The UK Ferry sector is being hit hard with coronavirus effect and is facing redundancies on a large scale with two to three year recovery anticipated.
A UK wide Working Group is assisting the Rail, Maritime and Transport Union (RMT) in resettling as many of several hundred UK mariners as possible with a focus on retention in the maritime sector.
The numbers are heavily rating and catering focused but with deck and engine also available. All those being made redundant are of course ready UK STCW qualified and provide a rich pool of easily transferable skills into the Workboat, Construction and Service Operation Vessel (SOV) sector. With continuing growth in these three vessel sectors and especially with new offshore wind contracts the Working Group considers we may have mutually beneficial opportunity for both sectors to encourage transfer from Ferry to Offshore Contracting and fit the offshore wind employers’ needs.
The Working Group is liaising with stakeholder trade associations and an Offshore Renewable Energy sector maritime HR consultant to identify skills gaps and the short course needs that can be completed to add sector opportunities (for example; lifting and signalling, dangerous goods or in some cases Global Wind Organisation (GWO) training) and these will be funded for the candidates by a combined UK seafarer charity funded response.
The Workboat Association is asking employers to link with the RMT and build the transfer potential to take advantage of a ready-made opportunity.
In the first instance please email Mark Carden, the Assistant National Secretary for the Rail, Maritime and Transport Union on M.Carden@rmt.org.uk
