A pay dispute involving merchant seamen has delayed vital work on the RFA’s Cardigan Bay, a ship that has been playing a key role in relief efforts in Gaza.
Cardigan Bay, part of the Royal Fleet Auxiliary, has remained berthed in Portland harbour for three weeks after crew members began a work-to-rule following failed negotiations with the Ministry of Defence.
One of three Bay Class amphibious vessels capable of carrying 700 soldiers or civilians, Cardigan Bay has been deployed around the world for the past two-and-a-half years and requires a major refit.
However, after the ship returned home to Portland in early September, crew members owed shore leave after four months at sea declined to move her 140 nautical miles for repairs and maintenance at the Falmouth yard of A&P Group.
RFA personnel are merchant navy sailors rather than members of the armed forces, meaning they are permitted to take industrial action when not at sea.
The Nautilus union, which represents about 600 RFA officers, said it resorted to the action after the MoD imposed a 4.5 per cent pay settlement for the year that began in July 2023, despite the sum having been rejected twice.
The union is seeking a bigger increase following what it claims is a 30pc decline in RFA wages versus the commercial merchant navy equivalent since 2009. The Royal Navy’s military personnel have seen pay increase by 13 per cent more over the same period, it says.
Photo by Paul Dallaway
