Industrial rounds
Union Wins Straddle Case
Patrick Stevedores have agreed to accelerate resolution of straddle safety issues after a concerted union campaign in the courts and at the negotiating table.
In April the company was found guilty on all counts of criminal disregard for workers' safety over straddle injuries at its Port Botany terminal.
The Industrial Relations Commission of New South Wales found against Patrick on all three remaining charges of unsafe system of work and unsafe plant and equipment. The company pleaded guilty to the lesser two charges last year (failure to provide adequate information, instruction and training). The more serious charges included that of ignoring their own safety consultant reports.
"The union's position has been vindicated," said National Secretary Paddy Crumlin. "The Commission has proved we were right. The company has to realise that we will not compromise safety at work for anything: The members are driving too long under unsuitable conditions. Time's up."
MUA Sydney Branch Secretary Robert Coombs began prosecutions against Patrick Stevedores Holdings P/L four years ago after workers at Port Botany suffered serious back and neck injuries from working prolonged hours in the straddle -- a practice introduced after the 1998 waterfront lockout.
The Commission judgement covers the period between October 1998 and October 2000. Patrick agreed to some work practice changes in the last enterprise agreement, including a relief driver, and the EBA includes a review mechanism, but until now Patrick has claimed that working conditions which were the subject of the case are all fixed. The union maintained the straddle problems, while less serious, are still ongoing at Port Botany and elsewhere.
"They've only come some of the way to fixing the problem," said Crumlin. "The company has been in denial on the straddle issue."
In the enterprise agreement negotiations and in a safety review under way in the past year, Patrick refused to concede workplace changes to reduce the risk of further repetitive strain injuries.
Following the Commission decision, union solicitors Turner Freeman filed draft orders for a change of work practice to ensure no more workers suffered back or neck injuries. It involves a combination of structured breaks, exercise, job rotation and reviews.
The draft interim orders called for:
• breaks of 20 minutes on any shift.
• additional breaks of five minutes every hour for straddle drivers to get out of their seat, stand up and do exercises
That's the short term requirements. As well the union called for:
• a risk assessment committee
• finalisation of the straddle seats & configuration review
• further structured breaks, exercise and rotation
• vibration report
The risk assessment committee, made up of employers, workers, a facilitator and an OH&S expert should continue working to come up with a system that will not expose straddle drivers to further repetitive strain injuries. Committee consultants would include Dr Bodel and an agreed design engineer. The union proposal also calls for a straddle seat review to be completed within three months as well as a risk assessment on any alternative seat and cabin configuration.
Proposed additional safeguards would also include regular standing breaks from the seated posture every 30 minutes and rotation from straddle work every two hours.
Straddle drivers would automatically get a "stretch now' instruction on their computer screen every 20 container moves. Once the drivers do the exercises they would press the 'job complete' button before the next job was issued.
The company initially rejected the union proposal at the Commission hearing in May and the matter is now held over until November with Patrick facing heavy penalties. But in the meantime Patrick gave ground on the interim orders in EBA talks with the union. What's being negotiated for the yard operations are two 20 minute breaks as well as a 30 minute meal break, staggered shift start times by an hour and providing relief drivers for all shifts.
CSL Drops Charges
SYDNEY, April 17: Canadian Steamship Line has agreed to drop its secondary boycott action against all parties involved in the Yarra dispute.
The company had taken secondary boycott action in the Federal Court against the MUA, AWU, AIMPIE, ACTU and individual officers including MUA assistant national secretaries Mick Doleman and Rick Newlyn, AWU National Secretary Bill Shorten and ACTU President Sharan Burrow.
The matter was settled in mediation before the court registrar, with parties have agreeing to meet their own legal costs. However, CSL has agreed to a payment which will cover union costs for the High Court action last year, when the full bench ruled in favour of the unions over Commission jurisdiction of foreign ships working in the domestic coastal trade.
"This is another brick in the wall of our fight for our right to work in our own country," said National Secretary Paddy Crumlin.
Coal Co. Claim Boycott
NEWCASTLE, May: Port Waratah Coal Services has sought legal action against the MUA Newcastle Branch Secretary and PWCS employees over alleged breaches of the secondary boycott provisions of the Trade Practices Act, the Workplace Relations Act and industrial torts. PWCS is claiming damages of more than $2 million. The union is strongly defending the claim.
Lashing Dispute
SYDNEY, February 25: The Branch locked horns with Patrick Stevedores after the company got foreign seafarers to do lashing work on the Liberian FoC P&O NedLloyd San Francisco on the night shift. The move came after Patrick labour refused to lash until a break in the unduly harsh wet weather.
Patrick and the ships master had an agreement authorising the ships crew to perform the lashing work on140 containers on deck. It included a US$300 payment to the master on his return visit to Sydney.
The International Transport Workers' Federation and the MUA worked together to resolve the dispute and ensure that the vessel would not be able to use Australian ports as ports of convenience.
"The company position is just not acceptable," said Branch Secretary Robert Coombs. "We are not prepared to tolerate foreign seafarers doing wharfies' work. This is an extremely important issue that has the full backing of the International Transport Workers' Federation."
National Secretary Paddy Crumlin was one of the leaders of the forum that negotiated the new international agreement for FOC seafarers. Protecting wharfie's work is an important part of this agreement.
Sydney Ferry Walkout
SYDNEY, February 23: MUA members employed on Sydney Ferries walked off the job in protest at the sacking of workmate Dave Hauser. Around 100 ferry employees gathered at First Fleet Park, where they voted to protest the sacking, before marching to the Sydney Ferries Pitt Street office at Circular Quay.
"The sacking was completely unjustified," said Assistant Branch Secretary Warren Smith. "The ferries won't be operating until change of shift at 2pm."
The matter went to the Commission and Hauser was subsequently reinstated.
Meanwhile, the union has successfully delivered a six per cent wage increase and 10 new permanent jobs under the new EBA.
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