Global Win

The International Transport Workers' Federation has brokered a landmark collective agreement with shipping companies from Europe, Russia and Asia that's a win for international seafarers and Australian maritime workers.

MUA National Secretary and ITF executive board member Paddy Crumlin co-chai red the negotiations in Tokyo in October. The deal provides better pay and conditions for 55,000 international seafarers on more than 3,000 ships and enhances job security for Australian seafarers and waterside workers.

The international collective agreement is unique in global industrial relat ions.

One hundred major ship owners formed a bargaining unit, with the ITF representing the world's seafarers and wharfies.

"This is a landmark agreement," said Paddy Crumlin. "It means we'v e not only narrowed the pay gap between low paid international seafarers from developi ng countries and our own, we are building ways to provide Australian, Japanese and European seafarers a future in the industry. At the same time we are prote cting the right of waterside workers in these countries to join unions and be protected by collective agreements."

While the Howard government continued refusing to negotiate an on-going rol e for Australian ships and crew in international shipping, notably in the multi-billion dollar LNG trade, the ITF and the MUA bypassed Canberra. Now they have won recognition of this right from shipping companies, through th e International Bargaining Forum, and by separate talks with the LNG company, the peak Japanese trade union body and the All Japanese Seafarers' Union (see opposite).

The negotiation group of 100 shipowners reached an understanding with the I TF to include seafarers from developed countries among their crew. A special IBF committee is being established to advance these issues. There was also agreement that unionised waterside workers should stevedore ships.

The fast expanding LNG trade will be the international transport unions' first project. While the international fleet was made up of 50/50 Japanese and Australian ships and crew, the government has ignored this arrangement in recent trade deals, despite its 20-year history of efficiency, stability an d safety.

"The Australian Government is continuing to discriminate against the nati onal interest here," said Paddy Crumlin. "They like talking up the history o f the trade but ignore the role Australian shipping and Australian seafarers have played in achieving this. Pretty typical!"

The new IBF agreement for international seafarers provides a 10 per cent pa y rise over two years to well over ILO minimum rates. It also includes impro ved death and disability compensation and provision of free shipboard email acc ess for seafarers.

The MUA role in the talks underpins the importance of the union and Austral ian shipping to the ITF and in the broader international shipping industry.