MUA wins as PHS suspends mooring services

The PORTS and Harbour services (PHS) have halted in its ship mooring services at Sydney’s Port Botany terminal, following a fierce campaign against it by the Maritime Union of Australia (MUA).

The PHS general manager Mark Rigoni said that since they began operations on the 21 September they were “immediately subjected to a series of pickets by the MUA and its members.”

“In the face of the pickets we were unable to guarantee the safety of our workers and as a result we cannot provide a service to shipping,” he said.

For this reason, the PHS have chosen to halt their services to protect the safety of their workers.

The MUA has chimed back and said the union would “always defend the hard working men and women in the maritime community.”

“We sincerely hope that this spells an end to the aggressive campaign by Ports and Harbour services to undermine pay and conditions at Port Botany,” he said.

We will continue to monitor the landscape and provide updates where necessary.