The Estonian Seamen's Independent Union (EMSA) has been trying since March to strike an agreement with Kihnu Veeteed, which has the state tender to operate ferry services between Estonia's small islands.

EMSA's calls for a collective agreement for ship crews came with demands for a 20-30 percent increase in base salaries. However, despite the state conciliator being involved in mediation, no deal has been reached.

Kihnu Veeteed CEO Jaak Kaabel laid the blame at EMSA's door. "In our view, the state conciliator was a neutral party, and the conciliation proposal was reasonable and, in principle, acceptable to us, but EMSA nevertheless rejected it quite categorically," Kaabel said.

EMSA is still seeking to continue negotiations with the employer and has come up with a new offer, the union said.

"We have now sent the employer a new compromise proposal based on the negotiations which have taken place in the meantime, and we are waiting for a response by the end of the business day on August 5. As for the pay scale, we came down slightly on all positions when compared with the state conciliator's proposal, except for the able seaman's wage, as that position currently has a very low base salary," said EMSA chairman Jüri Lember.

On July 26, the crews of the ferries Kihnu Virve and Ormsö staged a one-hour warning strike while in port and, Lember said, his members are prepared to strike for longer where needed.

In Lember's view, the new proposal is affordable given Kihnu Veeteed's financial position, adding the company's claims of lacking funds are not credible.

Kaabel said the union was not acting in good faith, however, saying it had "issued ultimatums," including strike threats, and that EMSA had been "acting quite aggressively and is not seeking compromise."

"We are not making profits in the millions; our profit margin is 4 to 6 percent," he added, noting that this lay outside EMSA's bargaining range as it stands.

He also said that as with the warning strike, when efforts were made to avoid passenger disruption, Kihnu Veeteed cannot stop a further strike going ahead if EMSA's members go down that route.

"Our contract with the state treats strikes as force majeure. We do not face sanctions under the contract, so there would not be any significant negative financial impact on the company in that sense," Kaabel went on.

EMSA said it expects a response on its latest counter-proposal from Kihnu Veeteed by Wednesday.

As well as Kihnu and Vormsi, Kihnu Veeteed connects the islands of Manilaid, Priisaare, Ruhnu and Aegna to the mainland.

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