RMT GROUP FORCES PARLIAMENTARY DEBATE ON SHIPPING

www.rmt.org.uk :: may 2006 :: RMTnews 15 R MT is close to achieving its long-term aim of an ‘even time’ agreement for ratings at Foreland shipping. Currently, shippers work three months on/two months off or eight weeks on/six weeks off for those working in the Baltic. However, after pressing management on this issue over a number of years, RMT has an agreement in principal to introduce an even time on, time off rostering arrangement of one month on/one month off. This will give shippers an extra 45 days off with no reduction on pay and the deal should be introduced by October 2006. ‘Time on / time off’ does not represent one day’s leave earned for every day onboard the vessel. ‘Time off’ will include all time taken up by seafarers travelling to and from a vessel and also five days’ training within the year. It is estimated that no more than eight days should be taken up for the purpose of travel. If five days’ training is not taken up within the year then this will not in full, or in part, be carried forward to the following year thus increasing the number of days taken up by training in that year. Any training additional to the five days will be undertaken in accordance with the current arrangements. The union points out that as a result of contractual requirements between Foreland and the Ministry of Defence, it will take approximately 50 working days before a formal commitment can be made. Shipping secretary Steve Todd said it was an important deal which represented real progress over an issue the union has been pressing management on for many years. R MT parliamentary group member Katy Clark MP secured a rare adjournment debate in the House of Commons on the maritime industry recently. Katy has an interest in the subject, not least because her constituency of North Ayrshire and Arran is served by Caledonian MacBrayne lifeline ferries. Her opening remarks outlined RMT’s long-standing demands and concerns over the tonnage tax and the industry's failure to deliver voluntarily on training and employment, the section 9 exemption in the Race Relations Act 1976 – which makes it legal to employ foreign national seafarers on inferior wages and conditions – and the failure to apply the national minimum wage regulations to foreign seafarers in UK territorial waters. “UK seafaring ratings numbers have fallen from 30,000 in 1980 to just over 9,000 today. “Since its introduction in 2000, the tonnage tax has not stopped the decline in training or employment, particularly for UK seafaring ratings. “In fact, employment opportunities continue to decline, and the levels of training for new ratings positions is falling,” she said. She contended that the present voluntary commitment to employing UK ratings “amounted to nothing by way of an industry commitment”. “Unfortunately, therefore, the majority of vessels that enter the UK register employ no UK seafaring ratings,” she said. On the Race Relations Act 1976 and the exemptions relating to seafarers, she noted that, in opposition, Deputy Prime Minister John Prescott had said that such exemptions were a ‘national disgrace’. She said that recent amendments to the 1976 Act by the government simply made it lawful to discriminate on grounds of nationality rather than race. “The crux of the matter is that race relations legislation specifically allows seafarers recruited abroad to be treated differently from UK seafarers,” she said. Katy pointed out that, as a result, shipowners can pay exploitative rates of pay to foreign nationals. “In many situations, the national minimum wage does not apply to UK seafarers on board UK ships while they are in UK waters, as the legislation applies only when ships are in port or in UK internal waters. “That lack of regulation and social protection for seafarers has meant their continual replacement by low-cost foreign national seafarers,” she said. *The full debate text can be accessed on the web at: http://www.publications.parliament. uk/pa/cm200506/cmhansrd/cm0604 26/halltext/60426h01.htm#60426h0 1_spnew0 Andy Gordon was recently elected to serve for three years as one of the four shipping grade members based at head office in London. Andy has worked in the shipping industry for over 28 years and now works on the ferry service that serves Orkney and Shetland in Scotland. He says he has witnessed a lot of change in the industry and not necessarily for the better. Andy believes lack of paid holiday entitlement is a big issue today. “We can do a 77-hour week under the current regime of working two weeks on and two weeks off. “Shippers are basically cramming a month’s work in two weeks and, under current legislation, the employers have no obligation to give decent holiday entitlement,” he says. This is the first time Andy has served on the shipping grades committee and looks forward to representing members. He can be contacted on e-mail at aberdeenshipping@rmt.org.uk RMT GROUP FORCES PARLIAMENTARY DEBATE ON SHIPPING DECLINE OF UK RATINGS Year UK Other Total % of UK seafarers 2000-01 449 474 923 49% 2001/02 1685 3085 4,770 35% 2002/03 2021 4398 6,419 31% 2003/04 1778 4604 6,382 28% 2004/05 1,638 4932 6,570 25% 2005/06 1,460 5,993 7,453 20% YOUR NEW RMT SHIPPING REP AT UNITY HOUSE Ground-breaking rostering deal at Foreland shipping SHIPPING