Nautilus International, the union representing officers at the Royal Fleet Auxiliary (RFA) have announced they will take strike action for the first time in the history of the service.
The strike action will take place on Thursday 15th August from 00:01 BST to 23:59 BST
The announcement follows a period of continuous action short of strike since 1st June.
RFA officers have experienced a real term pay cut of over 30% since 2010, with a below inflation pay rise of 4.5% imposed in November 2023.
Nautilus members at the RFA voted overwhelmingly for industrial action with 85% voting for action short of strike and 79% voting for strike action.
Nautilus International Director of Organising Martyn Gray said “Strike action is always a last resort for us, but there is a palpable strength of feeling among our members at the RFA.
Over 14 years of cuts and pay restraint, despite the RFA undertaking increasingly complex operations, have taken their toll.
Our members are overworked, underpaid and undervalued.
The fact this is the first time RFA officers will take strike action in history is a scathing indictment on the state of the service that is experiencing a recruitment and retention crisis and rock bottom morale across the workforce.
Despite early engagement with the Ministry of Defence post the general election, we are yet to receive a new and improved pay offer for our members. This is unacceptable and leaves us no option but to escalate from action short of strike to full strike action.
Our message is simple, to avoid disruption at the RFA who are vital to the UK’s naval capabilities, we need a pay offer that reflects the high rate of inflation and a pathway to pay restoration. We remain committed to working with government to achieve that.”
