A brighter future on the horizon for Scripps Institution of Oceanography as workers win improvements to the sea pay policy and continue to fight for equitable retro pay and a codified agreement

Earlier this year, a delegation of workers marched on the boss at Scripps Institution of Oceanography to demand a solution to longstanding issues with the Remote Location Allowance (RLA). For many years, Scripps has grappled with two disparate compensation systems for members engaged in sea-based operations under the RLA: one that provides base pay plus a 60% differential and the other base pay plus 140%. 

UPTE-represented technicians organize and oversee operations on the working decks of research vessels. Well-trained employees with institutional knowledge are crucial to the safety of everyone onboard and the success of expeditions. Photos courtesy of Melissa Miller.

"Whether you're out at sea for a short three weeks or for several months, you're working 12 hours a day, seven days a week. The RLA policy is supposed to make sure we are paid a fair day rate while out at sea and that when we return to land, we can make up all of the holidays and weekends we missed while on an expedition," said Melissa Miller, an SRA 2 at Scripps.

There are a number of different sea-faring departments at Scripps, including Climate Atmospheric Sciences and Physical Oceanography (CAPSO), Integrative Oceanography Division (IOD), and Shipboard Technical Support (STS). Historically, people in departments including CAPSO and IOD received the higher compensation level but those in STS received the lower RLA standard despite these departments working alongside each other on the same expeditions. 

It was left to management's discretion to choose between who was covered by which RLA standard, with STS receiving a 50/50 mix of the 60% and 140% RLA. This resulted in low morale and turnover, which impacts the safety and quality of work at sea. Through our organizing and willingness to confront management both at the negotiating table and in the workplace, we've finally managed to get the policy changed so that all workers have been brought up to the base pay plus 140% standard moving forward. This policy change is a significant victory—while it isn't yet formally codified in a written agreement, UPTE will continue to fight for a more transparent and predictable sea pay policy in our contract.

Workers at Scripps took these jobs knowing we would spend weeks and months every year out at sea in some of the most remote locations on Earth. There are times when workers out at sea on an expedition can look up and see the International Space Station pass above them, and the astronauts aboard the ISS are closer to them than any human on the planet. In such isolated and extreme environments, experience and safety are key.

"Having well-trained and experienced staff aboard each vessel is essential for ensuring a safe working environment. There's equipment that weighs thousands of pounds going over people's heads, or extreme weather that can amplify dangers on the ship's deck. We are often days away from the nearest hospital. Accidents can happen when we have to send ships out with newer or less-trained staff. Experienced people who have done this for a long time are becoming frustrated, burning out, and leaving," said Melissa, who left her job in STS at Scripps and recently returned when she was guaranteed her new role in CAPSO would be covered under the better of the RLA policies. "Finally changing this policy will keep us safer, and also help bolster our reputation among sea-faring scientists and technicians to help us recruit new staff."

This isn't the only issue at Scripps that members are working to address, however. Some workers, including Melissa, are still waiting to be compensated for time worked at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic. 

"With COVID-19 protocols, we were required to quarantine for two weeks before boarding a ship for a new project and were told that the department would pay us the RLA rate for every day spent in the quarantine. It took nearly two years for management to agree to this policy, and we were told we'd receive back pay for time spent in the bubble before departing for sea," Melissa recalls. "However, when we finally reached that agreement in August 2022, management refused to pay people who had left for new jobs in the interim and only paid people currently employed for that past work."

Melissa estimates that she's owed about $3k for previous time spent in mandatory quarantine at work that was never paid out, but knows some people for whom that amount is closer to $10k. "It's embarrassing that they keep punishing people and denying them their pay based on these silly technicalities. For UC, these are not large sums of money. For us, this is significant, life-changing pay. We're just asking to be compensated for work we already did and were promised by management we'd be compensated for," Melissa said.