Royal Fleet Auxiliary Update
A MESSAGE FROM YOUR NATIONAL SECRETARY
Dear Colleagues,
Please find an update regarding several outstanding matters at your employer, including information to make you aware of problematic issues that you may not be familiar with. As your national secretary and officer with responsibility for RFA, many issues and the daily engagement with members is done primarily by your convenor Ian Parkin, and in some cases by your branch secretaries if it is regarding legal support etc. Whilst our focus is primarily on pay there are many moving parts within the RFA which has been negatively impacted by the convenor role being scrutinised and no longer working from Portsmouth. We have held meetings on this matter and identified our frustration over it. Having an effective convenor is fundamental to industrial relations and we hope that our concerns are taken
onboard, and that we see movement on this matter in the short-term future.
During the summer holidays, business at RFA tends to slow down with parliamentary recess and annual leave across MoD and RFA. However, the daily issues and representation remain and engagement with members continue through various channels, regarding updates on matters of concern to you and your colleagues. I hope that this update provides you with a detailed overview of current issues, progress, development and barriers that we encounter on your behalf.
As a union we are growing within the deep-sea sector and becoming more organised with a clear focus on the employment conditions and priorities of our members. Our collective strength at RFA must continue to progress and my one ask of every member is to ask can you recruit a colleague who is not currently a member, to join the union and become actively involved in the union.
Regards,
Darren Procter
CONVENOR COLUMN
As your elected convenor I support RMT members through absence management meetings and those seafarers who are not fit for sea due to physical or mental health concerns.
The RFA sickness policy states that a stage 1 meeting should take place with the individual within 28 days, however, due to leave within the relevant teams at RFA HQ and the lack of resources this has not been the case, but please be reassured we have impressed upon management our concerns regarding this matter.
As your representative I am always available to attend these meetings with you, as and
Accident reporting
when requested by a member, it is your right as a member to have representation.
I would also like to raise the issue that some members have been fearful that messaging that appears on emails relating to disciplinary or absence management procedures is advising employees not to share its contents. This is not applicable if sharing with me as your elected convenor, to ensure that you that you are adequately represented and ensuring a fair process is carried out and I am in receipt of all documentation, and relevant evidence to represent the interests of RMT members accordingly. If you wish to call me directly on this matter, then please do so.
I will continue to visit ships, training establishments and branch meetings to provide feedback, and I always remain available following meetings to give members an opportunity to ask personal questions or seek greater detail on any aspect of current issues.
Members are reminded that should you be unfortunate enough to have an injury whilst travelling to/from a ship or training establishment, or whilst working onboard a vessel to ensure that the relevant paperwork is completed by your line manager, onboard safety officer or your career manager. Not doing so could cause issues further down the line and have an impact on pay or injury benefit claims. It does not matter how minor the injury is, it is good practice to ensure that injuries are documented, as you never know how that injury may impact you further down the line.
Flexible working
A recent meeting was attended by your convenor with RFA management in relation to progressing a policy fit for purpose for the RFA, considering the operational requirements and the unique scenarios in which employees of the RFA may find themselves which differ from other shipping companies or office-based workers.
Flexible working agreements can be requested up to three times a year, for a duration of three months to three years. To be considered you must be a full-time employee of RFA. I am sure that this will assist with recruitment and retention to enable a good work life balance, if for example your circumstances have changes and childcare has become an issue, or you need to care for a sick member of family etc. It may also assist with decision making for those more experienced members who are considering retirement, this would help the RFA retain experience whilst allowing a reduction in working time. We will continue to engage with the RFA on this matter, but should any member want more information then please do get in contact with your convenor in the first instance.
Pay update
We have submitted our pay submission to MoD/RFA, in recent years there has been an extended list of aspirations, this year we have concentrated on three elements of terms that the membership feel are priority focus areas:
1. Pay: a 9% increase starting point (This must be addressed to stop the exit and help us recover).
2. One for One Leave: it may not be able to be granted overnight due to shortages, but a multiyear deal on this is not of the table.
3. Concession travel payment: a one off payment to help towards or pay for a Rail Card that will give us discounted rail travel especially to use on weekend granted leave, so it does not hit us as much in the pocket.
Shorthand money and closure of 24/25 pay award
You may recall the bulletin communicated by RFA Management, informing you that the shorthand money was coming to an end and this would have closure on 24/25 pay offer.
We have requested statistical data to provide evidence of the so-called recovery within RFA, as handing over the lowest crewed vessel to the RN does not reassure us that the business has really recovered, also the ships we see alongside through the lack of crew does not support the perception of a recovery to date. We are still awaiting the data, but the feedback from members on vessels is that departments are still shorthanded.
We cannot have closure on the 24/5 pay acceptance until such time as we have a Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA) which was part of 24/25 agreement that allows every seafarer to understand the fundamental elements of their employment like every other UK merchant seafarer. Whether this be understanding sickness provisions, disciplinary procedures, maternity/paternity policies or the right to representation. We believe it should all be contained within an accessible, easy to understand format where seafarers understand their terms and conditions of employment and it’s not hidden somewhere in the cloud, or behind a digital access point that can only be accessed on certain types of smartphones. We have also asked for evidence of the so called recovery in RFA, as giving away our low manned ship to the RN which had the smallest crew on does not reassure us that the business has really recovered. Also the ships we see alongside through the lack of crew does not support the bulletin and it was disingenuous to say “MTUs have been working with us,” we have not on this and still wait on the data to prove this, plus the talk from our members still say departments are shorthanded.
Contact information
If RFA members are not receiving correspondence from the union via text and email it is because we do not have your correct details. Quite often members will change jobs, change employers, change mobile number or email address and do not inform the union of these changes. To effectively communicate with our members, we need to ensure that the details we hold on file for you are up to date and correct. Members can easily update details by:
• Logging on to our website: www.rmt.org.uk/about/update-your-details/
• Emailing membership@rmt.org.uk and include your name, membership number (or national insurance number), along with your current address information.
• Calling 0800 376 3706. Please have your membership details to hand when you call.
NSOG (Non-Standard Occupational Groups)
This matter is also on the agenda, looking at the benefits of being a Non-Standard Occupational Group and the freedom it may bring, especially on the pay and not being part of the Civil Service pay remits we have endured for many years.
The recent industrial action days gave RFA the attention you rightfully deserve and the Treasury along with government and MoD realised the importance of the RFA and the issues of the workforce, along with current challenges to recruit and retain the skills it currently has, offering value for money undertaking the vital role you play alongside the RN as proud merchant seafarers.
We must evaluate the potential pros and cons in relation to any recategorization but will only be seeking beneficial steps that also protect trade union representation, your right to strike and how it will help secure mechanisms for improved engagement to protect existing terms whilst assisting with developing aspirational gains.
We do not want to find ourself in the same boat as we did in 24/25 and be hitting the cobles, but we can’t rule out this and all members must be prepared for escalations, I also encourage you to get your fellow shipboard acquaintances to join the RMT as the bigger we are the bigger impact we have, I never failed you last year and will not this year, just bear with me and we will hopefully get something on the table that is acceptable, but regardless only the members will have the final say in a yes or no!.
Travel and subsistence
Your convenor deals with the day-to-day enquiries from members on issues, whether onboard, working alongside in refit, on leave, or on courses and several concerns have been identified with regard to the travel and subsistenmce policy. All members are encouraged to familiarise yourself with the policy, to avoid being scrutinised or requiring representation. Following an audit a meeting was convened to discuss the simplification of the process through an amended policy as some members find the system complicated to navigate judging by the amount of enquires made by members to your convenor.
This matter is subject to further discussion, and whilst we would like to see the policy amended ASAP it’s important that amendments are fit for purpose and also include a review of the allowance rates with DBS and HMRC.
Your union has continually raised the issue of cost-of-living increases and geographical differentials in food. For example, buying a meal in Falmouth would cost considerably more than it does in Birkenhead. This matter is compounded by the regularity of utilisation of travel and subsistence within RFA. You could ordinarily be claiming for duration of your rotation if you are appointed to a refit, plus there are various courses to attend which makes the situation different than that of ordinary civil service workers who may occasionally visit another work location for a meeting, or a visit to London etc.
The RFA and other governmental departments are fully aware of the of the rising cost of food and we will continue to pursue increases to our allowances.
MEMBER BENEFITS
The following are benefits that are available to RMT members:
• Individual and collective representation within the workplace supported by local, regional, and national representatives.
• Full representation at disciplinaries, grievances, flexible working request meetings, welfare meetings, and attendance management hearings.
• Better pay
• Improved conditions
• Health and safety protection
• Legal cover – workplace and criminal for members and their families.
• A credit union
• Accident benefit
• Orphan benefit
• Retirement benefit
• Free will service
• Death grant
All member benefits can be found on the website at www.rmt.org.uk
It is important to remind those not in the union of the benefits of being in the union and also raise awareness amongst our current membership of the benefits that RMT as a trade union offers.
