An indefinite lockout of critical port workers in response to damaging strikes is set to grind Australia’s major ports to a halt, threatening the movement of cargo ahead of Christmas. The lockout will impact shipping operations at ports in Queensland, New South Wales, Victoria, South Australia and Western Australia.
Svitzer Australia, the tugboat operator which is part of A.P. Moller – Maersk, has notified 582 striking workers across the country that it will lock out all of its employees starting this coming Friday 18 November. No shipping vessels will be towed in or out of 17 Australian ports otherwise serviced by Svitzer.
The company, whose services are critical to hauling container ships into and out of ports and completes 40,000 harbor tow jobs annually, contends that the inability to reach a new labour contract, along with a rash of union strikes in recent weeks, prevent it from servicing clients and is undermining the health of the business.
Media reports calculate that there have been more than 250 labour actions since 20 October resulting in nearly 2,000 hours of work stoppages either in the form of tugs sitting idle or crews refusing overtime assignments. Svitzer contends the unions have staged over 1,100 job actions since October 2020 saying that it has lost more than 130 jobs and work at three ports between December 2020 and September 2021 due to the union’s job actions.
National Secretary for the Maritime Union of Australia, Paddy Crumlin, responded with a strongly worded statement calling Svitzer’s lockout a “massive escalation,” that he says will “destroy its capacity to deliver towage services and throw Australian supply chains into disarray.”
Terminal operators find themselves caught in the middle appealing for the government to intervene to prevent the lockout and finally settle the contract dispute. Patrick Terminals which operates in Australia’s container ports says the lockout would disrupt the handling of 10,000 TEU daily. Similarly, DP World notes that Svitzer handles 70% of vessels coming to its facilities.
This is just the latest step in its long-running dispute with Australia’s three maritime unions. The company’s threat to bring operations to a near total standstill at our ports is being met with calls for government action to prevent the potential for serious disruption to Australia’s supply chain.
The government’s Workplace Relations Minister Tony Burke is using the threat of the strike to push for pending legislation that would overhaul labour laws in Australia, strengthen the unions’ position, and overhaul the Fair Work Commission including making it more difficult to terminate enterprise agreements.
We will continue to monitor and bring you further updates on the situation. Please do not hesitate to call us to discuss any concerns you may have about your shipments.
For information on all aspects of shipping and transport, contact us here at Colless Young. As licensed Customs Brokers and Freight Forwarders, we handle your imports and exports professionally and economically. We are based in Brisbane and offer a complete range of logistics services, by airfreight and sea cargo, through all Australian ports and airports.
