MoD: Royal Fleet Auxiliary sailors to stage fresh strikes with no government offer made to support Royal Navy

Members of the Rail, Maritime and Transport union (RMT) will walk out on Friday (October 4) and next Tuesday (October 8). RMT union members have joined their counterparts at Nautilus International for demonstrations in Portsmouth last month.

The union said discussions with the Ministry of Defence (MoD) have been constructive, but no satisfactory offer has been made. Further talks are scheduled to take place next week in an effort to resolve the dispute. During the strike, all RFA workers will be standing down from their duties, though essential safety measures — such as monitoring moorings and gangways — will remain in place. RMT general secretary Mick Lynch commented: “RFA seafarers provide vital support for naval operations and other essential services around the world. They deserve a decent pay rise to reflect the critical work they do. Our fight for fair pay continues, and we hope that the upcoming talks will lead to a reasonable and negotiated settlement.”

Union members have cited poor pay, long working hours, staff shortages and a lack of respect for their work as the reasoning behind the strikes. At the previous demonstration in Portsmouth, assistant national secretary Mark Carden said their members are severely underpaid compared to commercial seafarers - seeing a 36 per cent drop in pay in real terms over the past decade. “They’re so fed up with the way they are being treated by the RFA,” the Southsea native previously said. “It’s come to a tipping point where something has to give.”

The 57-year-old added: “They know their living standards are going down they know the skills they have are valued in the maritime industry, which is causing a recruitment and retention crisis within the RFA and the Royal Navy. The MoD needs to wake up, smell the coffee, and realise they have a recruitment and retention problem and are losing skilled personnel because of it. The Royal Navy can’t function without the auxiliary, and it’ll affect the security of the nation and how they can function around the globe. This is affecting everything globally.”

The MoD previously said they are working to minimise the impact of the strikes, adding that they recognise the importance of working conditions and are trying to maintain the RFA as an attractive and effective employer. A 4.5 per cent pay rise was imposed on RFA personnel, with union members voting for industrial action since. RFA sailors support Royal Navy personnel on forward deployments, with replenishment at sea tasks and other operations. A spokesman said: “The Royal Fleet Auxiliary are highly valued, specialist personnel. We are committed to listening to their concerns and keeping a continued dialogue to address the issues they have raised.”