Coastal Battles

The fight for Australian shipping

The Goliath, the Cementco, the Alcem Calaca, Ormiston and the Kowulka -- all five ships were to be replaced permanently by flags of convenience vessels and guest workers. But crew protests and month-long negotiations led by MUA National Secretary Paddy Crumlin, ACTU President Sharan Burrow and AWU National Secretary Bill Shorten changed their course.

While Canada Steamship Lines Australia will now provide replacement tonnage for Boral cargoes carried on the Ormiston and Kowulka, management agree the new vessels will remain licenced in Australia and crewed by Australians.

The new self-discharger being built by CSL is currently in a Chinese shipyard and due to enter the trade mid way next year. The Capo Noli has been time chartered to fill the gap (see p6).

But the settlement with CSL was only reached after officials of the Australian Workers' Union, which has primary coverage in the cement and building materials industry, the MUA, the ACTU met with the CSR CEO Terry Maycock in June/July with a view of securing understandings around replacement tonnage for the Ormiston and Kowulka.

The unions and the ACTU also held meetings with the CEO and senior management of CSR to discuss its shipping needs and an ongoing commitment to Australian replacement tonnage. These discussions are continuing with CEO Terry Maycock saying CSR is actively pursuing a plan to build a vessel that will meet their needs, however prevailing market conditions in the shipbuilding industry have mede the price prohibitive at the moment. The parties have agreed to continue to discuss the matter.

Similar, and still ongoing negotiations, apply to CSL's takeover of the three Cement Australia vessels.

CSL secured long term contracts for the three vessels in June. It has bought the bulk carrier, MV Goliath, and bulk materials ship Cementco while taking over the charter of the Alcem Calaca.

But according to Lloyds List DCN, correspondence between CSL and Cement Australia without union intervention all crews would have been replaced with foreign crews.

It was only after MUA national secretary and Australian Workers' Union national secretary Bill Shorten held crisis talks with the company in Sydney and made it clear that bringing in foreign workers to the coastal cement trade could have serious industrial implications, that Cement Australia/CSL came back with an Australian alternative.

An agreement was reached for all three ships to continue transporting cement products from Cement Australia's Gladstone facility at Fisherman's Landing and Devonport in Tasmania, to terminals along the east coast of Australia, licenced for coastal trading and employing Australian crew working under Australian employment conditions.

While all 77 employees, including MUA members took their full redundancy entitlements as the old collective agreements expired on June 30, a new collective agreement is being negotiated with the union modelled on the Australian crewed CSL steel carrier, Iron Chieftain enterprise agreement.

Under the settlement all seafarers seeking reemployment with CSL are able to apply to crew the vessels and, to date all applications have been accepted. Before the changeover Assistant Natioanl Secretary Rick Newlyn, SQld branch secretary Mick Carr and Sydney Branch Secretary Warren Smith held meetings with the crews of the three vessels and also with the ratings employed by CSL for the changeover. The importance of retaining the vessels under a collective agreement and Australian crews to the future of the industry was endorsed unanimously and a smooth change over took place.

Paddy Crumlin told Lloyds List DCN both CSL and Cement Australia had adopted a commonsense approach and taken a long-term view of the advantages of maintaining Australian crew in the best interest of the country and the reputation of the company.

Qld Minister for Transport and Main Roads Paul Lucas also supported an outcome of maintaining Australian crew on the coast:

"Australian maritime crews are the best in the world," he said.

"The best way of protecting our pristine coastal environment while servicing this trade is to have properly trained and professional Australian seafarers crewing Australian ships. This vital trade is so important to the Queensland economy."

SQld branch secretary Mick Carr agreed with the minister that the outcome provided advantages for all parties but also meant better protection for the maritime environment.

CSL Australia executive Chris Sorenson told Lloyds List/DCNthe outcome has enabled the company to move forward as a major player in the Australian coastal bulk shipping market, shipping 9.6 million tonnes of coal, cement, clinker, gypsum, iron ore, limestone, salt and slag around the Australian coast and the Pacific.

STOP PRESS

In a late development, CSL disagreed with the Australian Maritime Safety Authority on safe crewing levels for the Cementco and following a breakdown in discussions with the regulators determined to flag out the vessel to the Barbados, instead of retaining the Australian flag.

MUA Assistant National Secretary Mick Doleman and jon Witlow, Seafarers Secretary of the International Transport Workers' Federation met with the Barbados flag representative in London in July outlining the serious concerns over the apparent total lack of communication between AMSA and the Barbados which resulted in two completely different interpretations of the application of the Safety of Life at Sea Convention (SOLAS).

As a result the Barbados representative accepted the gravity of the situation and undertook to have a formal investigation.

AMSA meanwhile washed its hands of the vessel, saying that the change of flag removed all their obligations to monitor the safe crewing issues under port state control.

The matter has been exacerbated by the critical shortage of trained seafarers, both ratings and officers, available to crew Australian bluewater shipping.

While the MUA was close to finalising a collective agreement with CSL for the three cement ships as MWJ went to press, the officers unions had not, a situation reflected aboard the Iron Chieftain as well.

"CSL has a responsibility to finalise collective agreements with both unions," said National Secretary Paddy Crumlin. "The normalisaiton of CSL's operations essentially depends on an outcome for all parties."

The national secretary indicated it was a poor indictment on the industry if the three vessels were flagged out and received in line with developments aboard the CSL Pacific, which was brought back on the Australian coast with guest workers.

"The MUA will never rest until the CSL Pacific or its replacement is put back under normal coastal Australian conditions including having an Australian crew," he said.

"The lack of interest in the Australian flag by the Department of Transport follows 11 years of disgraceful neglect and intent by the Howard Government. They only give lip service to security and safety standards in the coastal trade."