Strike action voted for by North Sea offshore workers in pay dispute
Around 200 offshore workers on a North Sea project have voted to strike in a dispute over pay and conditions.
The trade union Unite said its members working for Aker Solutions on the Mariner oil platform have backed industrial action.
Some 83% of Unite members on an 80% turnout rejected a final pay, terms and conditions offer made by management, the union said.
Aker, a major offshore contractor, described the move as 'disappointing'.
The Mariner project, operated by Equinor, is around 95 miles east of Shetland.
According to Equinor, the project is currently in the hook-up and commissioning phase and supporting more than 1,500 jobs. Production is expected to begin during the second half of this year.
The union said the row with Aker Solutions centres on issues including standby payments, training expenses and bonus payments.
Unite said about 200 workers are set to be involved in the industrial action, which is likely to take place between early August and early October. An overtime ban will also be in place during that time.
Regional officer John Boland said: 'The strength of feeling amongst our members at Aker is rock solid and resolute.
'The resistance and protracted process by Aker management to give our membership what they deserve has led us to this position.
'There is a rapidly closing window of opportunity to resolve this dispute but the actions of Aker so far can only lead us to the conclusion that industrial action is all but inevitable.'
A spokesman for the Norwegian-headquartered firm said: 'Aker Solutions was today notified by Unite the Union that, following a recent ballot, its members employed by Aker Solutions on the Mariner project have voted to initiate strike action.
'This is a disappointing development following the presentation of an enhancement to terms and conditions worth up to £8,000 per employee.
'Aker Solutions will now seek further discussions with the union regarding their proposed steps to resolution.'
An Equinor spokeswoman said: 'The work offshore on the Mariner A installation is progressing well and there is no change to our plan to start production from the field by the end of 2018.'