‘Draconian approach’

Port workers at the Port of Grangemouth kicked off a two-week strike today (March 15) after their employer Forth Ports imposed changes to shift work without consultation.

 
These changes will see the port workers lose an astounding ÂŁ1,800 a year.

 
The strike action began today (March 15) just after midnight and will continue until midnight on Tuesday, March 29.

 
The mandate for the walkout was overwhelming – Unite members in the port operatives division voted 100 per cent in favour of strike action on the back of a 97 per cent turnout.

 
Unite regional officer Sandy Smart explained that the strike action at Scotland’s biggest port was direct fallout from Forth Ports’ “draconian approach to employment relations”.

 
“The basics of good relations are consultation and negotiation but Forth Ports completely ignored this to impose a range of measures that will cause significant financial detriment to their employees,” he added.

 
The imposed changes to shift rotation at the port affecting operative work include a 25 per cent increase in weekend shift work with the effective removal of weekend overtime rates, as well as a decrease in night shift cover from one week in seven to one week in eight.

 
An axe to weekend overtime rates means port workers will be ÂŁ1600 pounds out of pocket each year, and the reduced night shift cover will cost workers an additional ÂŁ200 pounds annually.

 
Smart expressed frustration at Forth Ports’ intransigence in its refusal to consult with members.
“We have repeatedly approached the employer in an effort to resolve this situation and avoid a damaging dispute but we have been stonewalled at every turn,” he said.

 
Smart emphasised that the strike action is not a pay dispute.

 
“The striking port workers are standing up to protect their terms and conditions,” he said.

 
He explained that last year, Forth Ports had brought in consultants in order to make efficiency savings. One of their main proposals was to increase the number of shift teams from seven to eight.

 
Adding this tweak to a previous change that made weekend working compulsory – one which the workforce had accepted – meant that weekend work had significantly increased but the workers would no longer be compensated on overtime rates.

 
This move also cut the availability of overtime work on night shifts.

 
“Essentially these changes meant that workers who were keen to do overtime on weekends — mostly younger workers without families — were no longer getting the extra pay, while on the other hand, workers who were quite happy not to work on weekends were being forced into it, again, for no extra pay.”

 
Smart said that the overwhelming mandate for strike action showed just how resolved the workforce was to protect their terms and conditions.

 
“They’ve accepted changes to terms and conditions before but this time, it was one step too far,” he noted. “There was an overwhelming feeling among the workforce that if they don’t stand up now, things will only get worse for them in the future.

 
“A two-week strike is considerably long, and the decision was not taken lightly,” Smart added. “Strike action is always a last resort – we’ve been driven to this by the employer’s hard-nosed attitude.”

 
Forth Ports responded last night to the media by arguing that workers understood that their shift patters may change in the future.

 
“Vessels call at the port seven days a week and we need to be able to service those vessels,” a Forth Ports spokesperson said. “Our staff and their union accepted the need for such flexibility, and that shift patterns may require to change in the future, when this element of their employment contracts was agreed in 2011.”

 
But Smart hit back at Forth Ports’ comments, highlighting again the forced imposition of the changes.

 
“What’s unjustified is Forth Ports’ imposition of changes to shift patterns without any consultation and to the significant detriment of our members,” he said. “It is ridiculous that in the 21st century some employers think it is appropriate to manage by diktat rather than dialogue.

 
“We’re not hostile to change and our members understand the challenges and demands of their industry better than anyone,” he added. “However, changes should be negotiated through the proper channels of employment relations and that’s not happened here.

 
“We are ready and willing to meet with the employer but that requires Forth Ports senior management entering into a meaningful dialogue and actually listening to their employees’ concerns,” Smart went on to say.

 
“Regrettably they have given no indication whatsoever that they are prepared to do so.”

 
Stay tuned on UNITElive for the latest updates as the strike continues.

Pic by Robert Murray