Tug boat operator Svitzer, whose operations are critical to hauling ships into port, is scrambling to stop strikes that will prevent cargo from coming in and out of major ports around the country.
Tugboat captains will kick off a series of 48-hour strikes from Thursday until 05 March at Sydney, Newcastle, Brisbane, Fremantle and Melbourne in protest over the company’s bid to scrap union pay and conditions.
Coming just ten days after a tentative peace broke out on the Australian waterfront following the prolonged stevedore dispute, a new round of protected industrial action against tug boat operator Svitzer is expected to disrupt supply chains once more. Much like the battle between the Maritime Union of Australia (MUA) and Patrick Terminals – which was finally put to bed on 07 February – Svitzer has been negotiating a new enterprise agreement with both AMOU and MUA since 2019. This will be the first time industrial action has been undertaken by the tugboat masters – who earn a minimum of $200,000 a year – during more than two years of bargaining.
Svitzer has called on the Fair Work Commission (FWC) to intervene to stop the action on the grounds that it threatens significant damage to an important part of the Australian economy. Managing director Nicolaj Noes said the strikes would not achieve anything but instead place serious pressure on local businesses.
Australian Maritime Officers Union executive officer Mark Davis said his members were extremely frustrated with the company, which had brought in a new bargaining team in late 2020 with 30 new company claims. He said the recent record profitability announcement by Svitzer owner Maersk had also triggered workers.
The shipping company reported last week that its net profits had surged from $US2.9 billion to $US18 billion last year and revenue had climbed 55 per cent from $US39.7 billion to $US61.8 billion.
Now that it is faced with growing competition, Svitzer has sought to remove union pay and conditions, including casual entitlements and manning requirements, and has applied to terminate its agreements and send workers back to the industry award.
Neil Chambers, director of the Container Transport Alliance Australia (CTAA), said: “As a result of these strike actions, berthing delays in the impacted ports will deteriorate even further from the current delays, caused by significant vessel off-window arrivals, vessel bunching, Covid-related labour absenteeism in container terminals, and other factors.
The FWC is expected to hold a hearing in the coming days. If one side is not prepared to argue its case on time, the commission could suspend the first strike.
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