Members of GMB Scotland working at the Defence Equipment & Support (DES) munitions depot in Beith, North Ayrshire, are poised to strike on Monday over a dispute regarding retention bonuses.

The union alleges the existence of a “two-tier workforce” at the base, resulting in only managers and craft workers receiving bonuses, while non-craft workers are left out.

GMB Scotland has argued that this discrepancy leads to non-craft workers earning less than many supermarket workers. DES is an autonomous entity of the MoD, responsible for providing equipment and support services to the UK armed forces.

GMB Scotland organiser Chris Kennedy said, “These workers are utterly vital to the UK armed forces – they deserve to be recognised as such.” Kennedy criticised management for allowing a two-tier workforce to develop, fostering resentment and anger among the workers.

He further warned that “if the Defence Secretary does not step in to right this wrong, supplies of the crucial missiles manufactured at Beith will soon run low.” This forthcoming strike is noted to be the first in DES’s history, adding to the gravity of the situation.

The union revealed that a staggering 93% of GMB members at the depot voted in favour of strike action, and over 50 workers are expected to walk out on Monday.

Responding to the situation, an MoD spokesperson confirmed that “pre-planned contingency measures are being implemented at Defence Munitions (DM) Beith to ensure the continued operation of the site.”

The MoD also stated they remain open to dialogue with GMB, aiming to discuss and resolve the issues raised.

Tom Dunlop
Tom Dunlop
Tom has spent the last 13 years working in the defence industry, specifically military and commercial shipbuilding. His work has taken him around Europe and the Far East, he is currently based in Scotland.

RELATED ARTICLESMORE FROM AUTHOR

76 COMMENTS

  1. Ummmmm

    They are called a TRADE Union – clue is in the name – they are supposed to be interested in supporting the skilled TRADES

    Historically that mean that unions supported differential pay with increased trades and skills…..

    • Trade Unions have long ago ceased to be anythig more than shake down crew. Back in the day they were once Guilds, protecting their members, but also their craft excellence and professionalism….my my look have far things have gone down hill.

      • Do you enjoy weekends? Thank a trade unionist. If you like 8 hour work days, thank a trade union. If you like statutory holidays, thank a trade unionist.

        • All well and good, but Unions trading on past glories,whilst now more interested in point scoring, supporting and feathering their own nests with members subs etc, is why they are increasingly becoming irrelevant.
          My local wel known thade union is even using members money to lay on free coaches for Antifa far left thugs, and stinky rebellion/stop oil terrorists to get to events In London etc to cause trouble.
          And they aren’t the only union doing that

        • I mean do u really think without trade unions we would all be working 7 days a week I don’t think so things move on however I do respect unions of the past that worked for the workers not now

    • Well as a classic example the big health unions accepted the governments less than generous 5% pay rise..because the government gave the un qualified staff a 9.3 rise..now I’m not against care assistants porters etc getting a reasonable rise but effectively unison sold it’s qualified healthcare professionals down the river as we now know the independent review board recommended 6% for NHS staff…which is now off the table as unison agreed the 9.8% for lower paid staff and 5% for everyone else….the issue is the RCN never agreed the pay rise and can still call another strike ballot and we are short 40,000 registered nurses as they are all walking away ( we are losing a net of 4000 registrants a year)..now I know we need to have a living wage and be egalitarian but when someone can walk off the street into an unskilled job ( porter, care assistant) and earn £23,000-24,000 yet the person who has to study get a degree for three years ( and 50k of debt), then register and be responsible and personally accountable for the life and limb of their patients ( while working in a system that puts them at professional risk) only gets £28,000 you can see why we are just not able to recruit…if you look at a five year period for starting as a care assistant to starting as a staff nurse:

      year 1-3 the nurse will earn -£30,000 ( they will actually pay for the privilege of spending 2000 hours working on wards and do 2000hours study).
      year 4-5 they will earn £57,000
      total earnings over 5 years £27,000

      years 1-3 care assistant will earn £ 68,500
      years 3-4 they will earn £48,600
      total earnings over five years £117,100

      The care assistant in their first 5 years working will earn well over 4 times more than the registered nurse in their first five years. That in simple terms is why we have a problem. in the US an an entry level care assistant earns $30,000 dollars or £22,000 less than the NHS pays..in the states A new RN will get around $70,000 dollars or £54,000 almost twice what the NHS pays a new RN…but the cost of getting the degree is about the same.

      we are really screwing our highly qualified, hard and expensive to train workforces that take years to develop and gown….

      it no longer pays to study and excel in many key professions strategically important professions in this county.

      • Are you saying that the NHS should have followed the independant reviewers ‘advice’ and given 6% across the board- or that the unions shouldnt have recommended the offer?
        I’m not sure if they balloted their members on that offer following their recommendation.
        I assume in your figures you consider the -£30k as the student debt which is- of cousre – slightly misleading/ambiguous .
        Foe example How do you know care wokers havent studied for a degree.
        I do feel some vocations shoudn’t have to pay for their degree- nurses may be one , but that is a different arguement & needs consideration.

        • Yes the NHS should have got the pay review body recommendations, it was not a great move for the unions to recommend any pay rise without knowing what the review body was going to say… As for nursing degrees..once the NHS actually paid its student nurses as they spend 2000 hours working for the NHS as part of their training…now they pay…when I qualified I was paid £320 pounds a month,,now student nurses have to pay £30,000. It’s not unreasonable to remove the cost of education from a nurses income as you work it out because they spend those three years actually in the health system providing care….As for a porter or care assistant having a degree or not is irrelevant, they are not a registrant don not need or require the degree and have a completely different level of responsibility and accountability. The reality is we pay professional staff far to little and we cannot recruit the numbers we need because of that, on the flip side NHS wages for none professional staff are overly competitive…market forces in wages still need to interact with the public sector even if we try and suppress them..

          • I dont disagree with your rationale that we shoud pay qualified staff more money.
            However for your argument regards wages you cant take the degree into consideration as a negative thats all I was saying.
            For the record I find it shameful Nurses now have to pay for their degrees especially for the time they spend on the war.
            However as they can use that qualification outside of the NHS I’m not sure what the solution is –
            I would perhaps look to re-emburse based on time spent working for the NHS-
            Would do the same for dentists and doctors as the same rules not sure but it could be a way to increase exposure to them for NHS patients.
            It is a difficult balancing act but one I fear the government have gotten wrong.
            As they have in removing wider subsidies for universities thus enabling them to seek out those students they can charge more for their services- to the detriment of the UK majority.
            Unintended (perhaps) consequences & all that …

          • Hi yes I think basically any healthcare professionals who works in the nhs as part of their registration requirements should be paid for that and credited against Uni costs..basically they should get the band 2 or 3 pay ( years 1-2 band 2 years 3+ band 3) so for a nurse that would be £25,000 credit against their uni costs…so effectively what you are looking at is free uni education for healthcare professionals as the reason for that is they work and provide patient care as part of their training. Which I think is fair and everyone can understand why and how.

    • The Trade Unions seem determined to make their tradesmen and women irrelevant so taking actions that will in the medium term put them out of jobs. We are in a material shortage of ammunition – of all calibers. We need the working population to pull together but that seems too much to ask! The problem as I see it is population density.

      • I think the unions that settled with Rishi’s pay offer read the room and thought they would get much public support in a recession.

        BMA can’t read the room as they drink NHS cool aid and think that everyone will support consultants asking for massive pay rises all of who earn over £85k.

        GMB are misreading this one too as there is about to be a surfeit of workers in BoE raises rates again.

        I’m not optimistic that BoE is reading the room either but there is a lot of deflation coming on the back of very fat margins and lack of competition.

        • While I don’t agree with the consultants going out on strike, many of them earn more than the PM, I do have a smidgen of sympathy for the junior doctors, though their 35% demand is pie in the sky.

          I have a friend who is now a consultant. When he was doing his second year of SPR training in 2004, he took home £1400 pcm. A junior doctor undertaking exactly the same stage of training in 2023 takes home around £1850 pcm. Adjusted just for inflation between 2004 and 2023, i.e. no ‘pay rise’ as such, they should be taking home nearer to £2400 pcm. The job hasn’t changed much or gotten any easier in that time.

  2. from STV:
    Around 40 workers are to take part in demonstrations outside the depot on Friday and Monday. DES is an arm’s length body of the MoD which delivers equipment and support services to the UK armed forces.

    GMB Scotland said non-craft workers at the base, who prepare arms and munitions for transport, are being refused the same retention bonuses as managers and craft workers, who assemble munitions for the armed forces.
    The union said limiting extra payments, intended to reward staff through busy periods only to some workers has “created division and ill-will.”
    GMB Scotland organiser Chris Kennedy said: “Our members deserve equal recognition and fair compensation for their invaluable contributions to DES and our armed forces. Without them, equipment would not reach those who need it.
    “We deeply regret that it has come to this point where our hardworking non-craft members have been compelled to take industrial action. Our members do vital work and are in the midst of the cost-of-living crisis.
    “Management have failed to respect and recognise the invaluable work our members do. This can only be achieved with a bonus scheme that is fair to all and therefore must include non-craft workers.
    “The defence secretary cannot wash his hands of the matter. His intervention is essential to deliver parity, fairness and equality and bring an end the dispute.”
    A Ministry of Defence spokesperson said: “Pre-planned contingency measures are being implemented at DM Beith to ensure the continued operation of the site. We remain open to dialogue with GMB to discuss the issues raised and work towards resolving them.”

  3. How much a craft fitter earns at Beith:
    Craft/Engineering Fitter
    1 month ago
    £28.6K a year
    Full–time
    Job descriptionAt Defence Equipment and Support (DE&S), we’re looking for Craft/Engineering Fitters to join our team at Defence Munitions Beith (DM Beith). This site plays a crucial role for defence, supplying and maintaining many of the weapon systems used by the UK military, as they defend national interests across the globe. When you join Defence Munitions, you’ll join a family of skilled and experienced civil servants who are enthusiastic about delivering essential equipment and munitions to our military customers, from bullets, shells and flares to high-calibre ammunition and targeted weapons systems. In total, £38,600 is payable in this role: £28,600 base pay plus Recruitment and Retention allowance of £4,000, and an annual retention bonus payable of £6,000 until May 2024. The retention bonus is payable retrospectively in instalments of £3K with the next payment due in August 2023 and February 2024 and will be paid pro-rata dependant on when someone starts. Our Craft/Engineering Fitters are experts in the inspection, service and repair of equipment that keeps the UK Armed Forces at the top of their game. You’ll perform within a large multi-disciplined Team spread across 4 distinct processing facilities, and extensive, on-the-job training will be provided. This may include Fibre Optic Splicing, Gas Turbine Engine Refurbishment, or Pressure System maintenance dependant on the position offered. As a Craft/Engineering Fitter, you’ll be part of a team within one of two distinct roles: The first role is primarily responsible for delivering production and engineering outputs for complex weapons. You’ll work within a team of experienced technicians, performing a range of engineering procession operations such as assembly, preparation and testing of complex weapons and their associated support equipment. Many of these weapon systems use cutting- edge components and technology, and your role will be paramount to delivering this battle-winning capability. The second role is within the Mechanical Maintenance department, where you’ll carry out maintenance and repair tasks within the depot, in support of weapon processing. This could include equipment such as: building plant and machinery; high- and low-pressure air systems; lifting and manual handling of equipment; and weapon handling and support equipment. In both positions, you’ll be expected to work on site full time across four and a half days a week, and on occasion paid overtime may be available depending on business needs. You may also be required to travel in support of weapon trials to other Defence Munitions and DE&S locations, in both the UK and abroad. Reasonable notice will be given, with flexibility and a family-friendly approach in mind. Travel and subsistence costs will be covered. Top tip: We strongly recommend tailoring your CV in line with our CV guidance before applying, with specific sections to highlight Key Achievements, Relevant Recent Experience, and your Applied Skills & Knowledge. Looking for a Craft/Engineering Fitter job with plenty of variety and opportunities to learn new skills?
    Welcome to DE&S.Responsibilities
    * Carrying out a range of production and engineering operations, following safe systems of work to deliver planned monthly outputs that follow controlled processing documentation, ensuring production and maintenance output targets are achieved to very high quality and safety standards.
    * Provide advice on a range of complex technical solutions, with a ‘continuous improvement’ mindset
    * Ensuring all activities are carried out in accordance with relevant statutory and operation safety standards, ensuring any risks are ‘As Low as Reasonably Practicable’ (ALARP) * Champion and exemplify our excellent Safety Culture
    * Work within a multi-disciplined team on a range of equipment, communicating clearly and effectively to ensure a diverse range of goals and objectives are achieve in a timely and effective manner Successful applicants are required to pass a baseline medical assessment before starting in this position. Person specification To be successful with your application, you’ll need to show that you meet the following essential criteria:
    * Hold a Level 3 NVQ/SVQ apprenticeship qualification in a relevant engineering discipline, or equivalent up to date relevant experience suitable to the role
    * A solid understanding of engineering practices
    * Experience of following safe systems of work It would also be great if you can demonstrate any of the following desirable criteria: * Ordinary National Certification (ONC) in a relevant engineering discipline, or similar qualification from a relevant awarding body
    * Current experience in a production background
    * IT literacy and experience of using Microsoft Excel and Word * Current experience operating in a Configuration Control regimen addition to the responsibilities above, the following technical competences and behaviours will be assessed at interview:
    * Enhancing service support systems – Supervised Practitioner
     * Making evidence-based decisions – Supervised Practitioner
    * Working together – CSBC2 * Delivering at pace – CSBC2Benefits
     * 25 days’ annual leave +1 day a year up to 30 days, 8 bank holidays and a day off for the King’s birthday * Market-leading employer pension contribution of around 27%
    * Annual performance-based bonus and recognition awards
    * Access to specialist training and funded professional qualifications
    * Support for progression * Huge range of discounts
    * Volunteering days * Enhanced parental leave schemes We believe in creating an inclusive environment where our people can grow, thrive, and be their authentic selves. We value diversity of thought and the ways in which it enriches our culture and our work. So whether you’re looking for a new opportunity, a next step, or a helping hand as you return from a career break, here you’ll find a supportive, family-friendly organisation to be a part of. And if you need any assistance with your application, just let us know. Further Information More information can be found below:
    * DE&S Little Book of Big Benefits:
    * Further Information:
    * Terms and Conditions: Things you need to know Selection process details Your application will go through the following stages of assessment:
    1. Pre-sift – We will check that you meet any essential or eligibility criteria that are listed in the Person Specification section of this advert. On your CV, please clearly show how you meet the essential criteria.
    2. Sift – Your CV will be assessed against the following categories, using a simple numerical scoring system: Key Achievements; Relevant Experience; Applied Knowledge and Skills Please follow our guidance on CV writing for best chance of success.
    3. Interview – If you’re invited to interview, you’ll be assessed against the Sift categories listed above, as well as the Technical Competences and Behaviours listed in the Person Specification section of this advert.Feedback will only be provided if you attend an interview or assessment. Closing date: 11:55pm on Sunday 2nd July 2023

    • So they are getting £10,000 extra on their pay than non craft. That’s quite a chunk, no wonder they aren’t happy.
      Would obviously need to know what the other staff get to be sure it is £10k.
      Can’t give bonuses to some workers and expect others not to be pissed off.
      Really the bonus seems out of scale with the wage.

  4. Typical dysfunctional UK management. There needs to be a fair reward for work done rather than workers relying on benefits to survive while the wealth is hoarded at the top.
    That gap has only widened drastically over recent decades. There’s always somehow a necessity to hold wages down for most during any crisis while those at the top somehow of “necessity” have to be very well paid or they’ll take themselves elsewhere.
    Can we really afford to pay munitions workers poorly?

    • Frank wrote:

      “”Typical dysfunctional UK management. There needs to be a fair reward for work done rather than workers relying on benefits to survive while the wealth is hoarded at the top.””

      Nobody denies that low paid people should get paid more, but the simple fact remains that the biggest number of strikers are not low paid be it:
      Nurses : Starting pay £29K a year
      Junior Drs: Basic starting pay of £29K which ignores the many add on which a Dr on his first year can earn such as :
      Training to be a GP: extra £9,144 a year
      Training for Emergency medicine/ Psychiatry : Extra £22,305
      Working an extra 11.5 hours a week for a year (NHS working week is 37.5hrs) sees them receive a wage of £61K
      All figures from:
      BMA Junior doctors’ contract – tables of pay: 2022/23 values

      Train drivers: Average wage of £65K
      Teachers: starting pay of £29K going up to £30K and they aren’t happy with that 6.5% pay rise
      The people striking at Beith are manual workers , those who move stuff around and load wagon. On that note as they are part of the civil service (working for the government) each and every CS worker will receive a £1500 bonus this year.

      As i see it the Unions are playing a dangerous game of removing a standing government for their own political ends, We saw an example of this when Sharon Graham the leader of Unite spoke to the BBC about how Labour should be doing more and that she rejected calls for Unite to ditch labour when it was “within touching distance of power, because that would reduce union influence”.

      Things arent helped when many union leaders openily support Russias invasion of the Ukraine including RMT Union leader Mick Lynch

      • So you feel £29k for teachers & nurses isn’t low paid- When they have to have a degree to even get the position – but train dfrivers can get 65k- which to me is quite simply extortionate.
        Both the Tory & Labour governmenrt have for far too long relied on cheap labour from the EU to control inflation.
        That is no longer available and businesses will now have to start to pay people their worth along with training them and getting people out of their ‘benefits mindset’ – I think mindsets have been skewed for too long.

  5. Was always going to happen, as soon as the unions saw there was going to be an increase in orders they would want increases.

    I’m willing to bet as soon as they get wage rises for the non ‘craft’ then it will be “look the craft staff are not paid enough in comparison to non ‘craft’ they deserve more for their qualification”

      • Sadly, in many organisations retention bonuses are only paid to staff whom have a skill set that the business need to keep as they can’t replace them if they leave at short notice.

        Other staff, whom are in roles that could see then easily replaced if they left, often don’t receive retention bonuses.

        It’s unfair as both are vital for the company, but it is reality. The company needs to retain the staff it would struggle to replace if they left.

      • Isn’t that why we learn trades though? If everyone gets the same wage what’s the incentive to put the time effort and costs to get the qualifications?

        • Oh I’m not saying they should all get the same but if they did bonuses for all based on percentage of wage/hours worked etc it takes away the them verses us argument.
          Also the craft people should have a higher wage rather than needing a 35-40% bonus to make up.

  6. The few Unions that still exist in the UK, are more general Unions than in days gone by. Back in the day, there were ‘skilled’ workers Unions, and semi-skilled for want of a better way of describing them.

    There were Unions that represented workers in all industries, one of the more obscure being K.F.A.T the confederation of footwear knitwear and apparel trades.

    All long gone, and mostly forgotten…

  8. The US has give him our fabulous Ukrainian friend more more munitions and straight up cash than the entire UK defense budget. Still doesn’t seem to be happy though. Oddly enough, it seems to be wearing thin.

    • You clearly do not think President Zelensky is fabulous or there is anything odd in this relationship. Say what you mean.

    • You wear very thin with your boring and continuous anti UK jealous rants and digs my little fence climber!

    • Take a look at any open source satellite picture. You don’t need to be a photographic interpreter to get a clue. As for what’s in there maybe best you don’t know.

    • It is an DM facility, one of several MoD installations of the DM Group, part of DES.
      It does not, AFAIK, deal with the types of munition as seen in the photos, but with “complex weapons” so – missiles – Stormshadow and TLAM amongst them.

      Others are –

      Glen Douglas ( General munitions, Northern Bomb stock )
      Coulport ( Torpedo, Trident )
      Crombie.
      Longtown. ( primarily army munitions )
      Eastriggs ( sub location of Longtown )
      Kineton. ( General munitions, Southern Bomb Stock, the biggy )
      Ernsettle ( DM depot for Devonport, so RN centric )
      Gosport ( DM depot for Portsmouth, so RN centric )

      There is also the USVF installation at RAF Welford, several sub sites of the above DM facilities at Catterick, Sennybridge, Larkhill, and others I forget, and various industry sites, and a few best not mentioned.

        • All open source Barry, available at a click of a mouse and a few minutes research. I’m knowledgeable enough on this subject to know what to leave out in my commentary.

          • I appreciate many still have a cold war mentality when many of these places were not even on OS maps. Even then I knew about them. If I do, a rank nobody who’s interested, so do proper intelligence professionals. The function of individual buildings is a different matter, not the existence of the sites.

          • I had to sign up to view aerial photographs of sensitive areas last century, said photographs to be kept under lock and key. You not only gave place names but purpose. A great deal seems to be online. I suspect everyone knowing is a way of keeping the peace.

          • Hmmm, not sure on that keeping the peace. You must know that there are secrets, then there are SECRETS, Barry, none of which are mentioned on this forum.

            That MoD have publicised these places themselves is sufficient cause for me to mention them.

            There are places they do not publicise, that speaks for itself.

  11. ‘The union revealed that a staggering 93% of GMB members at the depot voted in favour of strike action, and over 50 workers are expected to walk out on Monday.’

    Clearly, something has gone wrong at this facility beyond the cost of living crisis and profit inflation.

  12. I don’t understand BW comments. Zelensky and Ukraine didn’t ask to be invaded and is basically fighting a proxy war for NATO against their No.1 historical adversary. They should be demanding and getting everything we have.

    • It’s not a NATO proxy war, NATO would destroy Russian in a second. NATO would much rather the entire conflict never happened but it can’t just allow one country to benefit from being an aggressor.

      • NATO have watched their No.1 historical adversary get their arses handed to them for a generation and shown to be only capable of limited defensive warfare. The international community might not have wanted war or the instability and power vacuum it might create. However for NATO, the military alliance, this is cheap compared to the trillions spent in the Cold War for little result.

        • So you actually think Russia will go home and give back Crimea? Russia will come out of this war with more territory. The benefit to Ukraine is they will be in the EU and nato. The land bridge to Crimea is what this war is about

        • I was a Cold War warrior (BAOR, 4 postings). I thought we did a good job. We were a deterrent to USSR ambitions on further enlarging their sphere of influence to the West – and ultimatley ‘the other guy blinked’ when they could not keep up the military spending etc. USSR collapsed, Warsaw Pact dismantled. Germany reunited. Eastern Europe set free. I call that a result.

  14. Unions are finished. The national living wage is enough. It should be written into employment contracts that strikes are sackable. If you can earn more in supermarket, go and work there then.

          • He was an outspoken back bencher for a few years, chairing the Foreign Affairs Select Committee. His name was tossed about as DefSec when Mordaunt got the job. Never backward at coming forward, he threw his hat in the ring for PM when Johnson was ousted. He voted against Brexit, but is definitely not a rejoiner.

            He got what I think is a non-cabinet position as Minister of State for Security under Liz Truss last year, but although he clearly has a lot of friends/connections and a background in the Territorials (Iraq and Afghanistan), whether he’s seen as a safe enough pair of hands for Sunak to give him the DefSec role is anyone’s guess. Maybe Sunak will go for one of his mates again instead.

            It might be worth listening to his address to RUSI from a few years ago to get a feel for his style.

  16. I don’t think your learn much about western tank performance in Ukraine. They are designed to be used in conjunction with other forces. Not just driven across a field at a bunch of guys with ATGM’s. I saw a video this morning of what looked very much like 3 Mastiffs burnt out on some muddy track. All clumped together.

  17. This sort of thing could impact the UK’s ability to defend itself and it’s allies and consequently the Government should have someway of imposing a settlement and banning industrial action under such conditions.

      • Emergency Powers (Defence) Act 1939
        Not sure there is a need for powers quite as sweeping as that. However perhaps we need to provide Government with solutions which can been invoked at short notice.

      • Contrary to the popular belief of “we’re all in it together” during WW2 there was plenty of trade union activity and outright belligerence precisely because they knew the vital importance of their members work and had the bosses/government over a barrel – factory workers were well paid in those days.

        • Okay WSM, Couldn’t quite get my head around how the Dutch forces unions applied (yep, in the 70’s) 😵. Not sure if it’s still in effect.

        • Given that a large amount of the boss were quite happy for the workforce to stave during the 1920’s & 1930’s,are you surprised ?

LEAVE A REPLY

Please enter your comment!
Please enter your name here