REMEMBERING FALLEN SEAFARERS

RMT helpline 0800 376 3706 :: november/december 2013 :: RMTnews 14 U K Flag Deck apprentices bore the flag of The National Maritime Training Centre at the Annual Remembrance Service for Seafarers at London's St Pauls Cathedral.' RMT national secretary Steve Todd said that it was a very welcome imitative from DFDS for which they should be applauded. “It’s a very much needed injection of new blood into the industry, it’s good to see that the young seafarers were all local lads from a seafaring community that needs these jobs. “At a recent meeting in Copenhagen I congratulated the company for their initiative and urged them to extend this into an ongoing project,” he said. TYNESIDE:RMT joins seafarers, naval cadets, their families and the Mayor of South Tyneside at the Remembrance Day ceremony at the Merchant Navy Memorial on the banks of the river Tyne. R MT general secretary Bob Crow and national secretary Steve Todd represented the union at the annual remembrance service at the Merchant Seamen’s War Memorial garden at Tower Hill, London. They said that it was a privilege to lay wreaths on behalf of those seafaring colleagues who lost their lives in both World Wars and more recent conflicts such as the Falklands. “Whilst not glorifying war, it is always a very moving occasion and the numbers of veterans gets fewer every year. “It’s a tribute to those very brave men and women that the service is also attended by the younger generation who are prepared to ensure they are not forgotten,” Bob Crow said. 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. “It is often forgotten that British merchant ships were on the front line in the struggle against fascism,” Steve Todd said. N early 80 per cent of RMT seafaring members employed by P&O Ferries in Dover have rejected P&O’s proposals to introduce new salary scales for new entrants on terms and conditions harmonised with other sectors of the business. After several months of negotiation the employer and the union agreed to put the matter of harmonisation with other sectors of the business to the workforce. The result has been that the company’s proposals have been overwhelmingly rejected. RMT is calling on the company to respect the views of its workers and make a clear statement that the matter will now be put to rest. RMT general secretary Bob Crow said that there was a need to move on now and reassure the workforce that this dreadful period of uncertainty is over. APPRENTICES REMEMBER SEAFARERS APPRENTICES: Brandon Payne, Damien Beechy; Billy Chambers; and Ellis Vine - four of the six Apprentices and with them are Gemma Griffin HR & Crewing Director and Steve Todd. REMEMBERING FALLEN SEAFARERS RMT MEMBERS REJECT P&O PROPOSALS