RFA Facing Strike Action After Union Reject Pay Offer
The crisis-ridden Royal Fleet Auxiliary (RFA) is staring at operational paralysis after a trade union rejected a pay offer for the fleet’s sailors and went on to state that balloting for industrial action remains on course.
The National Union of Rail, Maritime and Transport Workers (RMT) said that it has rejected a 4.5 percent pay offer for seafarers employed by the RFA, describing it as "wholly inadequate." The move means that over 1,600 civilian ratings, officers and apprentices employed by the RFA will continue voting for a strike action that could cripple the operations of the fleet of ships that provide vital support to the Royal Navy and Royal Marines across the globe.
The strike balloting is slated to close on February 17. Members of the Nautilus International union are also balloting for the strike action.
In rejecting the offer, RMT says that the United Kingdom’s Ministry of Defense (MoD) failed to address years of below-inflation pay increases and a growing retention crisis across the service. The union contends that pay rates might not comply with the UK's legal minimum wage once the actual hours worked by seafarers are taken into account.
“This pay offer falls short of our members’ expectations based on their years of dedication and service. Years of real terms falling behind in pay have left RFA seafarers worse off, and management still cannot show if all of our members are even being paid at least the minimum wage for the hours they are required to work,” said Eddie Dempsey, RMT General Secretary.
The rejection of the offer is set to rekindle the contract dispute that engulfed the RFA in 2024. The fleet is sinking deeper into crisis due to a crew shortage that - according to the union - is caused in part by uncompetitive pay. Experienced mariners can find better compensation and conditions in commercial shipping, the union says, and RFA has had difficulty in finding new recruits.
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The manning crisis has resulted in RFA vessels laid up for lack of crew, reducing fleet operational capability and adding to concerns about its ability to support the Royal Navy's global operations. The RFA currently has a fleet of 13 ships, but recent reports suggest that only six to seven are operational at any given time.
The pay dispute has bubbled on and off for some time. In 2024, RFA sailors took to the streets on several occasions to protest their compensation packages. The standoff was resolved in January 2025 after a deal with the UK MoD.