Covid 19 has been causing trouble in the logistics industry, with delays and disruptions to goods and services. But it’s about to get much worse with port strikes threatening to delay Christmas deliveries.
The Maritime Union of Australia (MUA) has launched industrial action at Patrick Terminal sites in Sydney, Fremantle, Melbourne and Brisbane. Hundreds of workers had announced a strike for 48 hours in Sydney’s Port last weekend and at the Melbourne port for about 12 hours every Monday, Wednesday and Friday for the entire month of October.
The MUA’s industrial action comes in light of the recent bargaining of wages and job security with Patrick Terminals. The CEO of Patrick Terminals, Michael Jovic, stated that the company has been negotiating with the MUA since February 2020, with having held nearly 70 meetings to come to a new enterprise agreement.
“We have bargained with the MUA for over 19 months and provided a very generous pay increase, guaranteed no redundancies and provided a commitment to preserving jobs,” announced by Michael Jovic last Monday.
Michael Jovic continued to state that “The MUA’s actions are frankly bewildering. It seems to have completely lost the plot. This blatantly aggressive strike action demonstrates that it has no regard for the suffering of everyday Australians who have felt the impact of COVID-19 lockdowns, job losses and restrictions over the past 18 months”.
Patrick Terminals currently handles 40% of Australia’s container traffic and the industrial action committed by MUA will have severe ramifications for all Australia’s ahead of Christmas. The strikes have already forced container ships to wait up to 18 days in Syndey, nine in Melbourne, eight in Brisbane and three in Freemantle. The port disruptions have cost Patrick Terminals more than $15 million in revenue and decreased its market share from 48% to 43%.
Paul Zalai, director of the Freight & Trade Alliance, said the strike action is quite significant, that ports are struggling due to high import and export demand. He noted that, covid cases, heavy congestion and limited operations due the industrial action has caused chaos for the international trade sector.
Every Australian has been affected by the strikes as it has caused a huge amount of stress for those who have already been set back due to lockdown and international supply chain interruptions.
For more information about the previous industrial action and impacts on Patrick Terminals, catch up with the TGL Newsroom & the following articles:
Patrick Terminals New Protected Industrial Action
Hutchinson Port Protected Industrial Action
Expect delays in cargo ready dates, shipping times & booking availability. TGL encourages all clients to reach out on 1800 845 845 or [email protected] to discuss with a Solutions Specialist the most viable option for their shipments.
We will continue to monitor the situation and provide updates where necessary.
TGL Team
