ORGANISING AT ORTSED

R MT officials and Liverpool Shipping branch have been organising offshore wind farm workers employed by Orsted Power workers and building up a significant membership. These workers are employed to work typically on the wind farms scattered around both the east and west coast of England. Union members have been raising a number of concerns which they wish to address by getting organised into the union and establishing collective bargaining machinery. Issues raised include pensions as the ‘white Collar’ workers pension contributions from the employer are far greater than the operational grade workers. It was reported that the reason Orsted has given for this is that ‘blue Collar’ worker get paid overtime and ‘white collar’ workers do not. Maritime members at another company based at Barrow faced similar circumstances. Officers within the shipping company benefited from a superior pension plan compared to that of RMT-organised ratings. RMT regional organiser Daren Ireland challenged this and after numerous meetings the company agreed with the union that this disparity was neither fair nor acceptable and subsequently this injustice was corrected.  Other issues include annual reviews’ overtime, training and general employment relations. RMT regional organiser Daren Ireland said that the next steps would be to formalise RMT’s relationship with Orsted. “We want to ensure offshore workers are treated with dignity and respect and to establish a good working relationship with the company which will benefit our members and the company alike,” he said. 6 RMT helpline 0800 376 3706 :: october 2020 :: RMTnews R MT welcomed the entry into law of entitlement to the National Minimum Wage for thousands of Ratings working around the UK coast this month and warned employers in the shipping industry that they must comply or face serious reputational consequences. From October 1 2020 a change to the law will mean seafarers will receive pay protection equal to every other sector. Until now, maritime has been the only sector in the UK that does not apply National Minimum Wage protection for workers. This change means that more than 10,000 seafarers across the UK will make it less easy for employers to undercut workers pay and putting the UK ahead of any other EU state in its protection on pay. RMT general secretary Mick Cash said that the union welcomed this new law which it had been demanding as part of RMT’s SOS 2020 and other seafarer campaigns down the years. Thousands of Ratings jobs around the UK coastline will now be covered by an improved, legally enforceable basic rate. “UK seafarers are now in a better position to compete for these jobs and RMT will be demanding full recognition for all Ratings on all merchant ships working on these routes. “We still await the government guidance HMRC need to take enforcement action against companies in the UK shipping industry. “But we know that not paying the NMW is an indicator of modern slavery and employers in the shipping industry need to know that failing to pay seafarers the UK NMW on domestic routes will result in a hefty fine, not to mention significant reputational damage in uncertain economic times. “The crew change crisis triggered by the Coronavirus pandemic has further exposed the appalling abuses and unnecessary risks to seafarer and maritime safety inherent in the ‘low cost’ crewing model and the Flags of Convenience which support it. “The collective achievement on the NMW for seafarers must be followed by government action to train and employ thousands more UK Ratings, including on international routes,” he said. Maritime Minister Robert Courts said that it was important to ensure a fair wage for seafarers, especially the hundreds of thousands who have kept this country going through the pandemic, and means that UK workers are not priced out of jobs by employers. “British seafarers are recognised as some of the most highly skilled worldwide. Buoyed by the highest number of maritime training providers out of any country, mariners can train and qualify on apprenticeships or seafarer training courses at over 25 universities and colleges across the UK,” he said. The announcement followed the successful repatriation of 13,000 seafarers from UK shores whose movement was restricted due to closed borders. To ensure their swift protection, the UK held the world’s first maritime summit with the UN and secured international recognition for seafarers as key workers to enable quicker repatriation for those struggling to get home as a result of the pandemic. SEAFARERS’ MINIMUM WAGE PAY VICTORY ORGANISING AT ORTSED ORGANISED: RMT Orsted workers meeting with regional organiser Daren Ireland and national secretary Darren Procter