Oil and gas giant BP is to cut its North Sea workforce by 20% by 2017 — about 600 jobs — as part of a global workforce reduction of 4,000 as the slump in oil prices continues to take its toll on the industry.

Unite, the UK’s biggest offshore trade union, reiterated its call for government and industry to work with offshore trade unions in an effort to tackle the ongoing crisis.

Unite said the cuts will affect all of BP’s assets across the UK Continental Shelf (UKCS) and its onshore interests at Sullom Voe and Grangemouth.

The crisis caused by plunging oil prices — which are currently below $32 a barrel — has seen more than 65,000 oil and gas related jobs lost across the UK in the last year, Unite said.

Unite regional officer John Boland said: “It is deeply worrying that we are now seeing a super-major making deep cuts to its workforce across the UK.

“We need an emergency convention of all the industry stakeholders — government, employers and trade unions — to tackle this crisis so we have a safe and sustainable industry for the next generation.

“Unite will be meeting with the company later this week as collective consultations get underway but we are clear that there should be no imposition of compulsory redundancies and reductions should be pursued through voluntary means.”