Mailwatch(ed) Forum

After the recent scandal in Post Office plc and the current goings on at P&O, I think it's time for a new thread.


The P&O shitshow is worse than we thought

Agency seafarers who were unwittingly hired to replace sacked P&O staff at Cairnryan turned and left when they realised what the job entailed.

Gavin Hamilton, from Paisley, and Mark Canet-Baldwin, from Lincolnshire, said they were given no information about the vessel they would be working on.

The two only realised it was a P&O vessel when their coach pulled up at the dock.

They were accompanied by a dozen security guards with handcuffs.

P&O Ferries staff are now staging protests after the firm sacked 800 employees across the UK without giving them any notice.

"It was news to us," said Gavin. "We were told the crew on board wouldn't lose their jobs, they were going to be offered contracts.

"We later discovered through the news that wasn't going to be the case and this wasn't exactly the friendly handover we were told it was going to be."...

https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-scotland-60795417.amp

I've had my hands on and off in industrial relations for some time; the last time was ten years ago, representing a friend when we were both made compulsorily redundant. We trusted each other more than our union, I am sad to say.

There is no doubt in my mind that what P&O has done is illegal under English law - it seems there has been no consultation and no notice. There is supposed to be consultation if more than twenty people are being laid off. See https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-60792039 and see also https://www.theguardian.com/business/20 ... s-unlawful

I'm surprised the staff haven't been hit with what used to be called Compromise Agreements.

Before anyone brings Brexit into this, there has been no derogation from EU law on this matter.

Boiler wrote: ↑Sun Mar 20, 2022 1:50 pm I've had my hands on and off in industrial relations for some time; the last time was ten years ago, representing a friend when we were both made compulsorily redundant. We trusted each other more than our union, I am sad to say.

There is no doubt in my mind that what P&O has done is illegal under English law - it seems there has been no consultation and no notice. There is supposed to be consultation if more than twenty people are being laid off. See https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-60792039 and see also https://www.theguardian.com/business/20 ... s-unlawful

I'm surprised the staff haven't been hit with what used to be called Compromise Agreements.

Before anyone brings Brexit into this, there has been no derogation from EU law on this matter.

It's not about law though, for me. It's about the rhetoric Brexit was fundamentally built on, and the reality of the fucking scumbags in charge and what they encourage, permit and expect.

It gets worse

New crew on P&O ships will be paid at rates well below the minimum wage, a union has claimed amid continued anger over the sacking of 800 workers by the ferry giant.

The Rail, Maritime and Transport union (RMT) said it had discovered another “shocking twist” to the scandal because replacement crews on P&O ships will be on “poverty pay”....

https://www.kentonline.co.uk/dover/news ... ay-264261/

Flags of convenience can be very convenient

The RMT said P&O ships on the Liverpool-Dublin route have now been crewed with Filipino ratings on contracts which pay below the minimum wage.

Shipping companies which are registered in other countries and operating routes from UK ports to Europe can pay below the minimum wage because they are exempt from legislation.

Shipping companies today, manufacturing, financial services, hotel chains etc tomorrow?

Maybe Johnson's Brexit *is* going to be good for businesses after all.

PMQs might be interesting this week.

P&O boss admits they acted illegally:

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-60862933

This story will run and run

A P&O ferry has been detained in Northern Ireland on safety grounds - just days after 800 workers were sacked without notice and replaced with cheaper workers.

The Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA) said the ship, The European Causeway, was held in Larne "due to failures on crew familiarisation, vessel documentation and crew training".

Its statement said: "The vessel will remain under detention until all these issues are resolved by P&O Ferries. Only then will it be reinspected."...

https://news.sky.com/story/amp/p-o-ferr ... s-12575219

Seems to be a rather expensive way to cut costs and save money.

Episode MCMVII in the continuing saga of a ferry company which acted unethically and illegally

P&O Ferries will not sail from the Port of Dover "anytime soon," KentLive has been told. It comes as the operator controversially sacked 800 seafarers over a video call last month. The company's vessels were taken out of service for safety checks, which left DFDS Seaways and Irish Ferries taking on P&O's bookings.

Despite the firm hoping to resume its services from the Port of Dover before the Easter weekend, it suffered a major setback when another of its ships was detained. The Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA) said Spirit of Britain is not being allowed to sail after an inspection identified several safety issues, while the Pride of Kent has also been detained...


https://www.kentlive.news/news/kent-new ... 983207.amp

They say no publicity is bad publicity, but this doesn't look particularly good.

That good ol' spirit of free enterprise...

Herald of free enterprise, surely?

Spirit of Free Enterprise was renamed as the Pride of Kent

It's all just irony...

The Spirit of Britain unable to sail because of safety issues sounds like a metaphor for something, but I can't quite put my finger on it.

And so it continues...

P&O Ferries was accused of ­plumbing new depths yesterday after trying to cut the wages of its new low-paid foreign crew.

Overseas agency workers hired to replace 786 staff illegally sacked by Zoom call claimed they were asked to sign new contracts on lower pay.

If they did not agree they faced being out of work, it is claimed.

One agency worker emailed the RMT union from the Spirit of Britain ferry in Dover and declared: “We are desperate.”

In one example, workers say chefs paid £2,336 a month on temporary contracts were asked to sign new deals giving them £195 a month less...


...But it is not known if all faced a cut, or if staff on seven other ferries were targeted too.

Some crew earn just £748 a month for a 40-hour week – barely £4.30 an hour...


https://www.mirror.co.uk/news/uk-news/p ... 782110.amp

I really hope P&O goes under.

Boiler wrote: ↑Sun Apr 24, 2022 11:25 am I really hope P&O goes under.

Only when all their ships are in port, mind...

It should be mentioned that P&O Cruises is run separately from P&O Ferries, and there is no hint of impropriety there.

P&O ferry European Causeway adrift off coast of Larne

A P&O ferry, which operates between Larne and Cairnryan, is adrift off the coast of Larne.

The European Causeway, which can carry up to 410 passengers, is about five miles off Larne Harbour.

It left Cairnryan at about 12:00 BST and was due to arrive at Larne Harbour at 14:00.

P&O said the incident occurred due to a mechanical issue in the Irish Sea and a full inspection will take place when the ship is back in port.

Tugs from Larne and Belfast have been deployed to guide it back to port, P&O tweeted.

An RNLI lifeboat was also launched to the vessel.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-northern-ireland-61229753

Move along, nothing to see here...

It's as if they sacked all of their experienced staff in an avaricious drive to cut costs and are now finding out why the replacement cheap labour is so cheap.

Don't Panic!!

Tomorrow's Herald will explain why this is all Nicola Sturgeon's fault.