Workers at nuclear power station to strike over pay

More than 500 members of the Unite union at the Dounreay nuclear power complex have voted to strike in a dispute over pay.

The workers, who will take action on Wednesday, have rejected the latest offer to resolve the matter.

Meanwhile, the Prospect union said in a close ballot its members had voted to accept the deal, and the GMB union said the result of its vote was expected later but expected to back strike action.

The revised offer from Nuclear Restoration Services (NRS) proposed a one-off £500 payment on top of a basic 4.5% increase. NRS said it was committed to finding a "fair and affordable" resolution.

Unite members have also supported an overtime ban from Wednesday.

A further day of action has been scheduled from 29 May, and Unite said it was preparing to add more strike dates.

Unite said the offer amounted to a substantial pay cut as inflation - in terms of the retail prices index - stood at 11.4% when the pay increase was due in April 2023.

Lesley-Anne MacAskill, GMB Scotland organiser in the Highlands, said action by the union's members seemed "inevitable".

She said: “This process has taken far too long and our members have heard too many excuses."

NRS said it was disappointed a strike was planned for Wednesday.

A spokesman said: "Our contingency plans are being implemented to ensure the site remains safe, secure and compliant during any period of industrial action.”

Two days of strikes planned for earlier this month were cancelled to allow talks.

The dispute involves most of the site's 1,200 staff.

Dounreay on the north Caithness coast near Thurso dates to the 1950s and was the site of Scotland's first operational nuclear reactor - the Dounreay Materials Test Reactor.

In 1958 it achieved criticality, which is when the fission chain reaction is self-sustaining.

The complex is now being decommissioned.