OFFSHORE UNIONS WIN RIGHT TO LEAFLET

RMTnews :: january 2008 :: www.rmt.org.uk 8 R MT and OILC activists have won the right to leaflet offshore workers at heliports in Aberdeen. Following a complaint from the British Airports Authority, police had threatened to arrest union activists for leafleting in October. A team of thirteen activists returned last month to hand out leaflets and, before long, the police arrived. However, common sense prevailed and the threat of arrest was lifted after OILC general secretary Jake Molloy and RMT organising co- ordinator Alan Pottage both spoke to the police. BAA now accept that the unions can visit the heliports on a regular basis to communicate with the workforce. Alan Pottage said that activists from RMT/OILC and the Norwegian union 'Industri Energy' took part. “They were prepared to suffer arrest in order to fight for our right to leaflet the offshore workforce and we have now established our right to speak to workers unhindered," he said. RMT's joint campaign with colleagues in the offshore union OILC has been steadily gathering momentum over the last few months. OILC held a press conference last month to highlight growing concerns about the ability of the lifeboats offshore to safely evacuate personnel in the event of an emergency. Studies in both Canada and Norway reveal serious concerns that could threaten the lives of the occupants in certain circumstances. T he Local Transport Bill contains proposals which are meant to make it easier for local authorities to regulate bus services. Prior to the publication of the Bill the government agreed with a suggestion from the RMT’s Parliamentary group that there should be a working party to look at employment issues that would arise when a local authority introduced a Quality Contact (franchising). Unfortunately, according to legal opinion obtained by the union, as drafted the Bill will not provide TUPE or pension protection to bus workers who transfer from deregulated bus services to a Quality Contract. Following RMT lobbying the union’s concerns were raised when the Bill was discussed in the House of Lords. In response, the government has agreed to more detailed discussions with transport unions. RMT will be campaigning to ensure that by the time the Bill has concluded its parliamentary process the necessary amendments to protect bus workers will be in place. M embers of RMT’s Parl- iamentary group recently met the Shipping Minister Jim Fitzpatrick and were advised that the proposed employment training link could be threatened by a tight spending settlement from the Comprehensive Spending Review. The group is making further representations to argue that the Department of Transport should prioritise the link in its spending plans. At the same meeting, the minister advised the group that a decision in principle on the Race Relations Act as applicable to seafarers will be made soon but that any actual changes in legislation would come through an amendment to the Single Equality Bill due to published in the 2008 Queen’s Speech. The Group also raised the non – application of the minimum wage for non UK seafarers’ on UK ships and in UK territorial waters and whether this was an anomaly or a policy decision. The Minister said that he would write to the union on this issue. As RMT News went to press, Katy Clark MP secured a meeting of MPs, including group members, to see the Minister responsible for the Minimum wage, Pat McFadden. There may also be scope to amend the Employment Bill, recently published in the Lords, to ensure that the minimum wage applies to non-UK seafarers. NEW BUS LEGISLATION UNION RAISES SEAFARING MATTERS OFFSHORE UNIONS WIN RIGHT TO LEAFLET