERKHOFF WILL BE PUBLISHED HERE)
This is an extract from the claimed Business Principles of Royal Dutch Shell Plc.
OUR VALUES
Shell employees share a set of core values – honesty, integrity and respect for people. We also firmly believe in the fundamental importance of trust, openness, teamwork and professionalism, and pride in what we do.
The hostile work environment encountered by the gentleman in question was apparently sadly lacking in many of these claimed core values, especially respect for people and professionalism.
(The Shell Business Principles on shell.com are still signed by the long-departed former RDS Plc CEO, Mr Peter Voser. This provides an indication of the lack of importance given to them by his replacement, Mr Ben van Beurden.)
There is perhaps a more sinister dimension. In the course of carrying out his duties, the former federal law enforcement agent suspects that he may have stumbled across “some sort of payroll fraud scheme.” He now wonders if this was a factor in the turn of events that led to his, and his immediate predecessors departure from security oversight at the Norco facility.
The basic rights of an employee, including fair treatment, appear to have been sacrificed in the commercial interests of two multi-national giants. This leaves Ms Kerkhoff free to continue with the alleged deplorable behaviour towards colleagues referred to above.
ENDS
Shale Fracking is a ‘Ponzi Scheme’
“Shale Fracking is a “Ponzi Scheme” … “This Decade’s Version of the Dotcom Bubble”
By John Donovan
A regular contributor has very kindly drawn my attention to an article published by GlobalResearch under the headline: “Shale Fracking is a “Ponzi Scheme” … “This Decade’s Version of the Dotcom Bubble”
In making the case to support the headline, the article contains a host of extracts from well known publications.
e.g.
A Losing Bet
In 2011, the New York Times wrote:
“Money is pouring in” from investors even though shale gas is “inherently unprofitable,” an analyst from PNC Wealth Management, an investment company, wrote to a contractor in a February e-mail. “Reminds you of dot-coms.”
“The word in the world of independents is that the shale plays are just giant Ponzi schemes and the economics just do not work,” an analyst from IHS Drilling Data, an energy research company, wrote in an e-mail on Aug. 28, 2009.
***
“And now these corporate giants are having an Enron moment,” a retired geologist from a major oil and gas company wrote in a February e-mail about other companies invested in shale gas.
The entire article can be read here
ROYAL DUTCH SHELL PLC NEWS FRIDAY 19 SEPT 2014
By John Donovan
Shell’s Arctic Drilling Plans
fuelfix.com has published anarticle about Shell’s latest plans for exploratory oil drilling in the Chukchi Sea, north of Alaska. The detailed article contains links to a document Shell has filed with the U.S. Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, a relatedfederal court document and an exploration plan. A lawyer for the conservation group Oceana, is quoted as saying: “Shell appears to have learned little from its past experiences and should be considering whether it wants to continue to invest huge sums continuing to try to drill in a place for which it is clearly unprepared.” Apparently “Shell executives have not made an official decision to plunge forward into those icy waters, but filing the exploratory plan is a necessary step in its quest for federal permits necessary to conduct the work next year.”
According to a Petroleum News article, “Shell is planning for the possibility of drilling two exploration wells simultaneously in the Chukchi Sea, using two drilling vessels …”
USA: Leaky Wells Spur Call for Stricter Rules on Gas Drilling
Extracts from a Bloomberg article
A study that blamed natural gas drilling for water pollution in two states has spurred calls for stricter regulations to keep wells from leaking methane into aquifers. A number of industry operators say that fracking poses little to no risk of fouling water supplies, although shoddy wells have the potential to do so. The more the distinction can be made, “it allows a rational conversation to take place,” said Paul Goodfellow, a vice president for Royal Dutch Shell Plc who helps oversee shale drilling in the U.S. and Canada.
USA: Toxic City, California
Just feet below the surface of a housing development in Carson, California, sits toxic oil contamination from storage tanks that were owned by Shell Oil Company. Quote from a resident: “It’s very frustrating, you know, everybody has cancer and stuff and they don’t care about the people.” In 2010, the City of Carson filed a lawsuit against Shell, and the water control board ordered the company to clean up the mess. Recently, Carson city officials rejected Shell’s latest cleanup offer and are asking the water board to reject it as well. Attorneys representing the city and neighborhood residents said dangerous contaminants continue to seep through. SOURCE
Brazil
The Director General of oil regulation in Brazil has bluntly stated that Royal Dutch Shell and Total must accept Brazil’s state-run Petrobras as a partner in their Gato do Mato offshore oil prospect. This move could strip Shell of operational control of the resource. The statement by Magda Chambriard appeared to contradict comments on Tuesday by Brazilian government lawyers that Shell’s rights would likely be preserved. More information can be found in this source Reuters article.
Nigeria
Shell claims that a strike by Nigerian oil unions is not having any immediate impact on crude oil exports from Africa’s top exporter, despite moving into a third day…
Russia
(Reuters) – The head of Shell Russia said on Friday that the company’s strategy in Russia remained unchanged, although the firm is evaluating the implications of sanctions imposed by the West on Moscow over its involvement in Ukraine. “Our strategy regarding Russia remains unchanged,” Olivier Lazare told a business forum in Russia’s southern city of Sochi. “We want to continue our presence in Russia. Current business is not affected by sanctions.”
Shell’s New Direction
An informative overview by Zoltan Ban of Shell’s problems and the latest bout of restructuring, including a fire sale of under-performing assets, can be viewed in this Seeking Alpha article: “Shell’s New Direction” Those of so who have been around awhile have seen it all before, for example, during the Moody-Stuart era.
Some of the above text is taken verbatim from the source articles.
Shell’s CEO welcomes outcome of Scottish Decision
STATEMENT BY ROYAL DUTCH SHELL CEO BEN VAN BEURDEN
“Shell welcomes the decision by the people of Scotland to remain within the UK, which reduces the operating uncertainty for businesses based in Scotland,” van Beurden said in a statement. “Shell will continue to work closely with both the UK and Scottish governments to help the industry deliver vital energy supplies through investment in the UK’s oil and gas resources. We look forward to continuing our proud association with Scotland.” He also called for quick implementation of the recommendations in this year’s Wood Report, a review led by Aberdeen businessman Sir Ian Wood.
The TRUTH will set you FREE.
