Unions reject Orkney Ferries pay offer

The three unions involved in the current pay dispute at Orkney Ferries — the RMT, Unite and Nautilus International — have all rejected the latest pay offer made by the company.

Orkney Ferries chairman, Councillor Graham Sinclair, said: “We are very disappointed that union members among staff employed by Orkney Ferries have voted to turn down the offer.

“At a time of reduced funding and pay restraint, we made what we considered, in the circumstances, to be a generous offer. The offer included a one per cent increase in pay and met the Trade Unions’ requests for an extra week’s holiday.

“This dispute is about pay and, in our view, the offer should have brought this long-running dispute to an end. But because of the ballot results, the offer will now be withdrawn.”

Councillor Sinclair added: “The ballot results will inevitably result in further disruption for our customers. We greatly regret this, but the offer was the best we could have made.”

The board of Orkney Ferries will meet tomorrow, Friday, to discuss the situation.