Patrick Terminals deal

Patrick operates across Australia with terminals at Brisbane, Fremantle, Melbourne and Sydney. The company has been in a two-year labour dispute with unions over pay for stevedores at its terminals.

A statement released by the company said that the new deal provides Patrick Terminals with increased operational flexibility to better meet customers’ needs and service the changing supply chain landscape. The new agreement provides Patrick Terminals with the right to recruit at their discretion without restrictive union quotas.

“We are pleased to have secured support for our new enterprise agreement across our workforce,” said chief executive, Michael Jovicic.

“This new four-year arrangement provides the flexibility that we sought in regard to recruitment and will allow us to better service our customers in regard to manning, new technology and operational efficiency. We would like to thank our customers for their patience over the past two years and now look forward to a future of industrial stability on the Patrick waterfront.”

The new Enterprise Agreement will now be lodged with the Fair Work Commission to ratify.

Whilst this outcome is a welcomed, Freight & Trade Alliance (FTA) and the Australian Peak Shippers Association have said they will continue advocating for a formal waterfront industrial relations review to provide business continuity for what is an ‘essential service’ and an international gateway for major supply chains.