HOUSTON, Aug 7 (Reuters) - More than 300 United

Steelworkers union (USW) refinery and chemical plants workers

meeting in Pittsburgh approved on Thursday proposals for labor

negotiations set to begin early in 2026 with energy companies,

said Mike Smith, chair of national oil bargaining for the union.

The current four-year contract covering 30,000 workers

expires shortly after 12 a.m. on Feb. 1, 2026. The USW members

work at refineries that account for over half of national crude

oil processing capacity.

USW negotiators led by Smith and including International

President David McCall and International Vice President Roxanne

Brown will begin meeting in January with negotiators from

Marathon Petroleum ( MPC ), which will be representing the

industry.

"As the lead company in national pattern negotiations, MPC

looks forward to productive negotiations with the USW and is

committed to working toward a mutually satisfactory agreement,"

said Marathon spokesperson Jamal Kheiry.

A key issue will be wage increases for refinery and chemical

plant workers, who average more than $50 an hour for inside

operators.

"I would say the proposals on wages are significant for the

times in which we are living," Smith said. He declined to be

more specific about the union's wage proposals.

Another top issue is the cost of health care, Smith said.

"We're trying to secure good decent health care without

bearing the brunt of rising costs," he said.

And as with many industries, the union has a proposal on

artificial intelligence.

"The AI proposal is really to protect us as we try to

understand the impacts on our sector," Smith said.

A supermajority of local unions must approve the proposals

agreed to in Pittsburgh within 45 days so they can be brought to

the bargaining table.

Smith said he could not now predict how difficult or easy

the negotiations might be with Marathon.

"It is early," he said. "No bargaining session is easy or

simple. Our members are ready to do what it takes to secure a

good contract for our membership."

At negotiations in 2022, the USW secured a 2.5% wage

increase in the first year, 3% in both the second and third

years and 3.5% in the fourth year.