Clydeport dispute over failure to bring pay into line with industry standards

 
Clydeport marine pilots based on the River Clyde are being balloted on industrial action as part of a pay dispute.
 
Around a dozen pilots (who are members of Unite) involved in the dispute are based at the King George V dock in Glasgow and at Greenock Ocean terminal. 
 
The pilots who move vessels around the Clyde are angry at the company’s refusal to honour a benchmarking exercise which would bring their pay into line with other pilots in the industry which was part of pay negotiations two years ago. 
 
The ballot on strike action opens today (19 August) and closes on 27 August.
 
Unite general secretary Sharon Graham, said: “The Clydeport pilots are rightly angry that the company has refused to bring their pay into line with industry standards. This is a very wealthy company who can easily afford to resolve this dispute, but it is choosing not to, in order to boost its already overflowing coffers.”
 
Clydeport cranes and workshops are owned by the Peel Port Group. The workers handle and move containers, forest products, agribulk, project and bulk cargo from vessels on to land for onward distribution to destination markets across Scotland.
 
The company which trades under the name Clydeport Operations Limited has made profit after tax of £76.5m over the last two financial years.
 
Shauna Wright, Unite industrial officer, said: “The escalation in the dispute is down to the breakdown in trust. All vessels coming up or down the Clyde rely on our members and they simply can’t operate without them.”
 
Notes to Editor
 
For media enquiries please contact Andrew Brady on 07810157922. Email andrew.brady@unitetheunion.org Unite Scotland is the country’s biggest and most diverse trade union with around 150,000 members.