Industrial action hits North Isles ferries

The Orkney Ferries vessel Earl Thorfinn will be tied up from tomorrow morning , Thursday, for up to a week.

This will reduce the number of vessels serving communities in the outer North Isles from three to two.

Councillor Graham Sinclair, chairman of Orkney Ferries, said: “Everyone involved regrets the impact this will have on our customers at what we know is a busy time of the year.

“Tying up the vessel is the last thing any of us would want to do, but is an unfortunate indirect consequence of ongoing industrial action. The company can face difficulties in finding replacement crew to cover for absent colleagues – and this is one of those occasions.

“Recent meetings with the unions encourage me to believe there is a desire among all involved to bring the dispute to an end and with that in mind, we hope to meet again soon.”

A contingency timetable has been drawn up to cover this period and is available on the Orkney Ferries website, www.orkneyferries.co.uk. According to the company, further timetable changes may be needed.