A 32-year Whiting veteran reflects on the refinery’s impact

Release date:

16 September 2024

“Whiting is important to the community in Northwest Indiana, and the economy, because of the jobs that it provides,” the bp retiree says.

This story is part of “The People of bp,” a first-person series that highlights dynamic talent at one of the world’s largest integrated energy companies.

By Bernie Minor

Whiting, in Northwest Indiana, is my home. And I live about a mile from bp’s refinery. I worked at the refinery for 32 years and’ve been retired for the last 12.

In short, I've lived in the area for my entire life, and it's a nice community. I live one block from where I grew up. Back when I worked at the refinery, I rode my bike to work.

I started out as an apprentice, working in supervision, and ended up being a planning superintendent for the turnarounds.

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The refinery’s safety culture has improved quite a bit since the early 1980s. Now, there are evacuation areas, alarms, drills, bunkers and more. So many things are safer than they were back then.

Personally, I believe the refinery is safe – because I’ve lived here all my life, and I've worked here all my life. I’ve seen it first-hand. Living here, we’ve never been affected by anything at the refinery.

If you talk to the other retirees, we've lived here and worked here. But some people who are moving into the community don't know about the refinery. There's a lot of apprehension because they don't know how the refinery works.

Whiting is important to the community in Northwest Indiana, and the economy, because of the jobs that it provides.

Fast facts about Whiting refinery

2,700+ bp employees and contractors
440,000 barrels of crude oil processed each day
86,000 regional jobs supported

If the refinery stopped operating, there would be a loss of jobs for both bp employees and contractors. It would affect the cities around the refinery. On a scale of one to 10, the loss of Whiting would come in at an eight and affect the area immensely.

The reason I've stayed in the area is family, and the people I worked with at the refinery – the retiree group I have. But, also, because the refinery and the area have a lot of potential.

When I first walked through the door at Whiting, I thought “What have I gotten myself into?” But bp and the Whiting refinery have been very good to me over the years.