Calendar An icon of a desk calendar. Cancel An icon of a circle with a diagonal line across. Caret An icon of a block arrow pointing to the right. Email An icon of a paper envelope. Facebook An icon of the Facebook "f" mark. Google An icon of the Google "G" mark. Linked In An icon of the Linked In "in" mark. Logout An icon representing logout. Profile An icon that resembles human head and shoulders. Telephone An icon of a traditional telephone receiver. Tick An icon of a tick mark. Is Public An icon of a human eye and eyelashes. Is Not Public An icon of a human eye and eyelashes with a diagonal line through it. Pause Icon A two-lined pause icon for stopping interactions. Quote Mark A opening quote mark. Quote Mark A closing quote mark. Arrow An icon of an arrow. Folder An icon of a paper folder. Breaking An icon of an exclamation mark on a circular background. Camera An icon of a digital camera. Caret An icon of a caret arrow. Clock An icon of a clock face. Close An icon of the an X shape. Close Icon An icon used to represent where to interact to collapse or dismiss a component Comment An icon of a speech bubble. Comments An icon of a speech bubble, denoting user comments. Comments An icon of a speech bubble, denoting user comments. Ellipsis An icon of 3 horizontal dots. Envelope An icon of a paper envelope. Facebook An icon of a facebook f logo. Camera An icon of a digital camera. Home An icon of a house. Instagram An icon of the Instagram logo. LinkedIn An icon of the LinkedIn logo. Magnifying Glass An icon of a magnifying glass. Search Icon A magnifying glass icon that is used to represent the function of searching. Menu An icon of 3 horizontal lines. Hamburger Menu Icon An icon used to represent a collapsed menu. Next An icon of an arrow pointing to the right. Notice An explanation mark centred inside a circle. Previous An icon of an arrow pointing to the left. Rating An icon of a star. Tag An icon of a tag. Twitter An icon of the Twitter logo. Video Camera An icon of a video camera shape. Speech Bubble Icon A icon displaying a speech bubble WhatsApp An icon of the WhatsApp logo. Information An icon of an information logo. Plus A mathematical 'plus' symbol. Duration An icon indicating Time. Success Tick An icon of a green tick. Success Tick Timeout An icon of a greyed out success tick. Loading Spinner An icon of a loading spinner. Facebook Messenger An icon of the facebook messenger app logo. Facebook An icon of a facebook f logo. Facebook Messenger An icon of the Twitter app logo. LinkedIn An icon of the LinkedIn logo. WhatsApp Messenger An icon of the Whatsapp messenger app logo. Email An icon of an mail envelope. Copy link A decentered black square over a white square.

North Sea divers set to commence two months of strike action

The union has said it remains available for discussions to negotiate a settlement.

RMT's members covered by the ODIA are set to commence strike action. Image: KD Marine
RMT's members covered by the ODIA are set to commence strike action. Image: KD Marine

RMT Union’s members working under the Offshore Diving Industry Agreement (ODIA) have voted in favour of strike action which is set to span two months.

It is unclear what form the action will take when it kicks off next Wednesday, 14 August. The union, which has declined to confirm how many divers will be taking part, has said  strike actions will come to an end on 14 October.

RMT has also said it remains available for discussions to negotiate a settlement.

The union says that its members “voted overwhelmingly in favour of strike action” amid a pay dispute.

RMT general secretary Mick Lynch said that members’ pay had fallen behind in real terms in 2015 when they accepted not getting a pay rise in favour of protecting jobs during the downturn in oil and gas.

Lynch said: “During the same period, they sacrificed all but two bank holidays on the basis that this would redressed when things improved – this has never happened.”

The union’s general secretary has also bashed the ODIA’s “measly £130k death in service benefit” as his members work in a dangerous field.

A graphic sharing derails of RMT's diver strike action
RMT members have been sharing this image on social media.

In addition to the union’s ODIA members, those working as “dayraters” at Boskalis Subsea Services, KD Marine, Subsea 7, and TechnipFMC UK also backed strike action.

They voted in an e-referendum where they expressed “overwhelming support for those divers who were balloted”.

When asked RMT declined to share details on the number of workers taking part industrial action.

The union claims that “despite continued negotiations,” there has been no improvement on the last offer from the ODIA signatories.

‘The diving industry is extremely hazardous’

The union argued for increased wages as its members work in hazardous environments which impacts their health.

“According to some studies life expectancy for some commercial divers can be as low as 40 years with retirement or redeployment into lesser roles at the age of 50,” Lynch added.

“The diving industry is extremely hazardous with life expectancy as low as 40 years, yet they have a measly £130k death in service benefit to protect their families should anything happen to them.

“The high turnout in favour of strike action sends a strong signal to the employers that our members are determined to achieve a negotiated settlement.”

In the build-up to this year’s general election more than 60 climate organisations signed an open letter sent to all party leaders on Thursday based on a report backed by leading trade unions.

Signatories called for a UK-wide industrial strategy, including substantial investment in domestic manufacturing and skills, expansion of publicly owned energy, and reorganising the tax system for public good.

Lynch backed this report and said that RMT would work with environmental groups and governments “to guarantee fair treatment, job security, and new opportunities for oil and gas workers”.

Conversation