ExxonMobil, the parent company of Esso, who paid no tax in two years and attempted to drive down wages and conditions of workers at their Longford on and offshore sites, will be hauled before a Senate Inquiry into corporate tax evasion.

A report published today by the Tax Justice Network shows that the giant multinational which is one of the largest companies in the world had not paid a cent of tax in the last two years.

During the same period, the company has been attempting to strip pay and conditions from workers in Victoria, who have been on strike for over 166 days.

 

Quotes attributable to ACTU President Ged Kearney:

“The report reveals there is one rule for massive corporations, who can pick and choose how much tax they pay, and how they treat their workers, and another for everyone else.

“When one of the world’s biggest companies can pay no tax while driving down their workers’ wages and conditions, with the government basically cheering them on, the rules are broken.

“Families of the workers targeted by ExxonMobil are in Canberra today calling on the government to make sure ExxonMobil pays their fair share of tax and treats their workers properly.”

“These workers are asking for their basic rights to be protected, and that these big companies be held to account.”

“We need to change the rules so that parliamentary intervention is not required to get a company to pay its taxes and working people are not forced out of decent paying jobs.”

“The ETU, AWU and AMWU have done great work to hold this company to account. When working people stand together we can take on any employer, even the biggest multinationals.”

“The report published today shows that ExxonMobil might be avoiding tax in even more outlandish ways than Chevron, which was hauled before the inquiry last year and forced to pay millions of dollars by the ATO.”

“This is an embarrassing day for ExxonMobil and for the Turnbull Government, who have allowed companies to get away with breaking our laws and attacking workers’ wages.”