Dispute over pay may well lead to strike action

A spokesman for the union said: “Scotland’s biggest ferry union RMT were contacted by the arbitration and conciliation service ACAS following media reports of a trade dispute between the union and CalMac Ferries.

“In an attempt to find a satisfactory solution to the dispute RMT immediately accepted this approach from ACAS. Unfortunately CalMac have rejected the services of ACAS and seem determined to stick with their intransigent position of refusing to recognise that their hard working loyal staff deserve an acceptable pay offer in recognition of their risking their own health and safety during the Covid- 19 pandemic to keep Scotland’s west coast island communities supplied with essential goods.

“It’s becoming increasingly apparent that the company are holding a financial line as instructed by the Scottish Government and Transport Scotland.”

RMT General Secretary Mick Cash also commented: “It’s extremely disappointing and unfortunate that CalMac will not engage in a meaningful and productive manner to find a mutually agreeable solution to this ongoing dispute.

“I have informed the company that my union remains available for talks to avert any dispute and despite this they also rejected the offer from ACAS to get involved and work with all parties to lift the potential of a dispute that would be damaging to the local economy and bring unnecessary additional stress and pressure to the islanders who utilise CalMacs services.

“I would urge the senior management at CalMac to get back round the negotiating table in an honest attempt to reach a settlement.

“If this means they need to make the justifiable case to the Scottish Government to reach agreement on a fair and reasonable pay award for their workforce then they need to get on and do exactly that.”

Robbie Drummond, CalMac Managing Director, told the Gazette: “CalMac has suffered significant and quite unprecedented financial pressures due to Covid-19 and it is likely that these will continue to have an impact for some time to come.

“Despite this, we are committed to rewarding staff in recognition of their determination to provide a high quality and safe lifeline service during an extremely difficult period.

“We are thankful for the support from Transport Scotland under our contract, which has enabled us to protect every job during the pandemic and to provide furloughed employees 100 per cent of their pay. We also took steps to ensure that their safety and wellbeing was well protected.

“This pay offer is the same as the current rate of inflation and is being made with our staff in mind – providing a fair and generous offer in the current circumstances. This offer ensures the best possible route for us all going forward as we get through the pandemic together.”