Persuading Patrick

Mark Jamieson, new employee PGE, East Swanson Dock

No more casual labour at company terminals

By Maritime Union of Australia

The suppo is now a thing of the past. At least at Patrick terminals. After a decade of casual workers flooding the waterfront until they made up more than half of the workforce, the tide is turning.

The worst sort of casual work you can get, being a suppo not only means no job security, it means no roster and not knowing when you get your next shift until the night before. Working a lethal, erratic mix of day, midnight and morning shifts, too anxious to turn a job down in case they don’t ask you again. In case the ships go away and you have a month’s wait until your next job. Or two. Or never. So you work day in day out, all week, sometimes all month without a break.

“Casualisation is an international trend,” National Secretary Paddy Crumlin told the Sydney Annual General Meeting. “This is the only country where we have reversed that trend in the stevedoring industry. And we're the only industry in Australia. In manufacturing, construction, hospitality, casual labour is growing.”

The Australian Industrial Relations Commission ratified the Patrick agreements (one for the container terminals, the other for bulk and general) on November 19. Since then an upturn in trade has led to acute labour shortages. Assistant National Secretary Mick Doleman who led the negotiations called on the company to have management in each port hold talks with the union committee. In Brisbane the union has arranged labour sharing between the two companies. Other ports are following the lead.

This year’s enterprise agreement negotiations ran for 43 days over six long months with rank and file input on the committee of 26 stevedoring workers selected by the members in each enterprise. Even so the EBA went back to members in most ports for further discussions before it was voted up.

But the negotiations could not have otherwise been better timed. Patrick Corp posted a strong increase in profits from ports, rail and airline operations the day before the EBAs were ratified. Trade was booming and a skills shortage started to bite.

Polls predicted a close result in the lead up to the federal election and Patrick was prepared to talk.

“There is still some residual bitterness over the 1998 dispute,” Paddy Crumlin told The Australian Financial Review on September 9. “But major structural changes have been negotiated without political interference.”

Come October that all changed with company CEO Chris Corrigan backing the corporate right in calling on the Howard Government to go even harder on workers' rights.

The National Secretary told the Sydney AGM that if we were negotiating the EBA under the present circumstances things could have been very different.

“Patrick could have stalled until July when the government has control of the senate. We had a strategy of getting it up before the election free of political interference.”

Besides permanency at the four major container terminals, the enterprise agreement achieved the following:

• a pay rise of 12 per cent over three years.
• new roster and reduction in casual labour in bulk and general
• some permanent guaranteed employees move up to flexible rosters
• 182 extra permanent jobs (an increase of 28 per cent)
• 98 extra PGEs (an increase of 24 per cent)
• 109 or 31 per cent less casuals
• productivity while providing for consultation over change
• 6 monthly reviews of labour, upgrades and training
• provision for graduated retirement, allowing older workers to take the part time positions and phase out of the workforce
• increase in guaranteed wage
• improved super
• relief driver for straddles
• redundancy for PGEs

Fremantle delegate and member of the EBA negotiating team Ken Marshall says that it's only now the new agreement is in place that people are realising how good it is.

“I’ve been here eight years come February. This is the third enterprise agreement I’ve seen and this is the first that has delivered some real outcomes,” he said. “The first thing its delivered is permanent jobs — 35 just in this port alone. The other big win is that the guaranteed wage for PGEs is up from $20,000 to $30,000. Another huge win is the super gains. A lot of the blokes only now realise how big win a that is. They’re now paid on gross earnings. That will deliver some pretty big returns when people start retiring in the next 10-15 years. Also redundancy agreement for everybody including PGEs. That's another big win. Up till now PGEs had nothing. So yes we've set a few benchmarks.

“This is the first time I’ve been on a negotiating team and I’m amazed at the level of work and the rank and file involvement,” he said. “I’ve been in three unions and ours is the most member driven. The union spared no expense and pulled out all stops to get what we got.”

Mark (Bushy) Lang represented Brisbane Bulk and General during the negotiations and is pleased with the outcome: “We've come a long way from the '98 dispute compared to what we’ve got now. We used to work a totally irregular roster. Now we’ve got a family friendly roster. I've got every second weekend off. We can plan time with family and friends.”

Mark said they’ve had 40 new people in Brisbane: “All our old suppos were upgraded to PGEs. No one missed out. That’s why we held out.”

Straddles

Another successful outcome of the EBA was the company coming to the table over the straddle stress issue. After protracted court negotiations and a Court ruling against Patrick, the company was finally forced to address safety issues arising from the labour cut which forced straddle drivers to work prolonged hours without a break.

“Now, finally, we’re getting somewhere,” said Assistant National Secretary Mick Doleman. “Having a relief driver has made a big difference. Feedback is the members are happy. Patrick are finally genuine about it being an OHS risk. They didn't really have any choice. They were found guilty on all counts in court.”

Under the new arrangements no one in the yard does more than two consecutive hours driving.

“There’s a lot of great things in the new EBA,” said Port Botany negotiating team member Mich-Elle Myers. “Especially the straddles. That’s about the best thing in it. I drive the straddles. It used to start to hurt after two hours. Now we’ve got breaks it cuts out the pain.”

Chris Watson, delegate and OHS committee member, Port Botany, was a key witness during the union’s court action against Patrick: “Having a relief straddle driver for the yard with the extra break is a big improvement. The shift is split up. We’ve got two breaks for smoko or crib break and during the third break we’re available for other duties. Management are happy with it and the members are happy. The longest you are in the straddle is two hours. It splits the day up. It’s good. After two hours your whole body says you need a break. You need a stretch. But we still haven’t got the relief driver on the ship. So we’ve still got a bit of work to do there.”

Meanwhile, a 12 per cent increase in waterfront cargo volumes has created a renewed demand for labour. But Mick Doleman said the reviews agreed to under the EBA would ensure there is no return to casuals.

“Delegates argued strenuously for a six monthly review to ensure equity in opportunity for training and upgrades,” he said. “And delegates are elected to be part of this review team.
“The union and the negotiating team set a clear objective emanating out of the MUA National Conference to maximise permanent jobs,” he said. “To this end I believe the negotiators have been successful.”

“I’d like to place on record the great job that Jim Tannock, Deputy National Secretary undertook in the enterprise negotiations and while the responsibilities for the Patrick enterprise are mine under our structure of cross-pollination of stevedoring and seafaring, without Jim’s leadership and assistance, the negotiations would have been much more difficult and problematic.

“In addition the delegates and branch officials who contributed their time and effort, both in the negotiations and back in their ports, deserve the highest recognition. They, individually and collectively, represented their ports and membership with no less vigour than the founding members of this union.”

They are: Andre Atkinson, Mick Beech, Gavin Bostick, Garry Briggs, Ron (Sharkey) Bryant, Kieran Coyle, Danny Decelis, Michael Doherty, Paul Harkins, Jake Haub, Steven Hill, Bruce Jones, Joe Jones, Paul Keating, Mark (Bushy) Lang, Dave Larsen, John Lawson, Robert Lee, Steven Lee, Ken Marshall, Thomas Mayor, Miche-Elle Myers, Mick Needham, Hakan Taulla, Len Waddell, Mike Woods, WA Branch Secretary Chris Cain, SA Branch Secretary Jamie Newlyn, Victoria Assistant Branch Secretaries Dave Cushion and Bob Patchett, Brisbane Branch Deputy Branch Secretary Trevor Munday and Sydney Assistant Branch Secretary Warren Smith.

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