Industrial rounds
WA Win Ferry Dispute | MUA
Battles Destiny | Solidarity with Miners
| Battling Casualisation | Timorese
Conference
WA Win Ferry Dispute
FREMANTLE: Workers on the Oceanic Cruises ferry service to Rottnest Island signed
up with the MUA and went on strike for a fair deal in November.
Assistant Branch Secretary Ian Bray reports that the workforce of 22 consisting
of skippers, engineers and deckhands is entirely casual and subjected to constant
harassment and punitive actions.
The company refused to address safety issues, was underpaying the crew and hostile
to any negotiations with the union.
On Friday November 19, employees decided enough was enough and voted unanimously
to take industrial action. Employer attempts to engage an alternative workforce
were unsuccessful. The ferry service ground to a halt.
“By Saturday afternoon we met with the employer to issue our demands for
a negotiated return to work,” Ian Bray reports. “These negotiations
were fruitless and strike action continued. We had contacted Worksafe WA over
our safety concerns in the morning and they came down to the picket to inspect.
They only inspected the first of seven ferries before putting prohibition notices
on it due to serious safety defects.”
The employer contacted the commission and filed an application for the matter
to be heard in the WA AIRC. The conference lasted four days while the workforce
remained out on strike.
The result was a win for the workers and the union.
The Commissioner placed a consensual interim order on the parties that:
• Refused the employer the right to offer any AWAs
for the life of the order.
• Ordered the employer to pay rates 4 per cent above the award.
• Introduced overtime provisions of time and a half after nine hours
work.
• Required workers not to work more than 12 hours.
• Required workers to have an eight hour break between shifts.
• Overtime provisions to apply after an employee worked more than
45 hours in any one week.
• Ordered the employer not to introduce any new roster or add any
new employees to the existing roster. (This was to stop any punitive action
the employer may have tried to take)
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MUA Battles Destiny
ADELAIDE: The MUA is fighting an employer push to replace MUA workers on the
Destiny Queen abalone vessel with foreign guest workers.
The Destiny Group have been lobbying state ministers alleging that the MUA is
an impediment to the company and seeking support for visa applications for foreign
crew, Branch Secretary Jamie Newlyn reports.
“To our knowledge Destiny have corresponded with at least the Minister
for Transport, Minister for Fisheries and the Premier's Department,” he
said. “They may also have lobbied the Minister for Employment, Training
& Further Education.”
Assistant National Secretary Rick Newlyn and the branch secretary met with the
Minister for Transport Trish White and Minister for Fisheries Rory McEwen’s
advisors to argue the union case.
“These meetings were extremely positive,” said Jamie Newlyn. “Both
departments are sympathetic and supportive of the MUA position.”
The transport department can enforce the State Crewing Committee manning determination
and the minister is seeking clarification on whether the department's intervention
needs to go through cabinet.
We are now seeking rejection of the permits through the relevant government
bodies.
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Solidarity with Miners
PORT KEMBLA: A delegation of 30 waterside workers, seafarers, linesmen and tug
and marine operators from the Port Kembla branch of the MUA, visited the miners'
picket at Elouera in September.
The CFMEU (Miners) report Elouera workers had been on strike for three weeks
in support of a new enterprise agreement.
BHP Billiton, which recently announced a record profit of $4.9 billion, has
offered them much less than coal miners at other BHP pits are receiving. It
seems that for BHP the greater the profits the greedier they get.
"It's a BHP mine," said Port Kembla Secretary Mark Armstrong. "It's
the same company that attacks stevedoring and seafaring workers' conditions.
So we're all in it together. It's the same struggle whether it's at the mine
or on the wharves or on the ships."
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Battling Casualisation
AUCKLAND: An MUA delegation got a Maori welcome in September, complete with
the traditional Haka, stopping all traffic outside the Bledisloe Terminal at
Ports of Auckland . Striking workers were protesting against employer Ports
of Auckland in their struggle for permanent, secure jobs. The workers greeted
the delegation of four — MUA Sydney Branch Secretary Robert Coombs, MUA
Victoria Branch Deputy Secretary David Schleibs, Sydney Patrick delegate Jake
Haub and Melbourne delegate Mark Johnson.
Auckland Branch President Denis Carlisle says the Auckland workers struggle
for secure, permanent jobs is one that has struck a chord with workers in New
Zealand and overseas.
“We have received strong support from the International Transport Workers’
Federation, European unions and a very encouraging and heartening communication
from the President of the Japanese Dock Workers Union (ZenKowan),” he
said.
Around 260 Kiwi wharfies went on a four day strike, with further industrial
action still possible.
See photos p12
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Timorese Conference
DILI: MUA National Organiser Mick Killick attended the 2nd Conference of the
Timorese Maritime and Transport Union in Dili in October under the banner “How
we can make the union strong”. The conference was attended by around 60
per cent of the current membership and some new members including seafarers.
International guests included Hanafi Rustandi and Haneman Suryia from the Indonesian
seafarers’ union KPI. The President of the Timorese union congress KSTL,
Zitu Da Costa and Acting General Secretary Rigo also attended.
All reports were well received,” said Mick Killick. “And our KPI
brothers showed passion about the Timorese workers starting from scratch and
getting things right from the beginning.”
A meeting was held with the newly elected executive the following day to appoint
organisers to assist in growing and strengthening the union.
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