The strike action by the Maritime Union of Australia (MUA) at Sydney’s Port Botany is now spreading to other sites across the country. Patrick Fremantle Terminal advised that due to the industrial action, their R&D operations on Monday night’s shift was cancelled.
DP World, Australia’s biggest port operator, has reached a national agreement with the MUA, but after the union notified Patrick Terminals it intended to strike in Brisbane and Port Botany, the stevedores hit back with an application to the Fair Work Commission to terminate its industrial action.
The wharf war is threatening Australia’s supply chain with potential delays up to three weeks for vital imported goods. The port of Sydney is the worst hit and imports such as electrical and medical goods, auto parts, meat, clothing, and infrastructure materials are facing delays of several weeks or ramped up costs if the ships are diverted to Melbourne. At least 40 vessels are stranded off the coast of New South Wales waiting to unload.
In a statement from Patrick Terminals, they said that Port Botany is now running three weeks behind schedule, and their Melbourne terminal more than a week. There are close to 90,000 containers being held up.
Australian exporters are also being affected by the strike, with containers packed and ready to go, but unable to be loaded onto ships. The delays mean surcharges of hundreds of dollars are being added to each container, plus a surcharge for different commodity groups, seriously eroding shippers’ profits. Â
The MUA’s response follows seven months of bargaining over a new pay deal. Yesterday, Patrick Terminals went to the Fair Work Commission to force the union to call off the industrial action and the Federal Government has offered its support. The union wants a 6% lift in pay and has denied that the delivery of medicine has been interrupted. The union’s actions are completely legal, and Patrick Terminals must prove to the Fair Work Commission that the industrial action is having an economic impact and should be stopped.
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