Vessel owner Gulfmark has dismissed accusations that it is underpaying seafarers on a ship contracted to Shell in the North Sea.
The RMT trade union said Gulfmark was paying Filipino workers as little as £2.60 per hour on the North Promise vessel, adding that it had lodged a formal complaint against the company.
RMT said poor wages and conditions on supply vessels operating in UK waters, including North Promise, had become a growing problem.
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But Gulfmark strongly denied the claim and said it was compliant with the maritime labour convention (MLC).
RMT general secretary Mick Cash said: “We can no longer tolerate the Red Ensign being used as a cloak of respectability for social dumping or the systematic replacement of UK Ratings with seafarers from thousands of miles away who are recruited to work for poverty wages on vessels from UK ports.
“The crew on the North Promise are not being employed or paid in line with the collective bargaining agreement covering that vessel, which was signed by UK maritime unions, including RMT.
“Action must be taken to stop this race to the lowest levels of pay and conditions and to fully enforce the MLC.”
RMT national secretary Steve Todd added: “Migrant seafarers on this vessel and across the international shipping industry are treated almost as if they are lucky to receive a wage at all and ultimately that exploitation is getting worse and we are encountering it more and more on vessels, including those flying the Red Ensign in the North Sea oil and gas industry.”
Gulfmark said the allegation was unsubstantiated and that it was disappointed by RMT’s “aggressive targeting” of the firm.
A Gulfmark spokesperson said: “We refute the unsubstantiated allegation of paying any crew members £2.60 an hour.
“GulfMark are in full compliance with the ILO Maritime Labour Convention, flag state legislation and employment legislation and comply with International Labour Organisation approved rates.
“The regulator for Marine activities in the UK, the Maritime and Coastguard Agency, have audited the vessel and the company and issued both certificates of compliance.
“GulfMark operate a high quality safe operation and hold ourselves to the rigorous standards set by the UK flag state.
“It is disappointing that the RMT are aggressively targeting a compliant UK owner whilst the offshore sector is dominated by vessels registered on international registries.
“We would have welcomed sitting down with the RMT, as we have always done in the past, and working through any issues or concerns they might have.
“On this particular issue we are currently awaiting their response to a request we have made of them for further information and clarification.
A Shell spokeswoman said: “We work with all suppliers to ensure they meet Shell health and safety standards which includes welfare of staff.”
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