Australian supply chains plunged into chaos as nation’s largest tug boat operator locks out its crews
Australian supply chains are facing chaos as the nation’s largest tug boat operator has warned it will lock out its crews from Friday in the latest chapter of a bitter three-year pay dispute.
Maersk subsidiary Svitzer today gave notice of a lockout from Friday indefinitely to all harbour towage employees covered under its 2016 National Towage Enterprise Agreement and their union bargaining representatives, the Maritime Union of Australia (MUA), the Australian Institute of Marine and Power Engineers (AIMPE) and the Australian Maritime Officers Union (AMOU).
Every Australian will now suffer from this delinquent company’s selfish and pigheaded conduct
Svitzer said it took the decision under the provisions of the Fair Work Act in response to ongoing industrial action being organised by the unions, which has seen strikes become common place at Australian ports.
When the lockout becomes effective, no shipping vessels will be towed in or out of 17 Australian ports otherwise serviced by Svitzer.
Svitzer has been bargaining with the maritime unions for over three years, since the towage enterprise agreement expired in 2019.
“We had hoped it would never come to a lockout – but we are at a point where we see no other option but to respond to the damaging industrial action underway by the unions,” said Svitzer managing director Nicolaj Noes.
“For many years Svitzer has enjoyed near monopoly status as the only major towage provider in Australia’s biggest ports. Locking out their workers will wreck Australia’s productivity, prevent consumer goods, and bulk commodities being loaded or discharged at major ports like Botany, Kembla, Melbourne, Newcastle and Brisbane and every Australian business and consumer will now suffer from this delinquent company’s selfish and pigheaded conduct,” a release from the Maritime Union of Australia stated.
Foreign companies taking millions of dollars out of Australia. Australia needs Australian tug boat companies with Australian workers, keeping the dollars at home. We don’t need foreign bullies on Australian soil.
Hi I’m from Namibia a small country with a population of around. 3mil. AT NAMIBIAN PORT AUTHORITIES WE HAVE OUR OWN TUGS AND THAT IS WHAT AUSTRALIA MUST DO. I’M A TUG MASTER THANK YOU.
All day long mate, all day long.
501 the bastards 😤
Too late ..we got sold out years ago
Not a lot of detail in this article, what are the unions asking for, what is the employer offering.
However in this labour market, and the fact that tug boat operators have specialised skills and have always been few and far between, sounds like the employer is shit out of luck. So stop bitch’en and pay up!!!
Like all important infrastructure and services, it needs to be nationalised.
i agree, Australia doesn’t need these foreign countries bullying us.flick them off
Don’t know the details but if they are bullying going on piss them off
Svitzer employees are the last to change outdated work practices
Yet ANOTHER Foreign Company holding Australians to Ransome ! Soon No Gas, No Imports/Exports !
And who says a Monopoly is illegal in Australia!! This is what happens with Governments allowing Foreign leaches to take advantage of Australia while sending the profits to other countries!! Kick them out !!!
Wise wolf
Stupid politicians have in my lifetime,born 1937, sold out the benefits our people gained from their hard work when they began privatising community assets and services and allowing huge companies from other nations to take over what we built up and then to reap huge profits from them by charging high prices and paying low wages.
Try going back to Australianisation rather than privatisation and globalisation of the services we need.
Australians work for Australia when community assets and services are
owned by Government Corporations as was once the case.
That’s dead right governments in Australia have sold out to these multi national companies and the barstards have reaped huge profits while workers have been screwed
It is not the foreign companies being pig headed. It is the Australian Maritime Union! They destroyed Australian National Line, they make it impossible to compete. They don’t negotiate, the MUA is like my ex wife ‘her way or the highway!’ Stop taking the Unions side. The Australian Seafarers is underworld and overpaid! It takes a long time for a company to make a decision like this. Too many people backed the union over the 1998 Patricks dispute, blaming Patricks for not negotiating. It was MUA/WWF! That cleaned out the bad eggs from deep in the Waterfront.
I work on the water front mate and was part of the negotiations during that dispute it was all about the surplus from the superannuation funds at the time and Patrick Corrigan was the one to blame front and centre get your facts right the work force had the balls to stand up to him and he was beaten now we face multi national conglomerate companies trying to beat down wages and conditions and our only defence is unions you moron
Totally agree.
I paid off from the R.A. N . after 12 years and after re-qualifying ( my navy qualifications weren’t accepted in the merchant marine—protectionism) I joined the Institute of Marine and power engineers and on ships learnt the absolute hatred those of the seaman’s union had of their employers, and theircountry to the stage they ruined the Australian shipping lines and stupidly their own jobs.
The enemy was and still is within.
John Cavanagh.
Everybody knows that MUA is a militant organization, only thinking about themselves. They have managed to destroy all of Aussie flag fleet, there are none left. International shipping is keeping Australia alive. Now soon all Oil refineries are shut down also, thanks to MUA.
Stop the nonsense of nationalising. Without the foreign ships you will be back to living on sheeps in the outbacks. All exports will be halted. Its good that Switzer stand firm with these overpaid linehandlers.
We the mua have been fighting cabotarge for years you dope all we want is Aussie crews on Aussie boats and to keep the profits in the country I’d you don’t understand the issue shut up or move.to India and work in a call centre.
Aussie Crew are useless, I have worked with them. All they do is complain all day and do everything in their power NOT to work.
Aussie ships.? Where are they, there are none. You have destroyed that fleet with MUA policies.
Then also explain how you will import and export all Aus goods. Will it be with the Aussie Ghost ships, or the “ships of shame” the latter being modern well run International ships.
Everybody knows that MUA is a militant organization, WHO only thinks about themselves. They have managed to destroy all of Aussie flag fleet, there are none left. International shipping is kerping Australia alive. Now soon all oilrefineries are shut down also, thanks to MUA. Stop the nonsense of nationalising. Without the foreign ships you will be back to living on sheeps in the outbacks. All exports will be halted. Its good that Switzer stand firm with these overpaid linehandlers.
This article explain good the work ethics and practises of MUA:(say No More)
https://www.afr.com/companies/transport/australia-s-most-overpaid-under-worked-employees-20220810-p5b8my
Love to know their current pay rate
To all Aussie flag holders,Rememember Stateships WA Fremantle.Did not last long ,strikes and more blaming bullshit. My run office had to close and i had to move overseas continue marine industrie .
Wa gov sold the new build vessels at short notice.To much yahoo.
Demanding to much and cry if there’s no vegimite on table.
The MUA have slowly but methodically destroyed Australian Shipping, they have no idea that their behaviour is entirely self-destructive and won’t be satisfied until everyone is on the breadline, the country would do well to be rid of them.