ConocoPhillips North Slope Workers Vote to Unionize at Kuparuk, Willow

The National Labor Relations Board tallies show a clear majority of ConocoPhillips North Slope operations employees voted to unionize: 165 of 220 ballots at Kuparuk and Alpine, or 75.0%, and 20 of 25 ballots at the Willow field, or 80.0%, for a combined 245 ballots from roughly 250 oil-field workers. The vote count came in on Monday, and the NLRB supervised the elections that produced two separate organizing outcomes for North Slope operations.

Workers voted to form two unions after the petitions were filed originally by the United Steelworkers, and union organizers said the results cover separate bargaining units for Kuparuk/Alpine and for Willow. "A majority of the North Slope operations and maintenance employees who participated in the union election voted to join the United Steelworkers," Megan Olson said in an emailed statement about the outcome.

Local operators framed the vote as a response to recent corporate and cost pressures. Will Kholeif, a ConocoPhillips production operator who participated in the effort to organize, called the result "a great day for all Slope workers - union and nonunion alike" and said, "It shows we will not be undervalued by Outside corporations that value shareholder returns over employee welfare and safety." Employees involved in the organizing effort cited job security, protections for safety and health, wages and benefits, higher living costs, and changes of ownership in the oil industry as motivations for voting.

ConocoPhillips Alaska remains the state's leading oil producer and reported net income of $1.3 billion last year, even as corporate cost decisions have put pressure on the local workforce. The company disclosed in September plans to cut up to a quarter of its global workforce, about 3,250 positions; in October it began sending layoff notices to some North Slope employees; and in December it confirmed it had laid off about 10% of North Slope workers. A ConocoPhillips spokesperson said in a statement on Monday that "it will bargain in good faith as employees pursue agreements with the company over wages, benefits and other terms."

Analysts and investor-focused outlets flagged potential operational and market implications. Simply Wall St noted the union wins could affect operating costs, staffing and project planning on the Slope and called for investor attention to Alaska operating costs and production guidance. Finance Yahoo reported ConocoPhillips plans to cut $1 billion in capital and operating costs in 2026, including a 20% to 25% workforce reduction at its Alaska operations next year, and cited recent stock trading near $111.21 with notable short- and long-term returns.

The immediate next step is collective bargaining; the unions will pursue agreements with ConocoPhillips over wages, benefits and other terms, and ConocoPhillips says it will bargain in good faith. Key unanswered items remain: whether the NLRB has formally certified the election results, the exact bargaining-unit definitions for each new union, timelines for bargaining sessions, and how planned 2026 workforce reductions will interact with seniority and recall provisions on the North Slope. Willow is slated to begin producing oil in 2029, a timetable that could shape negotiations over staffing and project schedules.