S Club Seven !

[Andy Shiers]

Okay James ,
I have heard quite a bit through the grapevine from different people about S Club Seven and the replacement of cheap labour for British Jobs in the North sea , " OHHHH the times a changing ! and the recession has hit us pretty bad ! " Quote from some Muppet in their Orifice 😯
Maybe Neil can throw some light on this Fiasco 😕
As I also heard that the RMT have done ‘Sod all’ about it and this has been going on for some time as yet and the longer they leave it the worse it’s goona git !
I have also heard that a certain few , who have been in the Onion for quite a few years are now planning on stopping the direct debits to this organization due to frustration ! 😯
To me it smells again of Past Onions ( Ie PDA ) " We will support ya and do something serious to wake the cretins up ! " Only they "Talk the Talk" But canna "Walk the walk"
" Does your dog Bite ? "
"No , he has no teeth , But he can bark alot ! " 😕
Still no justifiable incentive to join as yet Old chap !
Stainless Steel Bollocks is what I want to see from this RMT not some letter or email telling me " We are doing all we can but our hands are tied" 🙁
Striking is a last resort as everyone suffers but if the RMT is as big as you say it is And support other groups ( That have got bugger all to do with our industry 😕 ) They should show more teeth prior to biting 😀
I watch , I listen but still perched on the fence !

[De-mob]

The uni0n cannot succesfully support an industry which is not united in it’s own goals and objectives. Some guys sit on the fence, some don’t want to be in a uni0n and some do. Untill the majority of the ROV community are members of the Uni0n, nothing will change because they do not have the bargaining power.How would it be if the RMT went to the companies and said this is what our 30% membership wants. The companies reply would be well F–k em coz we will use the other 70% that will do as we say and we’ll use even more cheap foreign nationals from now on.

You have to be united guys to get this sorted succesfully, not sit on the somewhat rickety fence. The divers showed the way and the Rov guys lost the way.

[Savante]

What is the RMT agenda/proposal? – define it. Give some solid figures and bullet-point topics for discussion. I’ve just listened to a month of quasi-democratic bullsh1t and empty rhetoric in the aberdeenshire local elections, but at least some it was defined.

Until there is an agenda that can be seen by all and people can decide to subscribe to something concrete and well thought-out, this is going to become an emotive irrelevance.

[James McLauchlan]

The problem I see is that there is no defined aim/target for ROV being quoted from within the uni0n organisation. If there were a touted proposal which could also be used for a recruiting drive, then that might be enough to get the ball well and truely rolling. I also feel that there should be an ROV uni0n rep that people can relate to, but that’s not happened yet either. There is no feedback on numbers joining or progress on representing ROV with the operators.

What I have seen written is that ROV must organise from within but to me that’s a catch 22 situation. If there are very few within then there will be no organising going on. Initially the uni0n must lead on this.

None of the above is ideal but it is early days.
Last year I clearly remember people suggesting that uni0n membership was a waste of time and money… this year I am now reading that they are not doing enough and people might pull out. Come on guys n gals… the diver stuck with it for years and eventually pulled it off! It’s never going to happen in 12 months or so!

For people stopping their standing orders… that’s a very short sighted approach IMHO. I don’t work offshore any more but I still pay membership fees because I feel strongly enough about this to keep supporting the idea. The annual cost is bugger all compared to annual income… some people spend far more than that on cigarettes or booze each year, neither of which do any good either but they still spend the money and don’t threaten to stop paying for the stuff!
Built within the uni0n fees is also the benefit of legal support should you ever need it.. that alone is worth the ‘insurance‘ premium.
Stay in, keep the standing order going and allow the rest to follow which I feel is already starting to happen. Eventually the overall cost will be recouped, in financial terms at least, in a similar way that the divers currently enjoy.

Take a short term view, such at the way British industry looks at things, and nothing will be gained by anybody!

[Andy Shiers]

So What you are saying is , there has to be in effect fifty to seventy percent of the ROV workforce on the Onion books for the RMT to be strong enough to negotiate on a hard footing or "Strong arm " by threat of striking ?
You know , My biggest worry about Onions is that it would go the way of Australia 😯
Down there , they strike at the slight sneeze of provocation to ridiculous ! Then it gets embarrasing 😕
Same as Savante , I want to see a positive agenda and policies set out in the scriptures first.

[Scott Beveridge]

Lost, Sav and James,

For those of you who are in or close to the N. Sea work (as well as nationals of the countries involved), why don’t you unite and join??? It’s only 15 gbp a month….. Do away with 2 packs of fags or 5 to 7 pints and bloody join. Develope yur brass cajones, get some vampire dentures, and help speak up. You guys are only growing moss and NOT a recognized voice. It’s gotta start somewhere.

Lost and others with a diving background – you seen it with your diving mates, soooo???…. git off the fence and join…. And SCREW the management who threaten you…. (you know who you are ya’ barstewards!!!!)

[Savante]

The thing that we need to be concentrating on now is who (position rather than person) got chopped. Are we looking at offshore workers or specialist contractors who run calculations like orcaflex modelling packages for cable/pipelay, upheaval buckling specialists, engineering draght-persons, or administrative roles?

[outsider]

I realise I’m leaving myself wide open with this 🙄
Its all well and good to talk about the Onion organising a strike, "The Divers did it" However they where to my knowledge North Sea based, what happens to crews who join a strike in say West Africa, S-Club7 would most likely take the view that they have withdrawn their labour and as such are in breach of contract. You are likely to be escorted off the vessel and I really wouldn’t want to try and picket a vessel in West Africa 😥 and not only that as several previous postings in other threads have blatently stated its a dog eat dog industry, if S-Club7 are shut down Technip/Oceanerring and the rest will leap to fill the gap with their crews so how would you stop black leg crews joining the vessel????

Standing by to be flamed 😈

[Andy Shiers]

True 😯 And how to stop Wannabes trying to get the experience and less pay accepting said jobs in Africa 😕 That "Gap" would have to be filled in too ! 🙁

[Scott Beveridge]

Lost and Outsider,

Then it will be only a matter of time to receive the call, "Um… er, can you help us out…. seems that we had Mr. Newbie supv. really farq things up…" etc, etc.

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