FOR A PEOPLE’S CALMAC

4 RMT helpline 0800 376 3706 :: april 2022 :: RMTnews C alMac Ferries is a national asset but our members who work on these lifeline services know as well as passengers and communities that it needs public investment to change gear and deliver the reliable, affordable clean services we all need for the decades ahead. Scotland’s ferry services must maximise the recovery of communities from Covid-19 and this is best achieved through public ownership and the full participation of communities, workers and passengers. The current Clyde and Hebrides Ferry Service operated by CalMac expires in September 2024. The union is opposed to privatisation and want all ferry services to be in the public sector. That’s why RMT has launched the campaign for a People’s CalMac. • Publicly owned and operated services – communities and passengers before profit • More investment - for more reliable, frequent and extra services • More affordable -   with fairer ferry fares, including for commercial drivers. • More of a say - with a stronger voice for communities, passengers and workers • More good jobs - Already employing 1,700 people, CalMac is at the heart of Clyde and Hebrides communities, as well as Scotland’s maritime industry. Please sign and share the petition on RMT’s website on the campaigns page. FOR A PEOPLE’S CALMAC R MT has written to the Transport Secretary Grant Shapps to demand that sacked crews are re-instated following a catalogue of failures on the P&O operated Pride of Hull vessel. Port authorities in the Netherlands listed failures around fire safety, deficient training for crew and below standard ship structural integrity, during an inspection between April 7/8. P&O sacked 800 workers in Britain without warning last month, sparking angry protests at ports across the country. Labelling P&O a "rogue ferry operator", RMT general secretary Mick Lynch wrote: "It is particularly alarming that P&O Ferries is taking such a dangerous and cavalier approach to safety on this particular vessel. "You will recall that there was a serious fire on the Bahamas registered Pride of Hull in October 2020, the consequences of which could have been far more serious if the vessel had been further out to sea when the fire started. "To cut corners on fire safety and lifeboat training on a vessel with that recent record is unforgiveable. "P&O Ferries clearly have a strategy of putting ships to sea regardless of the cost. I am therefore calling for you to detain the Pride of Hull now that it has arrived in the UK." Mr Lynch said that the Maritime and Coastguard agency (MCA) should reflect on the fact P&O Ferries have “broken our employment laws” and “they now pose an intolerable threat to life and maritime safety". "It is now clearer than ever that P&O is a rogue ferry operator. We strongly urge the government to take over these essential ferry operations and reinstate the experienced crew who were so disgracefully sacked from their jobs on the Pride of Hull and other P&O ferries on March 17,” he said. The full list of the deficiencies uncovered on the Pride of Hull are: • Lifesaving equipment not properly maintained and a lack of crew training • A lack of training in fire drills • Firefighting equipment not properly stored or accessible • Fire doors, structural integrity, and fire extinguishers below standard • Expired seafarer certification P&O FERRIES GUILTY OF SERIOUS SAFETY BREACHES Pride of Hull