Disruption to cross-Solent travel is continuing this week with a further 3 days of industrial action planned – with no signs of Red Funnel buckling under the pressure to increase staff wages.
The first day of action was held last Wednesday, as previously reported by Island Echo, with 24-hour strikes also taking place today (Monday) and again on Wednesday and Friday.
Further strikes are planned in the ongoing row over pay on 9th, 11th, 15th, 17th, 19th, 23rd, 26th and 29th August.
Around 20% of Red Funnel’s workforce have walked out, resulting in a revised timetable being implemented to keep the cross-Solent service running.
Red Funnel tried to initiate pay negotiations in October 2021 so that they would be able to implement 2022’s salary uplift on 1st January 2022. Unite the Union did not present its initial 16% pay claim until December 2021. In response to the initial pay claim and subsequent negotiations, Red Funnel has made a final offer of a 6.3% increase in pay for all employees some roles. For other roles, Red Funnel has offered 4.5%.
So basically everyone on the island should be protesting because about 99.9% of islanders are on very low pay.
That’s the price you pay for living in paridise….lol
My idea is all essential workers, including Red Funnel workers, get a 10% pay increase, and we customers pay 10% more for the service. Fair’s fair.
Good on the 20% who are fighting for there right to earn a decent wage there’s some hard times a head and bills to pay no family man should get out of bed for less than £ 15 hour
all gone nuts! thousands are on even lower pay and CANT strike.its unfair i feel.at this time just having a job means your lucky.
all its doing is pushing costs everywhere up so we sll still suffer.
been offered a rise …take it or move on
Why are islanders held to ransom not only by the ferry operators but also now their employees? Designate the ferries as an essential service or build a fixed link.
Get back to work
A days pay for a days work
Good luck to them, it is a travesty that they should have to do this to get fair wages. Woking a full-time job and they still need food banks? More power to them and anyone who is fed up of working for poverty wages whilst lining the pockets of the wealthy.
Nearly all are affected by the cost of living crisis but when you have been offered 6% and want 16% you are having a laugh, any additional costs will only be passed onto the customer and red funnel do a great job of over inflating prices over the summer as it is to increase profit. Red funnel need to get back to basics as service has suffered, so many sailings leave late and several staff are just stood around doing nothing, the other day there were 6 staff stood having a chat at east Cowes while the ferry left late yet again, time for a new CEO for Red funnel and get someone who cares about service and customers and lays off greedy staff.