Underpaid Coastguards

[kato]

I am one of many Coastguard Watch Assistants wages that bearly meet the minimum wage.

So I would ask that you all sign the following petition.

Appologies if this has already been posted.

Al

Petition to: Address the matter of emergency service personnel (namely HM Coastguard Staff) earning less than those employed by McDonalds, by implementing the recommendations and findings of the Comparability Study into salary differentials conducted

Following a year of intensive training and the successful completion of professional Coastguard examinations, junior HM Coastguard staff are paid less than those working in McDonalds! In fact they are given the lowest possible Civil Service grade (admin Assistant). As a world leader in Search and Rescue this is diabolical. Coastguard staff have been involved in many High profile incidents: Piper Aplha, Braer, Green Lily, Sea Empress, Morecambe Bay, Boscastle, Carlisle and more recently the floods in northern England. Last year Coastguards assisted 27,922 people.

[Richard Mason]

I can see your predicament and that you guys are evidently underpaid but I have to ask, if that's the case, why do you bother doing it? Presumably the pay rates for this position haven't changed markedly in recent years (it's rare for public service salaries to actually fall), so I wonder why, as an individual, you'd accept a position with such a low rate of pay in the first place.

If Macdonalds pays better, TBH and speaking personally, then I'd be going there. If they can't get people to fill the positions, they'll soon raise the pay.

There are lots of jobs I'd prefer to do to the one I do at the moment but the simple fact is that I would never seriously look at them because of the low pay rates on offer.

My understanding is that there is a big shortage of qualified people in the UK (hence, I'm told, the appearance of non English speaking bus drivers etc etc). Why not just look for something else? Is there a good career path for people in this position?

(Tongue possibly in cheek here but: If you are really unhappy with it, have a look at emigrating here, there's a massive labour shortage in the resources industry, which is going gangbusters at the moment, will probably get worse and will continue for the foreseeable future and if I was 20 years younger, I'd be heading up to Qld/WA with the rest of them.)

Probably not the best thing for the diving and sea-going fraternity I know, so in that respect, posting your petition on here is no bad thing and I'm certainly not trying to be negative about what you are trying to do with the petition, I'm just curious as to why you'd take the job in the first place.

I can't in all honesty sign it though as I live overseas.

[Ding Dang Doo]

How long do you stay at this grade?

During my apprenticeship, I was paid poorly for the first couple of years and was given the crappiest of jobs to do. I was bottom of the pile.

Things started to improve as my skill base did.

I never once moaned, complained or got p1ssed off about it. That's how things are. They do improve, but you have to go through the pain first.

Sorry if this not what you want to hear, but that's life.

I have every respect for the Coastguard and the job they do, especially being a diver, you never know when you might need their services; but there is a process within every line of work regarding pay.


Pete

[kato]

There is no "apprenticeship", as such. this grade was only introduced in 1996 (i think) so theoretically some people could spend their whole lives as a coastguard watch assistant.

It is possible to apply for training ahead of need (tan) to become a watch officer, but you dont recieve any benifits whilst you are on the course and then there is no guarantee of of post once you have qualified.

[Richard Mason]

Originally Posted by al1982

There is no "apprenticeship", as such. this grade was only introduced in 1996 (i think) so theoretically some people could spend their whole lives as a coastguard watch assistant.

It is possible to apply for training ahead of need (tan) to become a watch officer, but you dont recieve any benifits whilst you are on the course and then there is no guarantee of of post once you have qualified.

I still have to ask the question:

"Why are you doing the job then?"

[Andy the Coastie]

Originally Posted by Richard Mason

"Why are you doing the job then?"

I'll try to answer this.

And whilst people say " Why do we work for such low pay ? " or " why are we fighting for more pay " is simple.

Speaking for myself, I'm on more money than an a CWA as i'm the next grade up. But when you look at the 999 operators in the other emergency op's rooms who are on roughly £ 6,000 pa more than myself for just answering a telephone , getting details and then dispatching the relevant unit .... JOB DONE ( this is no way a pop or dig at this operators . )

Coastguards like AL , has to record the details and has to then get the relevant unit to attend and to do all the Search & Rescue planning side. basically seeing the job though from the first call to when the unit has finished and reported saying that they are ready for thier next job. Whilst dealing with this to deal with all the other routine phone calls / watch duties.
They do certainly work for thier money and a lot is on the line.



Before the grade of Coastguard Watch Assistants ( CWA's ), there were non uniiformed staff manning the Operation Room's by people who wanted a little job to fit in with thier daily lives and earn a little pocket money. During the early 1980's , these people at Dover were mainly ex full time coastguards / service men or women whose husbands were ferry captains / officers who could do a few hours day or night so they wasn't at home.

The grade of CWA came in, where the positions became full time employment to assist the full time coastguard officers., tis led to them becoming members of a set watch and working within that team, getting some of the benefits of the HM Coastguard ( Leave - pensions etc etc ).

A bit of history. The HM COASTGUARD used to be a male enviroment with the enrolement from sea served personell from the Armed services or merchant navy, nowdays that has started to change. These members used to spend a 7 week course at the coastguard School at Brixham learning all trades of the Search & Rescue / cliff teams / boats etc etc .


CWA's come into the service from all walks of life, they an stay at that grade if they wish or later on in thier career go for promotion. If they wish to go for promotion the the grade of WATCH OFFICER WO , they have go on a 9 month training programme and pass 8 exams on completion ( which are NOT easy ) , i can tell you.

Coastguard WATCH OFFICERS can join the Coastguard via the DIRECT ENTRY route ( which normally gets advertised once a year for only a handful of places to fill around the UK ), which means after filling in a long application, you must come from a Search & Rescue or Maritime background, Then you spend a day at the MCA school for a day of English and Maths tests and a board consisting of questions on comlex navigation / seamanship etc etc aswell as them woring out if you can work as a team layer and especially if you can go though a years worth of training.


MYSELF and MY WATCH at Dover

I have always wanted to be a Coastguard as I have been bought up with Search & Rescue for nearly 40 years, My father was a Coastguard and was Dover and only one grade above me after all them year . I'm looking at it as a job well worth doing, now day is the same. I do 2 day watches followed by 2 night watchs and have 4 days off ... I get paid , I get 320 hours annual leave, I get another pension for hopefully the next 23 years , YES I did enjoy my training course nd passed my exams to a high standard, which is hard when you have been out the educational system for a lot of years.

I look foward to going to work each watch and 99% is the first one in to relieve the watch that is there. I could have a very quiet watch ( except Dover is the only station to have RADAR ) or could be dealing with a major incident within the busiest shipping lanes in the world. NO 2 watches are the same. Excitement YES , sorrow for a poor mother having to deal with a drowned kiddy YES.

My watch consists of

Senior watch Manager - ex Royal navy radar officer .
Watch manager - 27 years in the royal navy in Communications.
Watch Officer - Myself - ex charter boat skipper - diver etc etc etc
CWA - Ex police control operator.
CWA - Ex hoverraft port control operator.
CWA - started in year DOT, but a coast rescue officer for years.
CWA - Ex special police , ex TA , jack of all trades.


NO MATTER WHAT THEY HAVE DONE IN THE PAST, I'm proud to stand beside these people and when the shit hits the fan , we are all great team and work well from good training and experience.


I don't think it's a matter of " why do we do it for low pay " but , do you really want us on your side when your in the shit ?


ps

AL , we will get our pay rise soon ,,,, just hang on in there .

[Arfie]

Signed, not that I think they take a blind bit of notice of these petitions.

Whilst I could ask, why you do it when it pays so little, I prefer to thank you all for doing it, saving lives (possibly mine one day) despite getting shite pay for it.

Arfie

[Dizzydiver]

We all stood up for the Firemen a few years back, maybe it's time we thought about you guys too. When in need I want you guys around! Maybe it's just that nobody knows how badly paid you are that nothings changed. Will put my marker on the petition once I press the button here.

[Ding Dang Doo]

I understand what Andy has to say, job satisfaction is great, but doesn't pay the bills. Andy is by nature a helpful person (he's helped me out before, not in capacity as Coastguard, but on something totally unrelated), and so I suspect, that are the majority of people within this line of work. I just feel that whilst there are people ready and willing fill these job vacancies, there is no need, from the Gorvernment's point of view, to increase pay levels.

The Government has got you by the short and curlies; heaven forbid, as a collective you deceided to take official action to raise awareness for your cause (I'm not sure if you are even allowed to do this as part of the T's & C's of your contract, so forgive me), as the consequenses of this action would be too frightening to comprehend!

You all do a worthy job, of that I have no doubt - but and it's a big but, you do choose to enter the Coastguard as a career, with your eyes wide open to the levels of pay and opportunities available for career (and hopefully money) progression.

Again, I think you do an excellent job - maybe you are worthy of extra money, but with the way the career path and pay levels are structured, bottom of the ladder gets treated the same financially as the trainee at Maccy Dees.

Pete

[Andy the Coastie]

Cheers for your kind words ,,,,,

I'm ONE of the very lucky ones.

I have no mortgage,( lucky for the past 10 years ) ,, just a wife and 2 kids