Workers at Dounreay will take 'whatever action is necessary' to get 'a fair pay offer,' says union official
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DOUNREAY workers will take "whatever action is necessary" to get "a fair pay offer." That is the warning which was made by a union official who said "enough is enough" after long-running talks over pay stalled.
Members of the GMB Scotland, Unite and Prospect unions at the Caithness site are being balloted on industrial action, including working to rule, overtime bans and strikes after a 4.5 per cent pay offer was overwhelmingly rejected.
Discussions with management have been continuing for more than a year and Keir Greenaway, GMB senior organiser in public services, said workers cannot be expected to wait any longer for a fair offer.
He said: "This delay would be unacceptable at any time but when our members have been enduring an unprecedented cost of living crisis, it is beyond the pale.
"We have heard a lot of words but seen no action by management and words do not pay our members’ bills.
"They deserve to see a fair pay offer urgently and will take whatever action is necessary to secure one. Enough is enough."
Mr Greenaway added: "Managers insist they are bound by civil service rules but have chosen not to seek exemption from those rules for their own reasons."
Maree Todd, the SNP MSP for Caithness, Sutherland and Ross, said: "It’s concerning to hear of potential industrial action at Dounreay power station.
"While assurances around the safety and security of the site have been provided, I hope a suitable solution on pay can be reached as soon as possible.
"I would strongly encourage Dounreay to enter into constructive discussions with the unions to find a resolution that satisfies the workforce and prevents any strike action and disruption to the local economy."
The ballot, which involves hundreds of workers, including craft technicians, general operators, chemical and electrical engineers, maintenance fitters and safety advisors, will close on April 2.
The unions stress that the 4.5 per cent offer – effective from April 2023 – was emphatically rejected by 95 per cent in a consultative pay ballot and say the offer amounts to "a substantial real terms pay cut" as inflation at the time stood at 11.4 per cent.
Dounreay joined Magnox Ltd last year and then became part of Nuclear Restoration Services (NRS), which is responsible for the clean-up of the Caithness site and 11 others across the UK. Dounreay is scheduled to be fully decommissioned in 2033.
It was pointed out that the remuneration package of the highest paid Magnox director went up from £331,000 to £651,000 at March 2023, and the company paid dividends of £2.1 million in the same period.
Unite general secretary Sharon Graham said: "The Dounreay workforce are highly-skilled and they undertake an extremely important job. The failure to pay our members a decent pay increase is outrageous, Magnox seems to have money to burn for directors and shareholders but thinks it is acceptable to deny its workers a decent pay increase.”
"Unite will fully support our members at Dounreay in the fight for better jobs, pay and conditions."
Marc Jackson, Unite industrial officer, said: "Pay negotiations with Magnox have been ongoing since January 2023 with next to no movement by the company. However, Magnox has not been slow in making sure the remuneration packages for directors have been bolstered with the highest paid director seeing their package double in the space of a year.
"Unite’s membership at Dounreay power station will no longer accept these double standards, and that’s why we are balloting our members for strike action."
Management at the site is disappointed about the industrial ballot. A spokesperson said: "We understand that the Dounreay union representatives felt that they had no choice but to ballot their members for industrial action over the pay deal. Obviously, this outcome is disappointing but it is the right of members to have their say.
"NRS Dounreay has made an offer of 4.5 per cent with lower grades getting up to 7 per cent. The Dounreay site will remain safe and secure and we sincerely hope we can resolve this as soon as possible."
