ON BOARD THE PRIDE OF BILBAO

30 I met up with south west regional organiser Peter Gale at Portmouth last month to travel aboard The Pride of Bilbao for four days to meet RMT members. As a Union Learning representative co-ordinator, I was keen to find members on board who might wish to become ULR’s and help give seafarers access to educational opportunities. Before becoming the full time officer for the region, Peter had been a very effective Union Learning rep, so he was aware of RMT Learning and the initiative to organise learning opportunities for British seafarers. The following morning we introduced ourselves to the captain and were taken to the mess to meet some of the crew who made us very welcome and invited to use their mess for the duration of the voyage. Peter had arranged a meeting with the deck and engine ratings for the afternoon, so we introduced ourselves, recruiting where we could, and giving away vast amounts of RMT paraphernalia, which always go down well. I was travelling on behalf of RMT Learning as well as supporting the regional officer, so I was also busy cajoling crew members into completing learning surveys while listening to their concerns, of which there were many. MEETING There is a huge ethnic diversity amongst the crew. I counted ten different nationalities on board although there may have been more. Some of these are employed directly by P&O, some through agencies in the UK and some from agencies abroad. This all adds up to a veritable stew of terms, conditions and pay structures that any organiser would find daunting. The meeting was well attended and I was impressed by their concerns for the “job”. It was explained to me that many deck and engine room crew are in their late fifties, and the sea schools that trained them are no longer in existence, so who will take over? The officers I spoke to have similar concerns. The ship is due to be reflagged shortly and a pay submission is about to go in. Members have issues over their pensions and the changes to NI deductions. We finished the meeting some time later with a long list of matters to resolve, some quite simple but many as unfathomable and complex as to be irresolvable. Over the next few days I became impressed by the professionalism of the crew and the good natured culture of “mend and make do” that prevailed as they constantly tried to catch up with the work load. I stayed on board while the ship was docked in Bilbao, spending time with the repairmen, who competed to tell me horror stories of jobs they had to do (one of them had just returned from within the on board sewage tanks, gas mask swinging nonchalantly from his hand). I also sneaked a look at the work book – seventy one jobs for the Sunday alone. It was a privilege to make the trip and we have promised the union will return, for it can only be through organising that RMT can strengthen the position and raise a collective voice in defence of the British seafarer. *If you are interested in becoming a local seafarer Union Learning representative, or just want to know more about it see page 32/33 or please contact: Carolyn Marshall at the Dover regional office on 01304 204262 Or e mail dovershipping@rmt.org.uk. For other information about RMT Learning please contact Andrew Brattle on 0207 529 8820 or e mail a.brattle@rmt.org.uk ON BOARD THE PRIDE OF BILBAO Mike Sargent reports on a visit to members working on the Pride of Bilbao - with regional organiser Peter Gale