OCEANIA

Auckland pickets over contract work

15 years ago

The Ports of Auckland (POAL) is suffering a backlash of picketing having announced that it will be introducing ‘competitive stevedoring’ at its Fergusson and Bledisloe container terminal operations.

Is action at Auckland building to a crescendo? Photo: MUNZ

The port reports that police had to be called amid safety concerns for staff and visitors at the port earlier this week – a number of whom were stopped and confronted by Maritime Union of New Zealand (MUNZ) members.

The news comes after PoAL announced last week that it had taken the decision to contract work out after an eight week consultation process with employees and the unions – despite four month’s worth of strikes over the proposal to ‘casualise’ the workforce.

Port chief executive, Tony Gibson, said: “Competitive stevedoring could enable Auckland to become New Zealand’s best performing port” – and it is hoped a leader in the Asia-Pacific region.

Three companies have now been appointed by the port to supply services to the port – including Drake New Zealand and the AWF Group. Just under 300 port workers will be affected by the move. To add fuel to the fire, PoAL is urging its dockworkers to apply for new positions at the contractors.

“We will meet any time any day with any decent offer to get this issue resolved,” Garry Parsloe, MUNZ president states on the union’s website. MUNZ maintains that its main concern is for “members’ job security and their ability to prioritise time with their families and other commitments outside work”.