Ferry sailings between Rathlin Island and Ballycastle have been cancelled on Thursday due to industrial action.
The company which runs the service, Rathlin Island Ferry Limited, advised passengers of the disruption on their website.
The strike follows a ballot of ferry workers which returned a 85% mandate in pursuit a cost of living pay increase.
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Despite this ballot, Unite the Union said the owner of the ferry service has "refused to move on the workers' pay claim, which comes after three years of a pay freeze."
The Union added: "With the latest twelve month retail price inflation standing at 14.0%, another year’s pay freeze would amount to a real-terms pay cut of more than a one-seventh of their wage."
Rathlin Island Ferry Limited operates the service on behalf of the Department for Infrastructure.
In a statement from December warning of the possibility of strike action, regional officer for the workforce, Brenda Stevenson, said: “The Rathlin Island Ferry workers perform a vital role in sustaining a community and the economy of Northern Ireland’s largest offshore island. It is scandalous that they have not received any increase to their pay since 2019.
“The approach taken by ferry operator Rathlin Island Ferry Ltd is deeply irresponsible – both to their workers and to the community of Rathlin Island. Their refusal to offer any pay increase has left our members with no alternative but to take strike action.
“Our members need to see a genuine cost of living pay increase; they can accept nothing less.”
A notice on the Rathlin Island Ferries website says: "Due to industrial action on Thursday, January 5, all sailings are cancelled, and office will remain closed."
Alliance MLA Patricia O'Lynn has issued an urgent call to the Department for Infrastructure. She said: "The Rathlin Island Ferry is a lifeline for islanders, and strike action is as always a last resort: the crew are all too aware that it is their friends and neighbours who will be most impacted by the action, and they do not take this lightly.
"Rathlin is a vibrant community with a unique history and heritage. Government needs to provide support for small and vulnerable communities, and I will be putting this to Julie Harrison, Permanent Secretary of the DfI, in the strongest terms.
"I stand with all the islanders and want to see proper support for this crucial connection between island and mainland."
The Department has been informed that the strike action by Rathlin Ferry staff could potentially continue until the end of January on an intermittent basis.
A spokesperson for the Department for Infrastructure confirmed emergency cover will remain in place during the strike period.
They said: "Rathlin Island Ferry Limited operates the Rathlin Island ferry service on behalf of the Department for Infrastructure.
"The Department is aware of the ongoing strike action on the ferry service and hopes a resolution to the ongoing dispute can be achieved through negotiations between the employers and the union. Emergency cover will remain in place during the strike period."
Rathlin Island is home to a population of around 150 people, with around 10 sailings taking place between the island and Ballycastle in January, five in each direction, beginning at 8am.
The six-mile journey can take between 25 to 40 minutes.
Belfast Live has contacted Unite the Union and Rathlin Island Ferry Limited for further details on the industrial action.
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