Dounreay workers on picket line as strike action takes place at nuclear site
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Pickets were at Dounreay this morning as the Unite and GMB unions went on strike after rejecting a new pay offer from Nuclear Restoration Services Limited (NRS).
They turned down a revised offer which proposed a one-off £500 payment on top of a basic 4.5 per cent increase.
The unions claim the offer amounts to a substantial pay cut as the rate of inflation stood at 11.4 per cent when the pay increase was due in April 2023. The deal was accepted by Prospect members.
Marc Jackson, Unite's Inverness-based regional officer, was on the picket line. Speaking from the site, he said: “I am so proud of our membership with nearly a 200-strong picket line this morning from 6am. Unite the union is very disappointed we had to take strike action and are waiting on NRS to come to the table for talks.
“The lack of engagement from the company has been shocking.”
He said a pay offer which amounts to “a significant pay cut just isn’t going to be tolerated” and stressed the company should “be under no illusions as to the determination of our members to get the pay rise they deserve”.
The strike will last for 24 hours, although an overtime ban is expected to come into effect from Thursday with further action planned for May 29. The unions have said they are preparing for more strike dates if no movement is made by NRS.
Kim Thain, the vice chair of the Trade Union Co-ordinating Committee at Dounreay, previously confirmed that GMB and Unite have rejected the new offer and would be on strike on Wednesday, with plans for further action.
Dounreay management said it is “disappointed” by the strike but remains “committed to finding a resolution that is fair and affordable”.
