SOUTH EASTERN ONBOARD MANAGERS WIN RECOGNITION

RMT helpline 0800 3763706 :: november/december 2010 :: RMTnews 4 R MT general secretary Bob Crow before laying a wreath on behalf of the union at the annual remembrance service at the Merchant Seamen’s War Memorial garden at Tower Hill, London. He laid the wreath on behalf of seafarers who lost their lives in both the First and Second World Wars and more recent conflicts. Over 35,000 merchant seamen were lost in World War Two alone, most the victims of U-Boat attacks, with over 5,000 taken prisoner. British merchant ships were on the front line in the struggle against fascism. R MT has won full trade union recognition rights on all Carlisle Cleaning and Support Services contracts following a ruling by the Central Arbitration Committee (CAC). Previously the company had claimed that RMT only had recognition rights for three Carlisle Cleaning and Support Contracts, namely Eurostar, London Midland and Alstom/West Coast. Despite the union’s best efforts, the company refused to recognise RMT for negotiating purposes on any other contracts and refused to provide the requested information claiming it was ‘commercially sensitive’. The information requested from Carlisle included pay scales, a breakdown of the numbers employed within each of the respective grades and the fringe benefits available to staff. As a result of the company’s failure to disclose this information for the purposes of collective bargaining, RMT submitted a complaint to the CAC under Section 183 of the Trade Union and Labour Relations (Consolidation) Act 1992. Under this law “employers have a duty to disclose to representatives of independent recognised unions information, without which representatives would be impeded in carrying out collective bargaining or which in accordance with good industrial relations practice should be disclosed”. Following a hearing, the CAC found in favour of the union, agreeing that RMT had recognition rights throughout the whole company. Regional organiser Ken Usher said that a concerted campaign of recruitment organisation and retention was required following the ‘historic’ victory. “We can co-ordinate our respective pay and benefit review submissions which would provide greater strength and support across all contracts for staff that so desperately deserve it,” he said. R MT has won trade union recognition rights for members at Freightliner Railport Limited at both the Bristol and Doncaster sites. The union had been in discussions with the company since Freightliner opened a new site in Bristol earlier this year to acquire recognition rights in respect of Freightliner Railport. The executive committee welcomed the work put in by RMT negotiators in securing the recognition deal. The organising unit is currently recruiting within Freightliner Railport and identifying new reps to go on training course as agreed with the company. R MT has won trade union recognition rights for South Eastern Railways onboard managers after taking the company to the Central Arbitration Committee. The CAC is a permanent independent body with statutory powers to resolve disputes under legislation relating to recognition and de-recognition of trade unions and for collective bargaining issues. South Eastern refused to give trade union recognition for 78 onboard managers. RMT launched a recruitment campaign with regional organiser Paul Cox and Dave Marshall and Alan Pottage of the union’s organising unit. After 58 per cent of staff joined the union it applied to the CAC for recognition. The union argued that onboard managers were a distinct grade of workers that required separate bargaining arrangements and the CAC agreed. RMT now has a rep in place in each of the three depots, and any two of these reps will make up the company council. Paul Cox said that union membership was steadily increasing among onboard managers and that the union’s first pay submission for these workers had just been submitted. “These workers have an excellent level of union representation thanks to the hard work of the union to win recognition,” he said. SOUTH EASTERN ONBOARD MANAGERS WIN RECOGNITION UNION WINS FULL RECOGNITION AT CARLISLE CLEANING RECOGNITION DEAL AT FREIGHTLINER RAILPORT REMEMBERING THE FALLEN