HUNDREDS of wildcat strikers have gone back to work at Coryton oil refinery and Tilbury power station, but more industrial action could take place next week.

About 500 workers returned to their jobs yesterday after two days of unofficial strikes.

Workers from the refinery and power station took part in the strikes in support of protests at Lindsey Oil Refinery, in Lincolnshire, over the employment of foreign workers.

It is understood members of the Unite union will meet in Manchester next week, to decide whether to lead workers in Essex and across the rest of the country on an official strike.

Stevie Durham, 46, who has worked at Coryton for 14 years, said: “We’re still very much in sympathy with the Lindsey strikers. That won’t go away, but the general feeling among the lads is to wait until the union meeting.

“We’ve shown our support for Lindsey, but now we’ll wait to see what the rest of the country is doing and whether the union makes the strike official.”

The strike continued yesterday at the Lindsey plant.

The walkouts at Coryton and Tilbury were described as unofficial “wildcat strikes”, because they were not officially approved by their union.