The

Issue 22 • July 2008 MaritimesMagazine of the Maritime Union of New Zealand ISSN 1176-3418

www.munz.org.nz Global Solidarity The Maritimes | July 2008 |  DANGER 2008 is election year. As workers, your rights and jobs will be under threat from a National Government.

Under National: • Employers would have the right to dismiss you unfairly when you are starting a job • You could be forced to sell your fourth week of annual leave • Vulnerable workers would lose rights to keep their jobs after a business was sold or transferred • Employers could force you on to individual agreements • ACC would be privatised • Statutory holiday pay could be cut • Your Union rights would be reduced • Benefits and Working for Families would be cut Don’t vote National.  | The Maritimes | July 2008 www.munz.org.nz EDITORIAL We need to set the political agenda

by Victor Billot Edition 22, July 2008 It is no coincidence that those unions who have best held ground Contents in difficult times here and abroad are those which have been active and militant. Strong and member-driven unions improve Editorial and contents 3 wages and conditions for all workers. General Secretary’s report 4 There is another role for unions: a political role. Unions need to be Update from National President 5 May Day action in USA page 8 News 6 defining what organized working people want and fighting for it. International news 8 We have members of our union reliant on foodbanks to get CTU 10 through the week. We have members of our union who have been Election: enrol to vote 11 trapped for a decade or more in casual jobs in their ports. CAFCA: Who owns New Zealand? 12 The situation for a large group of deunionized, young, casual ITF 13 workers is far worse. MUA 2008 Conference 14 These may be uncomfortable topics in election year. But as a un- Mining and Maritime 18 ion we need to go on the offensive and demand something better Union History 26 Blackball ‘08 centenary 28 for workers. We need to set the agenda. Port roundups 30 These problems are not going to solved simply through increas- ing productivity, or gathering a larger number of crumbs from the ‘The Maritimes’ is published quarterly by employer’s table. the Maritime Union of New Zealand. It is obvious we need a high technology, highly skilled workforce. MUA Conference page 14 But is the point of this exercise to pay for the inflated salaries of Authorized by Trevor Hanson, senior managers and dividends to shareholders? 220 Willis Street, Wellington. Or is it to reduce working hours, increase wages, ensure a safe ISSN 1176-3418 workplace, and invest in the society we all live in? The distribution of the wealth produced by society remains a key National Office: question. PO Box 27004 This is a question of priorities. It is a hard question and a politi- Wellington cal question. As long as we have a global society where economic New Zealand power is controlled by a minority and based on free market capi- Telephone: 04 3850 792 talism, then workers will always be under attack. Fax: 04 3848 766 This is an uncomfortable reality that many career politicians do Email: [email protected] Contact the Web: www.munz.org.nz not like acknowledging. Maritime Union So, what are the political goals for the maritime industry we Editor: should demand? Here are some suggestions: National Office Victor Billot •A nationwide registry of trained maritime workers, and port- Telephone: 04 3850 792 Mobile: 021 482219 Fax: 04 3848 766 based labour pools to end casualization and create a career path Fax: 09 9251125 Address: PO Box 27004, Wellington •The introduction of cabotage and investigation of public-owned Email: [email protected] Office administrator: Ramesh Pathmanathan shipping (compare with the railways) Mail: PO Box 339, Dunedin Email: [email protected] • The commitment that ports will not be privatized, and the New Zealand national co-ordination of ports to avoid wasteful duplication of General Secretary: Trevor Hanson Editorial Board: infrastructure and the destructive competition in this sector Direct dial: 04 8017 614 Trevor Hanson, Phil Adams, Garry Parsloe • A much higher level of safety on the job, based on tougher Mobile: 021 390585 and Russell Mayn regulations and a tuneup of the bureaucracy – our lives are more Email: [email protected] important than employers’ profits Deadline for all Port reports, submissions, National President: Phil Adams • Regulation to ensure that New Zealand seafarers are employed photos and letters: Direct dial: 03 4728 052 in the offshore oil, gas and mining sector – and that those resources 1 September 2008 for next edition Mobile: 0274 377601 are not controlled by global corporations to our disadvantage. Email: [email protected] Cover photo: Delegates and international There are some general issues that should be on the table as well: delegates at the Maritime Union of • Housing is unaffordable for young people. National Vice President: Garry Parsloe Australia 2008 Conference, Sydney, • Our taxation system is hard on workers. GST is a regressive Direct dial: 09 3032 562 Australia, April 2008. Photo courtesy of tax and should be phased out to help with the cost of living. This Mobile: 021 326261 the MUA. Email: [email protected] would be a “tax cut” that means something. For more online photos, see • On the issue of wages, the minimum wage needs to go up to at www.flickr.com/maritimeunion Assistant General Secretary: Russell Mayn least $15 an hour. Even then many will struggle. Direct dial: 09 3034 652 • Education is another key issue as student debt continues to rise Thanks to our photographers including Mobile: 021 760886 Jay, Luke Appleby, Terry Ryan, Gerard to around $10 billion. Email: [email protected] Hill, and others The Maritime Union is well-placed to make a difference. We are not a large union in numbers, but we are a large union ITF Inspectorate: Grahame McLaren in quality. We need to do our part in leading the fight in election Direct dial: 04 8017 613 Mobile: 021 2921782 year – and every year – for working people. Email: [email protected] In today’s individual world where people have lost their political and social awareness, it is a tough job, but we are up to the task. Communications Officer: Victor Billot Mobile: 021 482219 Fax: 09 9251125 Address: PO Box 339, Dunedin Email: [email protected]

www.munz.org.nz The Maritimes | July 2008 |  COMMENT Building a strong and well-resourced union

This would ensure the independence of Ship inspections strong locals and branches, but would al- Recently both Joe Fleetwood and I have low the union to operate in a more efficient been regular visitors on vessels in the Port way. of Wellington, accompanying Grahame This includes ensuring that all members of McLaren in his ITF inspection duties. the union receive a high level of serv- My observations are that since I used to do ice, which can be a problem if there is a inspections at the Port of Timaru way back division between larger, well-resourced in the late seventies and early eighties, the branches and smaller branches with a changes are the extreme cleanliness, mod- limited ability to provide all the backup ern cabins, crew facilities and food quality. members need. Of course, way back then we still had Some of the other goals identified were the many European crewed vessels with up to need to support and encourage youth and 40 to 50 crew, and very few ships were in veterans, put in place a growth strategy very good condition. to build membership, and ensure a stable The vessels we have recently been visiting transition period over the next 10 years. have crews of 18 to 20. by Trevor Hanson Our membership has a large group facing On our arrival they are always very polite General Secretary retirement over this period and it is vital but make sure they are not seen by the of- that their knowledge and experience is ficers engaging in discussions with us. union executive looks at changes passed on to the next generation. When we ask them if every thing is OK, The union is calling an extra executive The national executive of the union dis- they always smile and say yes, but in meeting this winter in order to progress many cases things are not what they seem. cussed a new proposal for modernizing this renewal process and to finalize our our union at our May 2008 meeting in No doubt they are extremely frightened election year strategy for returning a for their jobs, as they are competing Wellington. worker friendly government. This proposal seeks to ensure a strong against a multitude of workers world-wide World events are about to play a major role for employment, and often these same and well-resourced Maritime Union and in our day to day employment. started some good debate and discussion crew will contact us from the next port The rapidly rising price of oil will cause us with a variety of complaints. from those at the meeting. untold problems as the shipping compa- Some of the key matters discussed by nies start to really hurt. MUA conference the executive were proposals to move to This is a time to work closely together and “national funding” and a stronger national ensure all our resources are directed to A strong delegation from the Maritime Un- structure. ensure correct national decisions. ion of New Zealand recently attended the Maritime Union of Australia Conference Mount Maunganui Tauranga Branch and the Mining and Maritime Conference in Sydney in April 2008. “Workers are Many members are concerned at recent Officials and rank and file members from rumours about our Mount Maunganui many of our New Zealand branches took organizing Tauranga Branch. part in both Conferences which are report- After the departure of our local secretary ed on later in this edition of the Maritimes. and organizer from the Mount Maunganui The MUA Conference had hundreds of internationally to work for another union, some problems delegates from maritime unions around were experienced. the world. to defend Members of our union were approached to It was a great experience to hear from un- join another union, which is now repre- ion leaders from throughout the world, the and advance sented by their former organizer. Australian Deputy PM Julia Gillard and However the message has been given loud Transport Minister Anthony Albanese. their goals. In and clear that if you are a member of the Comrades were in attendance from the Maritime Union of New Zealand in Mount USA, Europe, Asia, Africa, India and the a globalized Maunganui Tauranga, whether water- Pacific, making this a truly international front, seafarer or off the wharf, you should workers event. The Port of Napier dispute world there is remain with our union. featured in a video presentation as an ex- Our collective agreements still stand and ample of what can be achieved when you no alternative we are “here to stay.” have global solidarity. The local branch has now got a new There were also a number of cultural and to international Secretary Eddie Cook, and President Peter educational activities. Harvey, who with the assistance of our These included the launch of a famous Auckland-based national officials Garry union mural at the National Maritime solidarity” Parsloe and Russell Mayn, are getting the Museum, the renaming of Dickson Street branch back up to speed. in central Sydney to the “Hungry Mile” They have made great progress and we in remembrance of the many waterfront look forward to a bright future in the Bay workers who used to walk along the road of Plenty. to and from the wharves, and a celebratory dinner marking the 10th anniversary of the Patrick Dispute. [continued on page 6]

 | The Maritimes | July 2008 www.munz.org.nz COMMENT Make the right decision with your vote

Rail and ferry buyback Negotiations The Maritime Union has welcomed some The Maritime Union is in the thick of a initiatives from the Government in the number of heavy duty negotiations at our buyback of rail and ferries, and the new major ports. funding that is being put towards coastal It has been noted that some employers shipping. seem to be acting up a little with the possi- Coastal shipping and rail should be the bility that they see a free run ahead if their backbone of our transport system. friend Mr Key is elected. Instead, ever since the Rogernomics pe- It is important that as a union we don’t riod, continuing through the dark days of allow this illusion to take hold. the 1990s, these two transport modes have Regardless of what government we have, been ignored and allowed to run down the Maritime Union will continue to be a through idiotic policies. strong advocate for our members. It is nonsense to “leave it to the market” in It is vital we realize that we have to take a small economy like New Zealand. part in the political process to ensure that We need a planned transport infrastruc- the laws and economic environment are by Phil Adams ture that works for all New Zealand, not favourable for working people and our National President just overseas shareholders or private families. interests. While we all have our individual ports to Workers need to vote intelligently This point seems to have been acknowl- take care of in negotiating our collective If current polls are to be believed, then edged across the Tasman by the new Gov- agreements, we must not lose sight of the some workers must be considering a vote ernment in Australia in comments made at fact that national (and international) soli- for the National Party. the recent MUA Conference. darity and collectivism is the way in which This is unfortunate because a right wing There is no doubt from an economic point the long-term security and prosperity of government could make things very pain- of view, because of the spiralling costs of maritime workers, and all workers, will be ful for workers. fuel, that shipping and rail can offer the achieved. There needs to be a strong educational most cost effective solution to our future campaign to remind working people the transport needs. results of the 1990s National Government In addition, they also have less environ- – the reality as opposed to the promises. mental impact that other types of transport. John Key has learned from the mistakes of As a nation dependent on maritime trade, his predecessor Don Brash and is trying to it is a bizarre reality that our shipping avoid having to talk about what he actu- requirements are completely dominated by ally intends to do if he were to gain power. powerful shipping cartels which have ba- First on the hit list would be organized sically got a stranglehold on our national workers. destiny. “National and A National Government would seek to This situation has continued for a century finish the job from the 1990s by attacking and has even become more serious lately workers’ rights and unions, especially as foreign vessels carrying coastal cargo international effective and militant unions such as the have frozen out the ability of New Zea- Maritime Union. landers to work on their own coastline. solidarity and More power would be handed to the Why? bosses. There would be sell-offs of public Because certain interest groups have collectivism assets and the living standards of workers sought to increase their profits while ef- would drop as they did in the 1990s. fectively contracting out seafaring work to is the way in A National Government would redistrib- underpaid third world crews. ute wealth from working people to big The fact that seafarers are well organized which the long shareholders, capitalists and managers. and militant is one reason why our local At the moment National is selling itself capitalists are so keen to deunionize the term security on “tax cuts.” It must be remembered that maritime workforce. “tax cuts” have to be paid for. Thus the buyback of rail and ferries, plus and prosperity The money for tax cuts has to taken away the announcement of $36 million towards from some area of public spending like coastal shipping, is good news. hospitals, schools, and other public goods. These moves have taken far too much time of maritime In addition, tax cuts as proposed by Na- to carry out, but we are pleased to see that tional mean big cash going to high income in this area the Government has shown workers, and all earners’ (such as MPs, managers and chief some leadership and taken positive action. executives) and tiny amounts to workers. workers, will be As a union we subscribe to socialist values and collective values. This means working achieved” together to improve everybody’s situation. Workers can only benefit by union princi- ples of solidarity, not the National plan of a divided and demoralized workforce who do what they are told. www.munz.org.nz The Maritimes | July 2008 |  NEWS

[continued from page 4] Shipping plan Mining and Maritime Conference The 3rd “Globalizing Solidarity” Mining and Maritime Pacific Rim Conference was gets thumbs up held in Sydney on 13-15 April 2008. The conference was attended by over 350 The Maritime Union of New Zealand says national and international officials and the release of the final domestic shipping delegates from unions in the mining, mari- strategy “Sea Change” is a positive move time, manufacturing, transport, energy for New Zealand shipping. and construction industries from countries Maritime Union Vice President Garry such as Australia, New Zealand, Ger- Parsloe says the Government’s plans for many, South Africa, USA, Japan, England, coastal shipping announced in May 2008 Switzerland, East Timor, Canada, Vanuatu, are moving in the right direction. United Kingdom, Denmark, Belgium, He says $36 million of funding for devel- Papua New Guinea and Sweden. oping coastal shipping over the next four The Mining and Maritime Initiative is now years was a major boost. sponsored and funded by eight unions “The Maritime Union wants to see some – the Maritime union of New Zealand of this funding put towards the training of (MUNZ), the Maritime union of Australia young New Zealanders for careers in the (MUA), the Australian Construction For- maritime industry, which is the only real estry Mining Energy union (CFMEU), the solution to skills shortages.” International Longshore and Warehouse Photo from http://www.flickr.com/photos/barwell/85898180/ Mr Parsloe says other positives are the union (ILWU) from the west coast of North Licensed under http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by- stated goal for 30% of all inter-regional America, the National union of Minework- nc-nd/2.0/ domestic freight by 2040 to be moved by ers (NUM) from the UK, the South African coastal shipping, and the potential for Transport and Allied Workers union major hub ports served by regional feeder (SATAWU), and the United Steelworkers Ferries return ports. (USW) and International Brotherhood of “This will have major economic and envi- Teamsters from the USA. ronmental benefits for New Zealand.” The Mining and Maritime Initiative was to public He says the union is happy with the Gov- created for unions to respond to the ever ernment’s announcement it will be clarify- increasing globalisation of the mining and ing Section 198 of the Maritime Transport maritime industries and bond together ownership Act 1994, which deals with the movement in time of struggle. A strong network and of coastal cargo by international vessels solidarity activity around the globe has The Maritime Union says the buyback of between domestic ports. been developed to support struggles of rail and Cook Strait ferries operated by various unions. Toll is a good step towards rebuilding The Initiative kicked off with an ini- a top quality transport system in New tial seminar in Newcastle, Australia in Zealand. Death at Lyttelton September 2002, which was attended by Maritime Union General Secretary Trevor unions from eight countries representing Hanson says the move is positive for New Rail and Maritime Transport Union more than 2.7 million workers in the min- Zealand, and should have been done a member Martin Sincock was killed while ing, energy and maritime industries. long time ago. a coal ship, Devprayag, was being moored That was followed up when Mining and “The only regret is that we have now had at Cashin Quay in the port of Lyttelton Maritime unions from around the world a generation where this vital part of our around 8pm on Tuesday 24 June 2008. gathered in Long Beach, California, in 2005 infrastructure has been first asset-stripped Initial police reports said one of the for the second Globalising Solidarity Inter- then unsuccessfully operated by global mooring ropes had broken, causing fatal national Pacific Rim Mining and Maritime corporations interested in shareholder injuries to 55-year old Mr Sincock who unions Seminar. profit, not for what is good for New Zea- was an employee of the Lyttelton Port Both these conferences are reported on in land.” Authority. this issue of the Maritimes. Mr Hanson says the Government was Further investigations were underway. Global solidarity is our answer to corpo- moving in the right direction but should The last accident involving a mooring rate globalization. Workers are organizing not be timid. line was also at Lyttelton in 2006, when a internationally to defend and advance “We need some more speed in developing Russian seaman was killed while standing their goals. In a globalized world there is New Zealand-owned coastal shipping, in a loop of mooring line aboard his vessel. no alternative to international solidarity establishing a national ports strategy, and between workers. ensuring our transport infrastructure is In the words of RMT secretary Bob Crow, developed for the benefit of New Zealand, who spoke to the MUA Conference: not private interest groups or overseas “I’ve got more in common with a shareholders.” Chinese labourer than with a stock broker. Mr Hanson says shipping and rail will be Workers all have the same problems. We the two transport modes of the future as want a decent job. We want to attend work fuel prices, road congestion and environ- in the morning or the night and go home mental problems continue to grow. in a fit condition without being injured. We “Hopefully this is the closing chapter of demand good pay, not just reasonable pay, the rail saga that goes back to the right- decent pensions, decent conditions and a wing political cabal who stripped New world that lives in peace. That can only be Zealand’s assets and sold them to their achieved by militant trade unionism.” mates during the 1980s and 1990s.”

 | The Maritimes | July 2008 www.munz.org.nz NEWS Temporary workers plan a recipe for disaster

The Maritime Union of New Zealand has attacked plans by employers to bring in migrant labour into the seafood industry after mass layoffs in the same sector. In June 2008, a week after Sealord con- firmed it would axe 323 jobs from its Nelson mussel factory, two South Island seafood companies Talleys and Aotearoa Seafood applied to import 100 migrant labourers. Maritime Union General Secretary Trevor Hanson says that the use of temporary labour being imported from overseas Photo © Luke Appleby threatens local employment. “It is utterly disgraceful that at a time when we have rising unemployment and surging living costs, employers are being Maritime Union supports allowed to knock the bottom out of the labour market.” Mr Hanson says the key problem with improved protection for finding workers was based around the poor wages paid in the local industry. He says he is disturbed that immigration casual workers authorities seem to have no understand- ing as to the social effects of the import of The Maritime Union has welcomed a gov- Mr Hanson says these casual workers are temporary labour. ernment announcement that it intends to denied training and a career path with “It is no exaggeration to say New Zealand improve protections for casual workers. future prospects, denied secure wages is struggling with social problems caused Maritime Union General Secretary Trevor and conditions, denied regular hours, and by the lack of secure permanent jobs and Hanson says the union has been arguing denied the ability to plan their lives. some kind of career structure and future since 1991 that the practice of employing “The system effectively makes them sec- for young people.” casual labour on the waterfront is degrad- ond class citizens with bad effects on their Mr Hanson says the use of short-term ing and unfair. working lives, families and community, as workers imported from overseas disrupted “It is similar to the situation of a century they work from day to day and have no local employment conditions, and opened ago when workers lined up for work at the ability to secure mortgages and a regular up the overseas workers to exploitation. port gate, and many were victimized or income.” “This is not the way to get a stable em- refused work.” He says the responsibility for the current ployment situation or a stable society.” Mr Hanson says peaks and troughs of problems largely lies with international Mr Hanson says the Maritime Union has work in the maritime industry have not shippers who play off port against port, predicted that under free trade agreements always required supplementary labour to stevedore against stevedore, leading to a the use of temporary labour being import- the permanent workforce, but with the dis- race to the bottom, as the easiest way to ed across borders would increase to drive establishment of the Waterfront Industry save money is through creating a pool of down wages and conditions in a “race to Commission in 1989 the permanent work- insecure casual labour. the bottom.” force had become increasingly casualized. Mr Hanson says the Maritime Union has “Not only are jobs being exported to poor He says the situation has led to casual proposed a solution that a regulated pool countries to take advantage of powerless workers on the books of up to four em- of casuals is established in each port which workers, now the reverse is happening ployers in their port, in some cases surviv- stevedores can employ workers and draw with the cross-border use of temporary ing for many years “on the end of a phone, permanent labour from. workers being imported to drive down waiting for a call.” He says the union welcomes government wages here.” “We have cases in New Zealand of water- action on this pressing social issue but Mr Hanson says temporary cross-border front workers who have been employed much work remains to be done. labour was very different to immigration, in a port for up to fifteen years as casuals, and emphasized the Maritime Union was waiting in vain for an opportunity to get an internationalist union that supported a permanent job with the security that workers of all nations. gives.” “In this case it is clear the problem lies with immigration authorities and employ- ers.”

www.munz.org.nz The Maritimes | July 2008 |  INTERNATIONAL NEWS

The former truck driver and construction worker said, “All of you are true patriots for what you did today, your courage is inspiring to everyone who wants the war to end.” At Local 19 in Seattle, the docks were quiet and cranes were “boomed-up” – a sign that usually signals a serious tragedy such as a death on the job, but not on May Day. The spirited rally in Seattle capped a two- mile waterfront march that began near the Local 19 union hall. The march was led by Local 19 members, and included representatives from most other Washington ILWU locals. In Portland, several dozen members of Co- lumbia River ILWU locals gathered with peace activists on a floating walkway in Portland to place flowers in the Willamette River that represented more than 4,000 American soldiers killed in Iraq. When asked if he was afraid of getting fired for skipping work to protest the war, Local 8 member Jerry Lawrence told OPB News, “If that’s what they wish to do, then they gotta fire all of us, ‘cause we stand in solidarity.” “We stood up for America, the In Tacoma, Local 23 workers also protested on May Day, and got good media coverage for their strong show of solidarity. troops and against the war” Local 54 members in Stockton took the day off to protest the war. At a local May Day rally, teachers, Teamsters, nurses, On May Day 2008, ports up and down the Overwhelming support and Stockton City Councilwoman Susan Pacific Coast of North America were quiet. Public support for the action by ILWU Eggman joined two veterans who spoke Nearly 10,000 longshore division workers, members was overwhelming, with over a against the war. members of the International Longshore thousand unsolicited ‘thank you’ messages One of the ILWU’s largest May Day events and Warehouse Union (ILWU), voluntarily that poured into ILWU locals and interna- happened in the San Francisco Bay Area gave up a day’s pay to participate in one tional headquarters. where union members and community of the largest and most effective actions in President Joe Cortez of Local 13 said their supporters gathered at the Local 10 hall recent history. office received many offers to help from until Local 10’s Drill Team members led- The May Day action had one important concerned citizens in their community. off a waterfront march at a smart clip. goal: to protest the war in Iraq. The same was true at other ILWU locals Longshore workers followed behind with But it also produced some unexpected in the Southland, according to Local 29 family and friends, passing old piers benefits, including a powerful display of President William Silva in San Diego and where longshoremen once loaded ships membership solidarity, extraordinary pub- Local 46 President Dan Hultgen in Port by hand and fought to establish the ILWU. lic support, and positive media coverage. Hueneme. They passed the Ferry Building and Harry “Our message about ending the war was Local 46 workers in Port Hueneme took Bridges Plaza near the spot where long- received loud and clear in Washington, the day off to reflect on the war. shoremen were gunned-down in 1934. D.C., and the response there was over- One member, Victor Gallardo, was protest- Together they filled the plaza with more whelmingly positive,” said Local 63 Secre- ing 35 years ago against the Vietnam War. than a thousand protestors for a noon rally tary Peter Peyton who was in the Capitol Today his two daughters are serving in the where Local 34 President Richard Cavalli on May Day to help spread the word with military, one of them on her second tour was one of the first speakers. a team that included International Secre- in Iraq. “This war, like all wars, is killing the sons tary-Treasurer Willie Adams, Local 40 Vice “Our union has always been anti-war,” he and daughters of workers. George Bush’s President Dawn DesBrisay, plus Legisla- told the Ventura County Star. daughters are getting married in the White tive Director Lindsay McLaughlin and In addition to sending messages and phone House while our daughters are getting Legislative Assistant Kyle Weimann. calls, some community members brought buried in Iraq. The politicians in office Local 29 members in San Diego protested boxes of donuts and other goodies to ILWU have failed to end this war – and it’s not the war in Iraq on May Day, and President members as a way to show support. going to end until we get people into the William Silva was interviewed on local TV Paul Krehbiel was one private citizen who streets.” news stations. drove an hour from his home in Pasadena Contributors to this report included Craig Merrilees, Russ “All of us agree that it’s time to get out of after hearing about the ILWU action on the Iraq now,” Silva told local media. Miyashiro, Tom Price, and Jennifer Sargent. radio. Article and photo reprinted with permission from ‘The He arrived at San Pedro with five fresh Dispatcher’, official newspaper of the ILWU, Vol 66, No 6, apple pies; each was decorated with an June 2008 American flag and a ‘thank you’ message. See www.ilwu.org for more information.

 | The Maritimes | July 2008 www.munz.org.nz INTERNATIONAL NEWS

“We believe that such lethal weapons in an already volatile situation could have been used against the people”

Photo credit Durban Photographer Clinton Wyness Licensed by http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/2.0/Attribution-Noncommercial-Share Alike 2.0 Generic “Ship of death” turned back by South African dockers

South African dockworkers recently The International Transport Workers “The workers thought it unconscionable turned around a shipment of weapons to Federation applauded the action taken by to handle goods that were destined for the the Mugabe regime in Zimbabwe in a soli- dockers and truckers and called on trans- Mugabe regime, to be used against ordi- darity action that received global support. port unions in the southern African region nary working people and the democracy The China-flagged An Yue Jiang was due to remain vigilant and to stand firm. movement. But for this stand, these arms to dock in South Africa in April 2008 but Both SATAWU and the Maritime Union of would be in Zimbabwe now.” port workers and truckers represented by New Zealand are affiliates of the ITF. “History shows that the rights to free the ITF-affiliated South African Transport The ITF – which tracked the fugitive ship speech and to organise in unions, although and Allied Workers’ Union (SATAWU), – rubbished claims by the Zimbabwe guaranteed by international law, are refused to unload and transport its cargo Government that it was in possession of among the first to go when democracy is of arms. the arms. subverted or overthrown. After being turned away from South The South African dockworkers were of- Blocking the arms at the port was a sig- African ports, the An Yue Jiang attempted fered support and congratulations by the nificant act of solidarity with Zimbabwe’s to deliver its cargo in other African ports Maritime Union of New Zealand and the working people and an act that would but returned home after unloading a cargo New Zealand Council of Trade Unions. have the support of many people around of building materials in Luanda, Angola. In a letter to SATAWU, MUNZ General the world.” The ship is believed to have sailed after Secretary Trevor Hanson wrote: The blockade of the shipment was caused refuelling and taking on provisions. Trade “The Maritime Union of New Zealand by serious human rights abuses in Zim- unionists, including members of the An- wishes to congratulate the actions of babwe, where opposition groups to the golan port workers’ union, maintained a SATAWU dockworker members at the Government of President Robert Mugabe watch on the ship. Durban Container Terminal and your road have been subject to violence, torture and SATAWU General Secretary Randall freight members in their action refusing murder. Howard declared “Operation Return to to unload or handle an arms shipment for The Zimbabwe Congress of Trade Unions Beijing” successful. Zimbabwe. has been a leading force in opposition to “Should SATAWU not have acted we The actions of your members and your the Government. believe that such lethal weapons in an union are courageous and are the correct Former ZCTU leader Morgan Tsvangirai already volatile situation could have been political decision in this difficult situation. was the leading opposition candidate for used against the people to impose an Your example of solidarity towards the the Movement for Democratic Change and undemocratic outcome underpinned by workers and people of Zimbabwe has the claimed victory in elections held earlier in violence and intimidation.” full support of maritime workers in New the year, but the current Government has “We will not hesitate to act in any future Zealand.” ordered a new runoff election to be held situations where democracy, social and CTU President Helen Kelly said the stand in June. economic rights are undermined as a revo- of the South African dockworkers shows lutionary trade union movement,” he said. the crucial role unions play internationally in protecting human rights.

www.munz.org.nz The Maritimes | July 2008 |  CTU

The last nine years have seen real progress for workers, through things like cheaper Election doctors visits and prescriptions, state housing income-related rentals, 20 hours free early childhood education, Working important for Families tax credits, the rebuilding of key public services and repurchase of national assets like the railways, Kiwi Saver for workers superannuation support, an extra week's annual leave, 14 weeks paid parental leave, by Helen Kelly, CTU President time and a half for working on public holidays. This year's election is an important one for This progress needs to continue. you and all Kiwi workers. It will decide The CTU isn't affiliated to any political what sort of change New Zealand workers party and we will work with anyone that can expect over the next few years. supports our goals, but we also weren't Unions campaign and win on the issues born yesterday; we know the difference that matter to working people. In this a government can make to the lives of election, the Council of Trade Unions is working people. running a strong campaign to inform you Take the minimum wage for example what's at stake for workers in '08. – up just 87 cents in National's nine years, The CTU's election campaign will focus and up $5 under nine years of Labour led on three key themes: work rights, stronger governments. public services and higher wages. National has been guarded on their future The CTU wants to know where all political plans for work rights, saying things won't parties stand on all three. change much. More importantly, we want to know what But last year they admitted that under a they plan to do about them in the future. National Government employers would The last 20 years has seen considerable have the right to dismiss workers for any changes in New Zealand politics that have reason at all in the first 90 days, workers had a big impact on Kiwi workers and could be forced to sell their fourth week their families. of annual leave, employers could force Workers know that governments can make workers on to individual agreements, ACC a big difference to their working lives, and would be privatised, holiday pay could be we expect a government that will support cut and union rights would be reduced. working people and their families and So there is a lot at stake for workers this stand up for people like us. election. Make sure you and your friends and family are enrolled to vote, and get involved in the campaign that MUNZ and other unions through the CTU are running this year.

10 | The Maritimes | July 2008 www.munz.org.nz ELECTION We want your stuff.

The Maritimes needs your photos, letters, reports, news, views and opinions. It’s your magazine! If there is something you’d like to see in the Maritimes, send it to the Editor:

Mail PO Box 27004, Wellington, New Zealand Email [email protected] Enrol to vote Fax (09) 9251125

Get ready and vote. It’s as easy as 123. If you don’t have an EasyVote card you This year is election year – where you get can still vote. the chance to have your say on who runs On election day, there will be a polling the country. place near you. You can vote in advance Voting is easy. Just follow these three steps. if you can’t get to a polling place in your You must enrol if you: electorate on election day. • Are a New Zealand citizen or permanent You will need to give a reason why you’re resident; and voting in advance. • Are 18 or older; and Election staff will be available to help if Are you • Have lived here continuously for at least you need it or you can take a friend or one year. relation along with you. up to date? Enrolling is easy. Just fill in an enrolment You have two votes form. Your two votes help decide who represents Get one now by: us in Parliament. If you are not receiving the • Freephoning 0800 36 76 56 Each voter has a party vote and an Maritimes in the mail, then • Freetexting your name and address to electorate vote. you are not on the union 3676 Your party vote helps decide how many • Visiting www.elections.org.nz or www. seats each party gets. mailing list for any union ivotenz.org.nz The more party votes a party gets, the mail! • Visiting any PostShop more MPs it will have in Parliament. Every Don’t leave it to the last minute, enrol now voter has the same selection of parties to All financial members and and it will make voting easier when choose from. members of the Veterans’ election day arrives. Your electorate vote helps decide who If you move house once you’re enrolled, becomes your local MP. The candidate Association should receive you need to update your enrolment de- who gets the most votes wins the seat. tails. a copy of the Maritimes in Take your EasyVote Card with you when Spread the word. Tell your friends and the mail. you vote. It will make voting easier. family how easy it is to get ready and vote. You will get an EasyVote card and infor- mation pack in the mail if you enrol in For voting and enrolling information in other languages go If not, then contact your time (by a month before election day). to www.elections.org.nz branch and Maritime Union membership PO Box 27004 Wellington with your new address

www.munz.org.nz The Maritimes | July 2008 | 11 CAFCA

Horton says he believes the P4 is a back door free trade and investment agreement with the United States. “Control of land ownership, ACC, Fishing quotas, Pharmac – all these things could be up for grabs.” Free trade influences who own New Zea- land, says Horton. “This has a big impact on jobs. Just look at manufacturing. The so-called ‘smart economy’ is just bullshit. What we’ve got is a race to the bottom where capital (business) moves on to the lowest common denominator.”

Keep Our Port Public CAFCA was a moving force behind the setting up of Keep Our Port Public, the campaign to keep the port of Lyttelton in public hands following an attempt to sell it off to an overseas corporation in 2006. Both the Maritime Union and Rail and Maritime Transport Union are support- ers of the campaign, as well as the Greens CAFCA organizer Murray Horton (in denim jacket) on the tug Canterbury at Port of Lyttelton at the July 2007 launch of and the Alliance Party. Local Labour and CAFCA’s Public Ownership Pledge (photo by Paul Corliss) Progressive MPs also spoke out against the proposed sale. “The Christchurch City Council wanted to flog it off to Hutchison Port Holdings New Zealand: Not for sale (HPH.)” Horton says the local ownership of the Interview with Murray Horton of CAFCA port means that dividends are returned to the local community who are the owners, by Victor Billot “The great majority of foreign ‘investment’ decisions affecting the port would be made is actually a takeover. Look at the railways. locally, and a local workforce would be What is CAFCA? No investment there. They were asset- retained. “CAFCA doesn’t fly a flag for New The Campaign against Foreign Control stripped and run into the ground.” Zealand capitalism – we don’t support of Aotearoa (CAFCA) has a history of as- Horton says that TNCs (Trans National corporatization.” sociation with maritime workers through Corporations) make massive profit out the former Seafarers’ Union, and has more of New Zealand, which is then exported overseas. To check out CAFCA online, see recently been an outspoken advocate of http://canterbury.cyberplace.org.nz/community/CAFCA/ “In the decade to 2006, TNCs made $50.3 causes such as public ownership of ports or visit their blog at and rail. billion profit from New Zealand, and only http://www.watchblogaotearoa.blogspot.com/ The Maritimes spoke to organizer Murray 32% of that was reinvested. The money Horton recently to find out more about leaves the country.” The Keep Our Port Public website is at http://www.keepourportpublic.org what the group stands for. He says that foreign investment does not CAFCA is a Christchurch-based New Zea- guarantee jobs. land organization that has existed since the “There are a number of myths around, that 1970s, says Horton. we ‘need’ their money, that they ‘create’ “We aim to oppose and expose foreign jobs and that we need to sell off assets to Public ownership control of New Zealand. We’re not inter- pay off debt. In 1984 total debt was $16 ested in immigration. Please don’t confuse billion. By 2006 we had $182 billion debt, campaign us with New Zealand First. CAFCA con- after all the asset sales.” centrates on economic issues.” This issue of the Maritimes Free trade includes two postcards from What kind of foreign control? CAFCA sees free trade deals as part of the CAFCA. I ask Horton, “What exactly is the problem problem. These can be sent to local with foreign control?” Horton says that free trade “favours the politicians to let them know if “One is the word control. Are we renters powerful.” He says that since the Roger you disagree with privatization or owners?” he answers. Douglas era, politicians have rushed head- long into a pure free market system. and sell offs of New Zealand “Global corporations can’t take a country assets. away. But they can buy it out and milk it Most of the free trade agreements, includ- ing the new P4 agreement of Pacific Rim One is freepost and can be sent as a landlord.” to you local MP c/o Parliament Without ownership of key assets, he be- countries, are part of a global free invest- lieves New Zealand is no longer in control ment agreement. Buildings, Wellington. of its own destiny. “The equivalent in the 1990s, the MAI (Mul- The other requires a stamp tilateral Agreement on Investments) was and can be sent to a local defeated by the people of this country.” parliamentary candidate.

12 | The Maritimes | July 2008 www.munz.org.nz BRANCH CONTACTS

Whangarei Mobile: 021 855121 WISF Fund Fax: 09 459 4972 Address: PO Box 397, Whangarei Email: [email protected] Director moves on Auckland Seafarers Having been associated with the Water- Phone: 09 3032 562 Fax: 09 3790 766 front Industry Superannuation Fund for Mobile: 021 326261 over 22 years, Susan Leuchars formally Address: PO Box 1840, Auckland completed her duties as Fund Director on Email: [email protected] 11 April 2008. Auckland Local 13 To assist in the smooth hand over of duties Phone: 09 3034 652 to her replacement, Susan continued in an Fax: 09 3096 851 advisory role until 23 May. Mobile: 021 760887 Address: PO Box 2645, Auckland At the board of trustees meeting held on Email: [email protected] ITF co-ordinator Grahame McLaren 6 May 2008, WISF chairman David Young took the opportunity of thanking Susan Mount Maunganui for her professionalism and competence Phone: 07 5755 668 Fax: 07 5759 043 in managing the affairs of the fund over Mobile: 0274 782308 that period. Mr Young also expressed his Address: PO Box 5121, Mt. Maunganui Matariki personal appreciation for the assistance Email: [email protected]

and counsel Susan had given him in his Gisborne Local 38 Forest role as Chairman. Mobile: 025 6499697 Susan had overseen many changes to the Address: 5 Murphy Road,Gisborne by Grahame McLaren Waterfront Industry Superannuation Fund, Email: [email protected] ITF co-ordinator some of which have been enforced through New Plymouth Tauranga branch officials and ITF inspec- legislation and other changes brought Mobile: 021 479269 about by the mutual desire of employer Address: PO Box 659, New Plymouth tors Eddie Cook and Peter Harvey visited Email: [email protected] the Matariki Forest in May after learning and union trustees. of problems with a crew member getting The Board of Trustees on behalf of mem- Napier some compassionate leave. bers and beneficiaries expressed their Phone/Fax: 06 8358 622 gratitude to Susan and wished her well in Mobile: 027 6175441 They met with the Chief Officer of the ves- Address: PO Box 70, Napier sel who needed to travel home to attend her future endeavours. Email: [email protected] his mother’s funeral. Wellington Seafarers The Captain of the Matariki Forest rang Phone: 04 3859 288 the owner in Japan, who at first was TS Vindicatrix Fax: 04 3848 766 reluctant to agree with sending the Chief Mobile: 021 364649 Officer home to the Philippines. Address: PO Box 27004, Wellington “Down Under Email: [email protected] The situation was outlined to the owner, along with the problems that would occur Wellington Waterfront if it was not resolved. Reunion” 2008 Phone: 04 8017 619 Fax: 04 3848 766 The officials contacted the agent as well Invitations are out for the 8th annual TS Mobile: 021 606379 and explained the problem to him. At first Vindicatrix “down under Reunion” to be Address: PO Box 2773, Wellington he wouldn’t agree to anything at all, but Email: [email protected] held in Christchurch from 31 October to 2 was finally convinced that the problem November 2008. Wellington Stores and Warehouse Local 21 would not go away and the Chief Officer The Vindicatrix Association (South Island Phone: 04 3859 520 ought to be sent home as soon as possible. Fax: 04 3848 766 New Zealand) are hosting the event which The Chief Officer had finished his time Address: PO Box 27004, Wellington is to be held at the Woolston Club in South eight months and three days and looked Christchurch. Nelson really bad after what had happened at A full programme over the three days Fax: 03 5472104 home. Mobile: 027 6222691 includes a buffet dinner, harbour cruise, The ITF sorted out his wages and paper- Address: PO Box 5016, Nelson dancing, entertainment and bowling. Email: [email protected] work and arrangements were made to fly For more information please contact: him home. Harry Pemberton, Treasurer Lyttelton Local 43 The officer was dropped off at the airport, 15 Carmana Gardens Phone: 03 3288 306 Rangiora Fax: 03 3288 798 he got one month’s pay that was owing Mobile: 0274 329620 to him and will receive the rest from the North Canterbury Address: PO Box 29, Lyttelton Philippines when he gets home, which he New Zealand Email: [email protected] Email: [email protected] agreed to and is company policy. Timaru The Captain did offer a solution that the Phone/Fax: 03 6843 364 other officers would cover his shifts until Mobile: 021 2991091 his relief came on board so he could go Address: PO Box 813, Timaru home. Errata – Interport Port Chalmers Dunedin Local 10 The Captain and all the crew were very Phone: 03 4728 052 helpful and the Chief Officer was very In the last edition of the Maritimes, we Fax: 03 4727 492 happy and relieved, according to Eddie printed a wrong result for the Interport Mobile: 0274 377601 Address: PO Box 44, Port Chalmers and Peter, who left their ITF contact details 2008 fishing in the Kahawai section – Tony Email: [email protected] in case of any future problems. Townsend of Timaru came first with a Overall a good result for everyone in- 2.6kg catch followed by Fred Salelea with Bluff Phone/Fax: 03 2128 189 volved. a 2.4kg catch. Mobile: 027 4475317 Address: PO Box 5, Bluff Email: [email protected] www.munz.org.nz The Maritimes | July 2008 | 13 MUA CONFERENCE 2008 Maritime Union of New Zealand address to 2008 MUA Conference

ment, there has been a reluctance to extend our current employment legislation. We have recently had some success on the industrial front in dealing with this situa- tion however.

Port of Napier dispute These events led to the most serious attack yet late last year. This situation was the Port of Napier dispute. In October 2007 we received warning that the Port of Napier was going to contract out all stevedoring work in their container terminal to yellow union company ISO. Essentially the Port Company was going to use contracting out as the method to deunionize their port. Work would be funnelled towards the scab stevedore, thereby starving out unionized stevedores. This situation, if permitted, would have been the death knell for unionized ste- vedoring in New Zealand, as other port companies were no doubt watching devel- opments closely. By Trevor Hanson Our union has never overcome some of the The Maritime Union immediately started General Secretary effects of deregulation. organizing a national response. The introduction of port reform in the Our national officials visited the port and Friends and comrades, 1980s was promoted as a modernization of its workers and entered into talks with the Firstly, on behalf of the Maritime Union of ports which would benefit workers as well Port Company. New Zealand and its membership, thank as profits. We contacted Paddy Crumlin in his you for the opportunity to have so many Of course, it was simply part of the right- capacity of Secretary of the MUA and ITF of our members present at this truly inter- wing economic agenda that then domi- Dockworkers’ Chairman, along with ITF national conference. nated both major parties. Seafarers’ Secretary Steve Cotton and ITF Since the last Maritime Union of Australia One of the major impacts of the 1991 Dockworkers’ Secretary Frank Leys. conference, your union has seen many Employment Contracts Act was the reg- Their work in the international arena was changes. istration of company unions or “yellow to be the vital link in our victory in this The introduction of the Howard industrial unions”. dispute, along with the intervention of the legislation meant all Australian Unions These organizations are legally correct but German unions with maritime connections faced the greatest threat of a generation. do not operate as unions in any meaning- through the ITF. The MUA played a central role in taking ful way. Closer to home, the New Zealand Coun- on the Howard Government. Our industrial battle with companies oper- cil of Trades Union passed a unanimous The dedicated union campaign in the 2007 ating yellow unions has been ongoing for resolution of support. Australian election rolled the Howard over a decade, leading to major industrial We set up lines of communication for Government and their anti-union indus- conflict in most New Zealand ports. shipping companies, many of whom were trial legislation. The death of Christine Clark, a community concerned at the lack of notification from This was a major achievement and all supporter on a picket in Lyttelton in 1999, the Port Company of their plans, and the Australian workers must reflect with pride shortly after the defeat of the National resulting disruption to their own interests. on the fact you won the battle. Government, was a tragic end to the On 6 December the Maritime Union and However, as you will understand, the job decade in which the working class of New the Rail and Maritime Transport Union is not finished yet. Zealand received an economic and social were injuncted to stop us placing a picket After the return of Labour-led coalition battering. at the Port of Napier. Government in New Zealand in 1999, we This situation was made worse by casuali- The Company was convinced we were go- have had to battle for nine years in order zation, extreme competition and deregula- ing to place a picket on 10 December. to roll back the worst excesses of the Em- tion in the maritime industry. The RMTU was also under threat of ployment Contracts Act. The Maritime Union has pursued indus- injunction because they were refusing to The ECA was our equivalent of Work- trial and political strategies to combat this train ISO employees. Choices, introduced by a National Govern- situation, and has also used community The court ruled against the Napier Port ment in 1991. Its effects are still being felt campaigning to a limited degree. Company because the union had done to this day, most strongly in the high level We have advocated the tightening up of the nothing wrong, but the judges ruling al- of casualization and low wages in the New law on yellow unions but after the initial lowed the Port Company to go back to the Zealand economy. reforming zeal of the 1999 Labour Govern- court, when and if we did.

14 | The Maritimes | July 2008 www.munz.org.nz MUA CONFERENCE 2008

As planned we placed our pickets on Sat- However, due to our negotiations, ship- There have been a number of incremental urday 17 December. Due to the injunctions, pers agreed that they only wanted union policies that have benefited workers in a heavy police presence and historical labour on their ships. They had no interest New Zealand. damages claims that are hanging over our in becoming embroiled in a dispute that Yet the fact remains that inequality in heads, we did not engage in hard pickets had no benefit for them. wealth has increased in New Zealand and instead maintained a light picket. The “Kakapo Chief” situation was solved and the wage difference between our two We were joined by four rank and file and when the owners were contacted by MUA countries has continued to widen. one official from the Maritime Union of official Rick Newlyn, and took the same The effect of a new National Government Australia, who flew in at short notice. position as other shippers. in this mix would be disastrous. Over the next few days, Dave Schleibs, As Garry Parsloe noted at the time, the Port The National Party have learned from Joe Deakin, Joe Carr, Paul Petersen and of Napier was rapidly becoming an unu- previous mistakes. Steve Husband, were a constant part of the sual kind of port – a port with no ships. Their new leader John Key has been clever picket, doing media interviews, and boost- After final discussions with the Port Com- enough to present a moderate face and ing up the morale of our members. pany, a solution was reached on Friday 21 only go on the attack on issues like tax Also we had a visit later in the week from December. cuts when there has been a failure to build Mick Canning, who dropped off a solidar- The port company would allow shippers a strong political case pointing out the ity flag from the WA branch of the MUA coming into the Port of Napier to choose effects of tax cuts on public services and and spent some time on the picket. their stevedore. wealth distribution. We can say that the MUA was well and The port company would continue to pro- Despite their current difficulties, my view truly represented by this delegation who mote ISO as their preferred scab stevedore is that Helen Clark will be returned as more than lived up to the great traditions but this meant little as shippers chose not Prime Minister for a historic fourth term of of your Union. to use this stevedore. the Labour Government. The RMTU refused to cross our picket The union agreed to tidy up some work However this will require coalition part- until they were forced by injunction to do practices around the port to get it over the ners, and some strong support from the so. They were escorted through the picket line. Officials went down to the picket line union movement. line and thanked for their stand. around 3pm to break the good news. The attempt to “divide and rule” by the Thus concluded the Port of Napier dispute. Offshore company was proving to be a failure. In my experience, this was one of the finest The close relationship between our two The port company was probably begin- examples of international solidarity that unions in the seafaring sector continues ning to experience some concerns at this the maritime industry has seen. to grow and strengthen in the offshore stage that their little anti-union operation We can say this result went beyond the industry. was leading to unexpected consequences. retention of union jobs in a medium-sized The reality in our offshore industries is We ran a strong community-focussed cam- New Zealand port. that we act as one, in what I see as a suc- paign too, learning from your example. It also sent a strong message that the cess story of international unionism. The dispute became a high profile local maritime workers are well-organized and Currently our offshore work within New event and we used the media and public- have strong international links that we can Zealand waters is increasing. ity to full effect, including an email cam- call upon. [continued next page] paign that was set up for us by London- On behalf of the Maritime Union of New based organization Labourstart. Zealand, and especially the members of The turning point in the dispute came late our Napier Branch, we thank the MUA for on the evening of Wednesday 19 December. their timely and generous help. MUA Secretary Paddy Crumlin had ex- The solidarity donations that came from “The Napier plained our situation to the international MUA branches went towards assisting our which had led to solidarity actions by casuals who stood firm for the entire dis- dispute global transport unions. pute, despite the pressure of coming up to This support meant pressure coming on Christmas and New Year with the prospect demonstrated shipping companies from international of unemployment. transport unions not to work in the port. This dispute demonstrated the long-term the long term The first victory was when the Hapag- solidarity between our two unions through Lloyd vessel “Canberra Express” left the the Trans Tasman Federation. solidarity Port of Napier for Melbourne unworked. The Master of the ship had earlier request- Political situation ed tugs and lines as the owners wanted the between our All unions in New Zealand are conscious vessel to leave the port. that the 2008 election in New Zealand is We understand the CEO of the Port of two unions crucial for workers. Napier refused to let the vessel go as he The current political situation sees the was so desperate to get it worked by scab through the conservative opposition National leading labour. At this stage, further union support the Labour Government in polls. was building. Third parties occupy an important role in Trans Tasman The CTU President Helen Kelly came to our MMP proportional voting system and Napier to assist the mediation process. the Green Party has maintained steady Federation” The arrogance of the Port Company was support. fast dissolving and they were hanging Despite a strong upturn in commodity pric- their hat on a vessel called the “Kakapo es with our dairy industry, there is every Chief”, due to arrive on Friday. sign that we face an economic slowdown, Their plan was to work the ship with scab with problems including an over-inflated labour and try and provoke a confrontation. housing market and excessive debt. We had heard through the grapevine that The small recovery we have seen in wage a substantial contingent of riot police had rates is due to a recently buoyant economy been lined up for such an event. and modest rises in the minimum wage. www.munz.org.nz The Maritimes | July 2008 | 15 MUA CONFERENCE 2008

[continued from previous page] When foreign crews approached our union Industrial events The Southern Basin is expected to be a and the ITF for assistance, we mounted The Ports of Auckland saw a major three- major area of offshore oil exploration with ongoing pressure which resulted in guar- day stoppage in late 2007. One of our positive implications for our seafarers and antees that foreign crews will be paid New largest and strongest branches Local 13 en- southern ports. Zealand minimum rates rising over the gaged the port company here on wages and The challenge to our two unions will be next few years. conditions. Negotiations are continuing. our ability to provide sufficient trained Our intervention has also ensured that The major industrial dispute of the last crews. The lack of training and induction standards and conditions in the industry several years would be the 2006 Progres- of younger seafarers has been a major is- have been raised, and the authorities are sive Dispute where this Australian-based sue in New Zealand. taking a more active role in enforcing the transnational engaged in a heavy hitting rules and regulations that were previously industrial battle with the National Distri- Coastal shipping ignored by rogue operators. bution Union. Coastal Shipping in New Zealand has been We note the ITF have recently highlighted Progressive own some major supermarket an ongoing struggle since 1994 saw deregu- the area of fishing crews and are cam- chains in New Zealand. lation in New Zealand coastal shipping. paigning on this issue. Many workers in the service sector earn There has been a continual decline in New just over the NZ minimum wage which Zealand owned and operated coastal ship- Port ownership has recently increased to $12 per hour. ping and crews until recently when we The structure of the New Zealand port The Progressive dispute saw a great deal seem to have stabilized. industry continues to undermine the ef- of support from Australian unions (nota- The past three years have seen good agree- fectiveness of our economy. bly the MUA) which had a major impact in ments, with good increases in remunera- Most New Zealand ports are owned getting a good result here for the workers. tion and conditions being negotiated. through local government, with some a Australian-owned multinationals seem to There has finally been a recognition by the mix of private and public ownership. be an ongoing theme in New Zealand. coastal shippers of the need for trainees, The structural problem is the large number The Service and Food Workers’ Union which has seen the employment of 20-30 of relatively small ports, and the buzzword engaged with Spotless in 2007, and suc- new trainees in the industry. on the lips of industry pundits has been ceeded in pushing up wages for laundry Both the Maritime Union and the New “rationalization.” and cleaning workers. Zealand shipping industry have pressed Some ports will become small feeder ports Earlier this year the NDU led industrial the Government on various methods to and others will become hub ports. action at Bunnings, which is owned by rebuild coastal shipping. The danger is this process being left to Australia’s richest company, Wesfarmers. Coastal shipping has really been the poor the usual mix of market forces, that is the Bunnings New Zealand workers were cousin as far as transport modes go. self-interest of private investors, the divide starting on $12.00 an hour, while their co- One can only wonder as our transport sys- and rule appoach of the shipping compa- workers in Australia start on a union rate tem has moved into road-based logistics at nies, and the right-wing bureaucrats who of NZ$18.44 an hour, which will increase a time when environmental and peak oil seem to hold the real power in many local to NZ$19 an hour in July. issues are reaching crisis point. government operations. So the low-wage issue is a key focus for In the last few years, we have seen several We could see a bad result here. A com- unions in New Zealand. shipping reviews based around the Gov- petitive frenzy will lead to duplication of The other major development on the New ernment’s transport strategy – which is an infrastructure, and a protracted and dam- Zealand union front is a three-way amal- improvement on the 1990s when there was aging battle for supremacy, all of which gamation of the Service and Food Workers’ no strategy. endangers the unity of maritime workers. Union, National Distribution Union and The most recent Minister of Transport An- The obvious answer lies in a process where UNITE Union. nette King seems to have a stronger under- the state leads and negotiates the next The New Zealand Council of Trade Unions standing and interest in our industry. stage of development. held its biennial Conference in October The unsustainable oil-based transport sys- An ownership role by the Government 2007, which saw the retirement of CTU tem is moving into a period of decline and is one possibility. Obviously some ports President Ross Wilson and the election of fuel-efficient modes such as shipping and will become hubs and others will become Helen Kelly into this position. rail will soon start to regenerate. feeder ports, and it is best this process is Helen has already proved herself with her Intelligent investment and forward plan- managed to minimize the disruption. active role in our Napier dispute and we ning by the state in developing these Destructive wars between port companies, believe she will providing strong leader- modes is vital. such as we see between Auckland and Tau- ship to the New Zealand union movement The current New Zealand InterIsland ferry ranga, benefit no-one except the shipping at a crucial time. fleet on the Cook Strait continues to be a companies who squeeze margins to unsus- major employer in our industry, with 480 tainable levels that harm the industry. Free trade union members. In the meantime, an issue that continues to New Zealand is about to embark on an This is a competitive trade with two opera- raise its head is privatization of ports and unprecedented free trade deal with China. tors Toll and Strait each running three the involvement of global operators. This agreement has been aggressively pur- vessels. After initial skirmishes with both An attempted public-private deal between sued by the Labour Government in order companies, the union has comparable the Port of Lyttelton and Hutchinson to secure tariff-free entry for our agricul- agreements with both companies. Whampoa in 2006 would have seen local tural products. Other areas that we have been active in control of the port vanish. The Maritime Union has continued to over the past three years have included the Due to a last minute investment by com- speak out on our concerns with free trade, fishing industry, which reached a low in petitor Port of Otago and a high profile including the possibility of short-term, terms of employment conditions and treat- community campaign against the sale, the casual labour being imported that will ment of crews. deal fell through. undermine wages and conditions. The Maritime Union, while not represent- However, concerns have been raised this To be frank, we are disappointed with the ing fishing crews, became involved because year that the Christchurch City Council, lack of critical analysis or even interest that no one else was taking care of this area. who are majority owners of the Port of has come from the union movement on The effects of what was going on in the Lyttelton, are quietly extending their free trade. fishing industry threatened to spill over shareholding as a precursor to another into the wider maritime industry. privatization drive. 16 | The Maritimes | July 2008 www.munz.org.nz MUA CONFERENCE 2008

MUNZ delegates at the MUA National Conference, standing from left: National President Phil Adams, Richard Rankin (Tauranga), Craig Harrison (Local 13), Carl Findlay (Local 13), General Secretary Trevor Hanson, Joe Fleetwood (Wellington Seafarers), National Vice-President Garry Parsloe, Terry Ryan (Veterans), Henry NeeNee (Local 13), sitting from left: Peter Davis (Auckland Seafarers), Ray Fife (Bluff), Communications Officer Victor Billot, Mike Clarke (Wellington Seafarers), Assistant General Secretary Russell Mayn

The deals themselves are conducted Conclusion Rapid developments in technology in our behind closed doors without any input To conclude, I would note that the issues industry will mean a growing level of outside the inner levels of government and that face unions here in Australia and in education, training and skills are required the bureaucracy. New Zealand are similar, although the mix by maritime workers. This is an issue where the Maritime Union of those issues are different. Perhaps the greatest challenge will be to are on a different page from the Govern- Politically, we face a major battle to return maintain our core union values of solidar- ment. Both Labour and National are work- a government that will listen to the con- ity and the collective good in the face of ing together to promote free trade deals cerns of workers. a social environment where short term and we believe that this is a bad sign. Industrially, the key problems for New thinking and individual self-interest are Political opposition has been limited, Zealand are low wages and casualization, dominant. largely coming from smaller parties such which work together to blight the lives of Maritime workers have always been at the as the Greens and Alliance, and a few the most vulnerable workers. forefront of fighting for workers rights, small pressure groups. In the maritime industry, we see strong internationalism and solidarity. We note there has been much stronger re- conditions in the offshore and a potential This conference itself shows the strength sistance and debate over free trade issues turnaround in coastal shipping. and power of those concepts. in Australia. Yellow unions and the failures of a self- Over the years the support which we have The Maritime Union will continue to destructively competitive and deregulated received from our Australian comrades ask hard questions, and we are lobbying port industry are the two big challenges on has been consistent, immediate and gener- politicians and educating our membership, the waterfront. ous. but without the wider public engagement To look into the future, I would make some The leadership role the Maritime Union of and debate about this issue it is likely that general predictions. Australia has played in the wider union further free trade deals will be signed. There will be increasing pressure for movement is a major one and we are The sad fact is that virtually no one under- globalized capitalism to use free trade, and proud to share such close historical ties stands the long term implications that can cross-border labour, to attack wages and with you. come with these free trade deals. conditions. The relationship between our two unions Discussion is limited to the business pages Cheap fossil fuels are running out, which is a strong one and will continue to be a where free trade is still the holy grail for will have major implications for us all. strong one. the corporate elite. While the impact on society of “peak oil” The Maritime Union of New Zealand once Whether economic integration with coun- will be disruptive and negative, it may again brings to you our fraternal greetings tries such as China will be good for future mean substantial growth in the maritime and best wishes to our brothers and sisters generations is yet to be seen. industry. of a great union, the Maritime Union of As before, we know that it will be the This will be based on the energy efficiency Australia. working class who bear the brunt when of shipping, and the growth in offshore things go wrong. work in oil and gas fields in our waters. www.munz.org.nz The Maritimes | July 2008 | 17 MINING & MARITIME CONFERENCE

At the MUA National Conference, from left: MUNZ National Vice President Garry Parsloe, RMT (UK) National Secretary Steve Todd, RMT (UK) General Secretary Bob Crow, MUNZ Auckland Seafarers Vice President John O’Neill

Mining and Maritime Conference by Garry Parsloe Sydney Draft Declaration: Report Back National Vice President Maritime Union of New Think Globally and Act Locally Zealand We are initiating a work plan going forward involving all key unions in the Introduction global supply chains to assist each other in For a full five days, 6-11 April 2008, some protecting workers’ rights to organise and twenty eight officials and delegates of We are trade union leaders and rank and collectively bargain and to help those who MUNZ attended the Maritime Union of file members representing in excess of five seek our assistance to achieve basic work- Australia Conference. million workers in the mining, maritime, ers and human rights. This was a most positive and informative manufacturing, road and rail transport, energy and construction industries. Conference which I am sure every member Fighting violence against workers of MUNZ would have taken something We are from Australia, New Zealand, Ger- positive out of. many, South Africa, USA, Japan, England, Violence and intimidation against work- The following week on Monday 14 April Switzerland, East Timor, Canada, Vanuatu, ers and trade union leaders have escalated and Tuesday 15 April 2008, National China, United Kingdom, Denmark, Bel- with most recent attacks on workers in Assistant Secretary Russell Mayn, Craig gium, Papua New Guinea and Sweden. Burma, Mexico, India, Zimbabwe, Colom- Harrison of Local 13, Peter Davis of the We, having gathered in Sydney Australia bia, Peru, Iran, Guatemala, Philippines, Auckland Seafarers Branch and myself all on 14 and 15 April 2008 to consider the Chile and many others and the prosecu- attended the Mining and Maritime Confer- previous Newcastle and Long Beach Dec- tion of union leaders in pursuit of workers’ ence at the Sydney Conference Centre. larations and to develop a positive plan rights in Australia and around the world. There was a massive turnout of interna- of action in response to globalisation, to We condemn these attacks and we are tional union leaders and rank and file del- respond to changes in the global financial building global solidarity to progress the egates, who participated in all the sessions system and to the impacts on workers in international trade union response to these and panel discussions. response to climate change. atrocities. It was a great full-on two days with We have delivered on previous commit- We commit to expose these Multi National everyone getting involved and making a ments to consolidate Regional Committees Corporations (MNCs) and their crimes contribution. and have created education programs against individual workers and their The conference concluded with the “Syd- through the DITSELA project to educate unions. ney Draft Declaration” which encapsu- rank and file members. We pledge our support for the people of lates the findings from the conference as The International Committee meets on a Western Sahara to be given an opportunity follows: regular and systematic basis and we have for self-determination through a referen- now grown to eight sponsoring unions dum as outlined by the United Nations who continue to fund and organise this Security Council Resolution. network and progress agreed actions.

18 | The Maritimes | July 2008 www.munz.org.nz MINING & MARITIME CONFERENCE

Women We acknowledge the crucial participation of women and we declare that we will: • Increase the numbers of women at the next Mining and Maritime Conference to reach or exceed the 10% participation target. • We will share the contact details of the responsible women’s officers of all affili- ated unions so we may convene a telecon- ference immediately to forge a network and work towards our global initiative and in particular concerns of women. • We will condemn any harassment, bul- lying or violence towards women in all areas and use our networks to aid in this agenda.

Action Plan Having deliberated and extensively dis- cussed how we build on our commitment to counter the impact of MNCs and capital globalisation on our members and our families and the very fabric of our union global solidarity, we are committed to a At the MUA National Conference, from left: MUNZ National Vice President Garry Parsloe with FNV Bondgenoten program of action and activism based on (Netherlands trade union) delegate Neik Stam effective national and international trade union organisation. • Continue to publish the Global Links The Mining and Maritime Network now We are specifically committed to: Newsletter and develop web-based tools has the direction and commitment from • Working together nationally, regionally to further this initiative. all the partners in Mining and Maritime and globally in our sectors in ways that • Designate staff or officers who will sectors to mobilise against the power and leverage our representation of work- serve as contact points for their respective ownership of MNC’s and private global ers across the supply chain in order to unions and who will engage in ongoing equity funds. improve our members’ contracts, organ- communication, coordination and collabo- We are committed to establish and further ize new members and benefit all workers ration with other participating unions to enhance regional committees where they through effective communication and further the aims of this initiative. currently apply and empower them to organisation. • Engage with and involve Global Union develop other regional committees where • Use the popular education pamphlets Federations - particularly ICEM, ITF and they currently do not exist. launched at this conference to educate our IMF together with the ITUC - in develop- members about this initiative and about ing this and other international effective Conclusion organising initiatives. the importance of solidarity among work- The Newcastle Declaration brought the • Engage with other trade union network- ers and unions along the supply chain. chain to the table, the Long Beach Declara- ing and organising initiatives to ensure • Campaign jointly to ensure key mining, tion added links to the chain and the Syd- maximum communication assisting organ- transport, energy and maritime companies ney Declaration will put that chain to the ising capacity within nations, regions and such as BHP, Xstrata, Maersk, Rio Tinto, test in defending workers rights globally internationally. Peabody, and Grupo Mexico respect trade by robust and decisive action where called • Continue to build on our work with and union and labour rights to organise and upon and necessary. involvement of women, youth and pen- bargain for decent work outcomes. As you can see by all the above this confer- sioners in building stronger and more rep- • Campaign jointly around key issues for ence has set us on course for continuing resentative organisations and campaigns. all workers including occupational health our achievements and further strengthen • Consideration be given to the plan- and safety standards and job security. and extend the chain of global links and ning and convening of a 4th Mining and • Include a shareholder component in solidarity. these campaigns through possible joint Maritime Seminar with the objective of actions at these key companies’ annual convening in 2010 in South Africa shareholders’ meetings, use of superan- • A detailed report back on the above Ac- nuation funds and other possible workers’ tion Plan will form an essential component capital to ensure labour values and rights of the next Global Solidarity Seminar. are recognised. • Build links with community, environ- To achieve this requires a strong commit- mental and other organizations in pursu- ment from the regional committees backed ing the aims of this initiative. by strong and militant unions and action • Learn from the experience of the Austral- wherever practical. ian unions’ world-renowned “Your Rights at Work Campaign” that ousted the brutally anti-worker Howard Government through the active engage- ment of labour and community political strategies and activism.

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In the evening, the Women’s Committee Welcome to Conference Dinner was held at the NSW Bowling Club, where we had a productive night meeting other delegates and were entertained with a lively auction.

Day 2, Tuesday 8 April Tuesday was another full day with regis- tration at 0800 before kick off at 0830 with MUA Deputy National Secretary Jim Tan- nock, who talked about financial member- ship and securing membership capability into the future. This was followed by MUA Associate National Secretary Mick Doleman, on growing the influence and power of the MUA nationally and internationally. Rick Newlyn then spoke on the importance of branch organization and integrating the union to protect the future. Next were international speakers, includ- ing Dave Heindel Secretary/Treasurer of the S.I.U. (the American equivalent of the old New Zealand Seafarers Union) and Assistant General Organizer of the International Longshore Association (ILA) John Baker, who told the delegates present about the struggles unions face in Ameri- MUA conference can society today. After lunch was the launch of the art exhibition and the book “The Charleston Five” – an insight into the jailing of five report members of the ILA last century. The afternoon was an optional tour of the Sydney wharves, followed by the Labor- fest launch at the Maritime Museum in By Wellington Seafarers President Mike Clark Day 1, Monday 7 April with Wellington Branch Secretary Joe Fleetwood the evening. At the Laborfest launch we On Monday 7 April, more than 130 in- enjoyed excerpts of a play commemorating ternational labour leaders from Europe, the 1996 Patricks dispute, and the unveil- In early April I was fortunate to attend the Africa, North America, South America and ing of the mural which once stood in the Maritime Union of Australia (MUA) con- the Pacific joined forces with 300 MUA old Sydney union rooms. ference in Australia, along with Maritime delegates, officers and staff for the MUA Union of New Zealand Wellington branch conference. Day 3, Wednesday 9 April members. We were given a warm Aboriginal wel- On Wednesday there was a 10am start due Trevor Hanson, Joe Fleetwood, Tony Mow- come to the country followed by a video, to registration and resolution workgroups. bray, Barry Millington, Marion Leslie, and and the opening of the conference. The rest of the morning was taken up with Mike Shakespeare, together with members ALP National Secretary Tim Gartnell various individual speakers on the subject from various other New Zealand ports, spoke on the Rudd Government’s plan for of working with other unions. attended the conference. Australia, followed by MUA’s National Among the speakers were ACTU official We arrived in Sydney on the morning Secretary Paddy Crumlin on organising Jeff Lawrence, AWU National Secretary of Saturday 5 April, where we were met nationally and internationally. The open- Paul Howes, who is one of the young- by MUA Sydney branch members and ing was followed by lunch and the launch est officials present at 28 years old, TWU whisked off to our hotels. Our hotel was of the Tas Bull auction. Federal Secretary Tony Sheldon, and Tony strategically positioned on the corner of After lunch, the speakers included General Maher of the CFMEU, who kept the del- Sussex and Liverpool Street in close prox- President CFMEU Mining and Energy egates alert with his lively and humourous imity to the union rooms. Tony Maher, Secretary Unions N.S.W. oratory skills. On Sunday all of the Wellington branch John Robertson and Paddy Crumlin, on Keynote speaker and Deputy Prime Minis- attended the one-day Women’s Conference working with Labor in power. ter the Honourable Julia Gillard delivered at the union rooms, where we received a International speakers included General an address on the government’s industrial warm welcome from the delegates. Secretary RMT (UK) Bob Crow, President and economic strategies. The MUA National Secretary Paddy of the ILWU Bob McEllrath and President The afternoon sessions saw a report from Crumlin proceedings, followed by speak- of SATAWU Ezrom Mabyana, who each ITF Co-ordinator Dean Summers and Ali ers including our own Marion Leslie, who spoke on the issues their unions are facing Memon from the German unions. Dean gave a comprehensive insight of the issues in their own countries and the importance spoke on the concentrated effort by the ITF confronting women workers in the mari- of international solidarity. against the German shipowner Leonhardt time industry both onshore and afloat. This was a point not lost on the New and Blumberg which has resulted in 27 of The pleasing aspect was the amount of Zealand delegates as the recent Napier their ships now under an ITF agreement ground covered on both the national and port dispute would not have been easy and is a fantastic result. international front by such a small part of won without our Trans-Tasman comrades the union in such a short time frame. In my and the input of Paddy Crumlin in his role mind, one day is simply not enough time. with the ITF. 20 | The Maritimes | July 2008 www.munz.org.nz MUA CONFERENCE 2008

His speech was followed by representa- tives from the Maritime Officers and Engineers Unions, and the Honourable Anthony Albanese MP on the Govern- ment’s infrastructure and transport plan for Australia. In the evening was the Patricks 10 Year Anniversary Dinner, which was a mas- sive event with speakers including former Labor Party leader Kim Beazley. Thanks must go to the organising commit- tee for this event which must have been a logistical nightmare as there would have been close to 1000 people attending.

Day 4, Thursday 10 April Kick off Thursday was notable for some absenteeism due to the conference dinner the night before. Niek Stam of FNW started the day with ports of convenience, ITF Dockers’ Secre- tary Frank Leys on Strasbourg, and then Ken Riley on the Charleston Five. This was followed by “Building Union Power” presented by MUA Veterans’ At the MUA Conference Dinner commemorating the 10th anniversary of the Patricks dispute, Wellington Seafarers branch National Secretary Fred Krausert, National members and partners, from left: Barry Millington, Grace and Tony Mowbray, Trudi Hogg, Joe Fleetwood and Marion Leslie Women’s liaison officers Michelle Myers and Sue Virago, youth delegates Brett Lar- kins and Michelle Mackay, and Aboriginal Then came the international presentations, elder and activist Kevin Tory. a video of conference highlights, a confer- After morning tea Paddy Crumlin spoke ence wrap up with an inspirational and “The underlying on organising globally, then ACTU moving speech by Paddy Crumlin on the President Sharon Burrow, who spoke on week’s events and the way forward for the message at this fighting for your rights and GUF (General next four years. Unions Federation). We then all moved to Darling Harbour conference was ITF Secretary David Cockroft gave an for the renaming of Hickson Street to the in-depth ITF report on the FOC (Flags of “Hungry Mile,” a name given to Hickson the importance Convenience) and POC (Ports of Conven- Street in the early 20th century as water- ience). siders were pitted against one another for of soldiarity at The afternoon session was taken up by the opportunity to work. international speakers from Japan, Den- Among the speakers was ALP Minister for an international mark, Indonesia, UK and our own Trevor the Environment and Arts Peter Garrett Hanson, who gave an in-depth report on (ex-Midnight Oil). After the ceremony the Napier dispute and the importance delegates took a short stroll across “The level” of international solidarity. Without the Hungry Mile” to Moretons, where we international soldiarity, the Napier dispute again enjoyed the hospitality of the MUA. would have been a long battle. On the face of it, this was an exceptionally The rest of the day was taken up with well thought out and an extremely well- MUA workshops. run conference. In the evening there was a ferry cruise To run a function of this size is a mam- with Sydney Ferries on the spectacular moth task and all credit to the MUA of- harbour with plenty of food and drink. ficials and staff. On behalf of all the MUNZ Wellington Day 5, Friday 11 April branch we thank you all and look forward to reciprocating in the near future. Friday was another 10am start due to The underlying message at this confer- the resolution committee finalising their ence was the importance of soldiarity at remits. an international level. With globalization MUA Deputy National Secretary Jim Tan- here and not about to go away, organised nock spoke on international aid, then Peter international solidarity has recently been Jennings spoke about union aid abroad seen to win battles such as in Strasbourg, and the Tas Bull Memorial Aid project. the Charleston Five and more recently Jim announced approximately $75,000 was Ports of Napier. raised for the project, a superb effort from Other prime examples of activity in sup- all those involved. port of the trade union movement here in Tony Maher of the CFMEU then deliv- the South Pacific include Indonesia, East ered another great speech on the union’s Timor and PNG. response to climate change and the efforts Further afield the upcoming ILWU being put in place by his union to ensure negotiations will also become a focus of the land is restored. attention.

www.munz.org.nz The Maritimes | July 2008 | 21 MUA CONFERENCE 2008

President of the South African Transport and Allied Workers Union (SATAWU) Ezrom Mabyana spoke about social, health and workplace issues in South Africa. The day finished with the Women’s Com- mittee welcome to the conference dinner which was well attended. They had an auction to raise money for their work in organising the women of the MUA, amongst their other commitments internationally as well.

Tuesday The conference opened with ‘Securing our organising capability into the future’ by MUA Deputy National Secretary Jim Tannock. He spoke on how the MUA restructured four years ago, setting up a separate Fight- ing Fund, which was in a healthy position. Resources have been put into areas such as the Your Rights at Work TV ads, social events such as picnics and golf days, Superannuation Credit Unions, income protection, communications, Maritime MUNZ members at the MUA Conference joined a union protest against the Australian Building Construction Commission Workers Journal, web site and media (ABCC), Wednesday 9 April 2008 releases. Other areas include the international He spoke on the Patrick Dispute with the delegate meetings, conferences, education 2008 MUA conspiracy by the Howard Government and training programmes, campaigns like working in cahoots with the employer. Your Rights at Work, as well as the legal Conference The truth is still to come out on this issue bills of the union, and how the need for as lots of official information is still hid- members to be financial is imperative to den. This was followed by a DVD on MUA the wellbeing of the union. Sydney: rank and history and where the union is going. MUA Assistant National Secretary Mick The next session was opened by MUA As- Doleman spoke about ‘Growing our influ- file report sistant National Secretary Mick Doleman ence and power by campaigning’, includ- on ‘Working with Labor in power.’ ing Your Rights at Work, the marginal by Mike Shakespeare, Wellington Seafarers Branch He introduced the Secretary of Unions MUNZ #1490 seats (which helped boot Howard out), the NSW John Robertson, who spoke on the making of local and international indus- need to push Labor and not to expect them trial alliances such as the Hydrocarbon I was fortunate to be able to attend the to do everything for the workers, and how Alliance with the MUA and Australian 2008 Quadrennial Conference of the MUA, we cannot rest on our laurels by getting Workers Union (AWU), and with other which also coincided with the 10th An- them in power. The hard work begins now. international unions such as MUNZ and niversary of the Patrick’s Dispute. John Robertson was followed by General the ILWU. The opening ceremony was by an Aborigi- President of Construction Forestry Mining Branch recruiting targets in the various nal elder, Aunty Sylvia, who welcomed and Energy Union (CFMEU) Mining and new industries such as the rig divers and all the delegates to the land, and giving a Energy Division Tony Maher, who gave a the tourism diving industry in North brief history of her people. history of the miners, and the campaign to Queensland were all very challenging The hall was then blessed by smoke to get Labor re-elected. issues. repel all the evil spirits by another Aborigi- He believed this has set the political ‘hard He spoke of the need to get a taskforce up nal elder. right’ back 20 years but they will regroup, and running with government on training The first speaker was National Secretary so there is no room to be complacent and and employment for locals, all issues very of the Australian Labor Party Tim Gartrell the need for us to look at ourselves and familiar to us in New Zealand. who spoke on the Rudd Government Plan how to move in the future. We heard from MUA Assistant National for Australia, dealing with the industrial The next session was by the international Secretary Rick Newlyn on branch organi- and infrastructure issues facing Australia speakers. sation, which covered many issues, includ- today. UK Rail Maritime Transport Union (RMT) ing Codes of Practice, Minimum Manning, He spoke at length about shipping and General Secretary Bob Crow gave a rous- taking of workers from the blue water to ports and how vital they were to Austral- ing speech on what happened with privati- the offshore, and the problems of training ia’s wealth, and of the great effort by the sation in the UK regarding water, electric- workers (sounds familiar). union movement in helping to oust the ity and gas, amongst other issues affecting More responsibilities had been given to Howard Government. It was a positive the workers and people of the UK. branches to get things done, also getting start to the day. He was followed by President of Interna- representatives onto National Maritime This was followed by Maritime Union tional Longshore and Warehouse Union Committees so we have a voice. There was of Australia (MUA) National Secretary (ILWU) “Big Bob” McEllrath, who spoke a need to reinvigorate the Industry Skills Paddy Crumlin, on ‘Organising nationally on the Patrick’s Dispute, the ILWU lockout Council and for training for staff, officials is organising internationally.’ and the fact their contract is up for re- and delegates. newal. He also talked about the benefits of globalising the Unions against the multi- nationals.

22 | The Maritimes | July 2008 www.munz.org.nz MUA CONFERENCE 2008

Rick was followed by some more Inter- Other positives were recognition of the ITF General Secretary David Cockroft national Guests, Seafarers International need for huge investment in rail to get the spoke on ports of convenience and flags Union (SIU) Secretary Treasurer Dave coal iron ore to the shippers internation- of convenience campaigns, and the need Heindel, and Assistant General Organ- ally faster, and the need to upgrade ports to pressure the European Parliament over iser International Longshore Association which have up to 40 ships waiting to come guest workers and the FOC shipping (ILA) John Baker, who spoke on the need in because of Howard’s lack of investment. registers. for global solidarity on the international It also sounds good for cabotage and train- We then went on to hear from more inter- stage and about the good work the MUA ing in Australia and I hope it rubs off here. national speakers – Yoji Fujisawa of the is doing. All the international guests went to a rally All Japan Seamens Union; Itoh Akinobu The day finished up with unveiling of an against the Australian Building Construc- of the All Japan Dockworkers Union, historical mural at the Maritime Museum, tion Commission (ABCC). Henrick Berlau of Fagligt Faelles Forbund which had been retrieved from the old wa- The ABCC are forcing workers to give (Denmark), Hanafi Rastandi of Kestauan terfront national office wall and donated to evidence against delegates and officials Pelaut Indonesia, Bob Hayden of the Rail the museum. where people are secretly interrogated and Tram and Bus Union (RTBU) and Trevor compelled to answer under the threat of Hanson, General Secretary of MUNZ. Wednesday six month’s jail and thousands in fines and Trevor spoke on the Napier dispute and if they tell their friends or family they can the assistance we received from the inter- The day started with the topic of working be jailed or fined for that as well. national which helped win this dispute with other unions. We all attended a conference and Patrick’s quickly as it could have dragged on and There were many speakers, including Dispute anniversary dinner where a good become harder to win. ACTU Secretary Jeff Lawrence, National time was had by all. Trevor was well received by all the del- Secretary AWA Paul Howes, CFMEU egates. After this session the delegates President Tony Maher, and Federal Secre- Thursday from the MUA went into workshop groups tary TWU Tony Sheldon. then reported back to the plenary sessions. Their common theme was there was a The topics were Port of Convenience, The night finished with a harbour cruise need for unions to identify the common Strasbourg and The Charleston 5, with put on by the MUA for all the guests and enemy and not work against each other, speeches from Niek Stam of FNV Bondg- veterans. both nationally and globally. enoten from the Netherlands, Secretary of This was followed by the keynote address the ITF Dockers Section Frank Leys, and Friday from Deputy Prime Minister Julia Gillard ILA Vice President Ken Riley. on the industrial relations and economic In all of these topics were good wins for The final day began with a presentation on strategies for building Australia’s produc- the Union Movement but they all reiter- the Tas Bull International Memorial Aid tive capacity. ated it is the International Solidarity cam- Project and Union Aid Abroad APHEDA. She pointed out ex-PM John Howard had paigns that help win these disputes. Speakers were MUA Deputy National dropped the ball with infrastructure such Next was a session on ‘Building Union Secretary Jim Tannock and Peter Jennings as ports, rail and roads, often due to his Power through Our Diversity’, with speak- of Union Aid Abroad, who gave us an hatred for the unions. ers including National MUA Veterans Sec- overview on all that they do from donat- The need for a strong domestic shipping retary Fred Krausert, National Women’s ing hospital equipment to Cuba, teaching industry was identified and the word Liaison Officers Mich-Elle Myers and Sue about AIDS in South African shanty towns, cabotage wasn’t a dirty word like it is in Virago, and Youth Delegates Brett Larkin and helping AIDS orphans - all very im- New Zealand. All very positive, the job is and Michelle Mackay. portant parts of being in a union. to keep them honest. As you can see, they represent the cross This was followed by a very good pres- The afternoon started with Australian ITF section of our unions. entation on climate change by CFMEU Co-ordinator Dean Summers, who gave a They are part of the sum of the whole and Mining and Energy Division President rundown on the various ITF campaigns. all do valuable work for our Unions, and it Tony Maher. The notable one was the Leonhardt and was inspiring to hear from the youth to the It may seem a strange person to give a Blumberg campaign. This fourth or fifth elder members of the MUA. presentation on this but, as Tony pointed generation German shipper with hundreds They were followed by Kevin Tory, an out, the Unions need to push companies to of ships didn’t believe in ITF agreements, Aboriginal elder and activist, who spoke invest in clean and efficient power plants but now has most of his ships on ITF on the ‘sorry’ apology from the govern- to protect workers’ jobs. agreements because of the actions taken by ment about the Stolen Generation, and the This was followed by presentations to and ITF inspectors around the world. need to put comprehensive policy in place from the international guests and MUA Next was Ali Memon of German Union for the Aborigines and to give them a help before the conference wrapped up. Verdi. up, not hand out. There is still a lot to put We all adjourned to Wharf 8, Darling He was followed by Australian Maritime right. Harbour, to dedicate and re-name Hickson Officers’ Union (AMOU) Industrial Officer This was followed by ‘Organising Glo- Street to the Hungry Mile, which came Fred Ross, and Australian Institute Of bally’, an ITF report on the flag of conven- from the days when men trudged the Marine And Power Engineers’ (AIMPE) ience and ports of convenience campaign. street in search of work. Federal Treasurer/Assistant Federal Sec- MUA National Secretary Paddy Crumlin All in all a fitting finish to a well-organised retary Martin Byrne, giving a view of the opened on the need for global solidarity, conference. Officer Unions. the strategies and a general overview. He I have to thank the MUA for their out- They were followed by Minister of Infra- was followed by Australian Council of standing hospitality and friendship, which structure, Transport, Regional Develop- Trade Unions president Sharan Burrow, is second to none. ment and Local Government Anthony who spoke on the issue facing all workers, Thanks also to the Wellington Branch Sea- Albanese on the Rudd Government’s Plan and the need to get the collective agree- farers MUNZ for the opportunity to attend for Australia. ments up and running again. this conference, as it is a very heartening It was very heartening to listen to someone and uplifting experience and recharges the who wants a viable domestic shipping batteries for the struggles ahead. industry and a well-resourced and trained MUA here to stay – Kia Kaha. workforce in all the transport sectors.

www.munz.org.nz The Maritimes | July 2008 | 23 MUA CONFERENCE 2008

This would encourage new membership and increase the strength of the Trade Union Movement. Guest speakers included the Secretary of the ACTU Jeff Lawrence, National Secre- tary of the Australian Workers Union Paul Howes, CFMEU President Tony Maher, who had spoken earlier in the week, and Federal Secretary of the TWU Tony Shel- don. Tony gave an alarming report on some of the issues in the transport sector, where trucking had an excess of 400 deaths re- lated to fatigue in one year alone. Keynote speaker was Deputy Prime Minis- ter of Australia the Hon. Julia Gillard and holder of some very relevant ministerial portfolios in labour and social areas. Her address was encouraging and I can only hope that our Labour Government takes note of the Australian Government’s pledge to work towards the reinstatement of a national shipping line and full cabo- Maritime Union Port Chalmers Dunedin branch delegates at the MUA Conference, April 2008, from left, tage, along with extensive training, not Alby Patton, Mike Lysaght, Paul Napier, Ian Quarrell and Phil Adams only in the maritime industry, but across Australian industries in general. Following the opening of the main con- Australian ITF co-ordinator Dean Sum- 2008 MUA ference on Monday, a video about the mers, along with Ali Memon from Patrick’s Dispute was shown, followed Germany, gave an in-depth report on the Conference by an address from National Secretary of even closer links between the ITF and the the Australian Labor Party Tim Gartrell MUA having Paddy Crumlin on the board Sydney: rank and highlighting the Rudd Government’s plans as Dockers’ Secretary for the Asia-Pacific for Australia. region. This was followed by National Secretary Leonhardt and Blumberg is a shipping file report of the MUA Paddy Crumlin, and a panel company run by third generation flag of by Tony Mowbray, Wellington Seafarers Branch contribution with CFMEU President Tony convenience tycoons who have never been MUNZ #1154 Maher and Secretary of Unions NSW John pinned down in any ITF agreement for Robertson. their crews until recently. The international speakers of the day Due to an ITF campaign combined with Firstly, I would like to open my report were General Secretary of the RMT (UK), joint international pressure, 27 of their 50 thanking the Maritime Union of Australia President of the ILWU Bob McEllrath, and ships now have ITF agreements, again (MUA) for the invitation to MUNZ and concluded with President of SATAWU driving home the importance of interna- all the hospitality shown throughout the Ezrom Mabyana. tional solidarity. conference week, with additional thanks All speakers highlighted the industry We also heard from the Minister for Infra- to the Aboriginal elders who gave the struggles and achievements in their structure, Transport, Regional Develop- “Welcome to the Country” ceremony and regions. ment and Local Government the Hon. the opening address. A Women’s Committee Fundraising din- Anthony Albanese MP. The opening day on Monday 7 April ner was held on Monday night. This was Wednesday night was the 10th Anniver- seemed to hold a lot of significance as it a great night with a big turn out and an sary of the Patricks Dispute. This was was the day to mark the 10th anniver- entertaining auction. marked with a dinner which was a mas- sary of the MUA Victory in the Patrick’s Deputy National Secretary of the MUA sive event of nearly 900 people, including Dispute. Jim Tannock opened day two with the some notable speakers such as former wa- This was observed by a minute’s silence. MUA financial report. This was followed terfront leader John Coombs and former There was a huge international representa- by a growth report from MUA Assistant Leader of the Opposition Kim Beazley. tion with a total of nearly 500 delegates National Secretary Mick Doleman and a Thursday featured speakers on the “Ports representing Seafarers, Dockers, Mining, branch organization report from MUA As- of Convenience” campaign and the Energy, Rail and Transport sectors from sistant National Secretary Rick Newlyn. disputes in Strasbourg and Charleston, throughout Australasia, East Timor, Indo- These three officials gave informative and delivered by Nick Stam from the FNV nesia, United Kingdom, USA east and west positive reports, highlighting the only ap- (Netherlands Dockers), Vice President of coasts, Canada, Denmark, Sweden, Ger- proach to growth is positive input from all the ILA Ken Riley, and Secretary of the ITF many, Netherlands, China, Japan, Africa, membership. Dockers’ Section Frank Leys. Papua New Guinea and the Torres Islands. The international speakers of day two A number of further speakers took the (My apologies to anyone if they have been were Secretary Treasurer of the SIU Dave stage with a memorable talk from MUA excluded.) Heindel, and Assistant General Organizer national Veterans’ Secretary Fred Krausert On the Sunday before the conference of the ILA John Baker. and Youth Delegates Brett Larkins and opened, we were invited to attend the Wednesday morning was opened by MUA Michelle Mackay. Women’s Conference. officials who emphasized the need for The Veterans had a large contingent and Our delegation included Marion Leslie unions to put past differences behind us like our own veterans deserve the ut- of the Wellington Seafarers Branch and and the importance of working together to most respect and support. Glenn Wylie is Marion should be congratulated on her move ahead as on. achieving this in MUNZ through setting contribution. up our own data base.

24 | The Maritimes | July 2008 www.munz.org.nz OBITUARY

Also the MUA youth (under 30s) have got These were the times of struggle to to be commended and again with help and maintain gains in working conditions support they can achieve a strong future in and wages. The battles weren’t always any union. grim: a longstanding picket once occupied Next up was President of the Australian the Treasury building, running the Council of Trade Unions Sharan Burrow Panamanian flag up its flagpole to call it a and ITF General Secretary David Cockroft “Treasury of convenience”. from London. After an election defeat in 1994, Evans Every speaker throughout the conference made a life-changing career switch when pushed the need for global solidarity and he had the chance to study for a creative international ties to strengthen our ability writing degree at Victoria University. as maritime workers. A special dispensation recognising life This was driven home by MUNZ General experience and previously published Secretary Trevor Hanson, who gave an writing meant he was able to join the in-depth report and history of the Napier course. dispute. The result was his autobiographical It was at this point that I felt proudest, not account Shipping Out. The excitement and only of Trevor, but the whole delegation intellectual challenge changed his life. from MUNZ and RMTU, which included He continued to write, both books and for Auckland, Napier, Wellington, Port magazines, and he made contributions Chalmers and Bluff, who had their names to the Trade Union History project. He read out and a standing ovation was given Obituary: contributed a regular column for The after a history of our links with the MUA. Evening Post and successfully developed Japan, Sweden and Indonesia also had Gerry Evans his travel writing, specialising in the their time. southwestern United States, where he Friday mainly consisted on a report on by Peter Kitchin went further from the sea than he had climate change and was delivered from a ever been. With photographer Peter Bush, union with a lot of input on this by Presi- [Gerald John] Gerry Evans, writer and he toured parts of the US by train, which dent of the CFMEU (Mining Union) Tony seaman: born Aberystwyth, Wales, resulted in their book, Good Morning, Maher, and a thank you from the MUA for November 17, 1937; died Karori, America. the attendance by delegates. Wellington, 25 May 2008, aged 70 He was fascinated by the US, and his Being at the conference was enough but advocacy skills were put to good use. just to add to it, all the International’s took Author Gerry Evans, of Karori, spent three He started to write to a young American part in a rally through Sydney in support decades in maritime industries before he woman jailed for a murder despite being of the construction union to oppose the was moored to his typewriter. handcuffed in a police car when it took fascist Australian Building and Construc- A seaman, wharfie and union leader, place, and documented her story. tion Commission set up by the Howard he was an advocate for have-nots and a After her release, he continued to write Government. This is a government attack courageous defender of union rights. letters about his family, the beach and the dog that basically takes your right of si- He made his name as an official of the New Zealand countryside to a woman lence away and legally requires you to face Seamen’s Union and its successor, the who had been sentenced to 98 years interrogations, horrendous fines and/or Seafarers’ Union, before crafting a career without parole for a crime – driving a prison terms if you fail to give your col- as a writer. car from which someone had left and leagues up to authorities in their site inves- A Welshman, he went to sea as a boy. A committed a murder – that happened tigations. five-day layover at Auckland whetted his when she was 16. The situation is being fought vigorously by appetite for New Zealand and he returned He leaves part-finished his work on writer unions to get a change in the legislation. for good in the early 1960s, settling at and journalist Noel Hilliard, who was so It was also a privilege to join the MUA in Devonport, on Auckland’s North Shore. enraged by the racism of New Zealand in celebrating the re-naming of the “Hungry A gregarious type, he found the then the middle of last century that he wrote Mile” in Sydney’s docklands. working-class suburb much to his liking about it in a series of works, including the This was done officially and is now in and soon made pals through the rugby groundbreaking Maori Girl. legislation. club and his work on Auckland’s wharves. Evans was the 2006 writer-in-residence The ceremony featured Paddy Crumlin, He rose through the ranks of the city’s at the Michael King Writers’ Centre in Peter Garrett MP (ex-Midnight Oil singer) wharfies, first editing an unofficial Devonport and was about to take up and Australian actor Jack Thompson to commentary on the union called Rank and a residency at the Robert Lord Writers name a few. File and later becoming first editor of the Cottage in Dunedin, to work on the Not only was the New Zealand delegation Port News, which still runs today. Hilliard biography for which he had a made up of Maritime, Rail and Transport In his books he has described the colourful Creative New Zealand grant. sectors but it is only fitting I feel that I characters of the wharf in those days. His ambition was to have his ashes mention our CTU President Helen Kelly When his marriage failed, his wife and scattered in one of his best- loved places, and Alliance Party candidate Victor Billot children returned to Wales and he to the the Karori library. who were also in attendance. sea. He preferred blue-water boats and “Just kidding,” he told the librarians at a I will close this report with the words from regular changes of ship and destinations. recent book launch there. They enjoyed the Fred Krausert, who closed his speech the His long-time mate, the late Bill “Pincher” joke as much as they enjoyed his company; same way by stating that “We may retire Martin, persuaded him to move to they have mounted a display at the library from the job but never the struggle.” Wellington to start afresh. Always active marking the death of a local writer. I thank the membership of MUNZ and in the union, Evans moved from being a Gerry Evans is survived by his wife, two once again the MUA for the opportunity to seagoing delegate to seagoing executive daughters and three sons. attend and to further our education for the member and then became secretary struggles ahead. and vice-president of the New Zealand This obituary appeared in the Dominion Post on 12 June and is reprinted with their kind permission. Seafarers’ Union.

www.munz.org.nz The Maritimes | July 2008 | 25 UNION HISTORY Great industrial conflicts part of union history

By Steve Hart “Once in Parliament it was instrumental in The shipwrights were members of the introducing the country’s earliest labour Waterside Workers’ Union and so enjoyed In New Zealand’s short history there have laws in the form of the Industrial Concili- strong and far-reaching support. been three key periods of industrial trou- ation and Arbitration Act (ICA). It was Politics appear to have played a part in ble, each separated by regional disputes. introduced in 1890 and lasted pretty much this round of industrial action. Hill says Some ended in death, most ended in tears, intact until 1973,” says Hill. the liberal governments had been replaced but each one has taken the country closer “The Act brought in compulsory arbitra- by an “anti-workers government”, led by to offering workers more rights and better tion between most employers and staff, Ulsterman William Massey. working conditions. and it was hoped it would prevent further “The last two months of the strikes led to One indirectly led to the formation of the industrial action. It delivered minimum bloody industrial confrontation - in reality today’s Labour Party. wages and the workers’ arbitration court. a class war – primarily in Wellington, but To look at the first strike we have to go But unions had the option to opt out of the also in Auckland,” says Hill. back more than one hundred years. Act and register under the Trade Union An Evening Post editorial of 23 October, The maritime strike of 1890 took place in Act. And that is what a few of them did. 1913, called union members “wayward the same year that Labour Day was first Including the West Coast miners.” watersiders” for holding up the work of celebrated. But subsequent amendments were made the port in a “Lordly manner”. “The dem- 28 October was used to commemorate to address changes in the economy after onstrators could have met in their own carpenter Samuel Parnell’s battle to win a Britain entered the European Common time,” it says. standard eight-hour working day – some- Market. It provided substantial protection Closing the port for a few hours meant thing he had achieved 50 years earlier. until it was replaced by the Employment farmers’ exports were delayed. But the de- Parnell built houses with a team of carpen- Contract’s Act in 1991. lay was nothing compared with what was ters and set contracts with customers that While the next major dispute wasn’t to to come as the strike escalated in reaction stipulated eight hours’ work, followed by happen for another 23 years, two events to the shipwrights being locked out. eight hours’ rest and eight hours’ play. happened in between time that helped The dispute gravitated to a general strike These contracts are pointed to by Auck- further shape the union movement. lasting one week that brought Auckland to land amateur historian Gerard Hill as The Blackball Gold Mine “crib-time” strike a standstill. While hotel guests had to cook being the start of Labour movement. was a major victory in 1908 and encour- their own food and make their own drinks, aged people to join unions. the strike is mostly remembered for the The Maritime Council It led to the first Trade Union Federation use of special constables, nicknamed Mas- 28 October was also the first anniversary and ultimately to the formation of the sey’s Cossack, disgruntled farmers who of the Maritime Council, an organiza- Labour Party. rode their horses into crowds of strikers. tion that brought transport and mining Blackball is a mining town near Grey- “Things were heated up when police unions together. But six days before its first mouth and will be holding centenary cel- superintendent Mitchell, who kept things birthday the maritime strike had started, a ebrations in March with a three-day event pretty calm, was replaced by John Cullen reaction to their pay being cut. planned that will include a street parade who was tough and uncompromising, he The strike began in Melbourne by ship and other public events. was ruthless,” says Hill. officers on 15 August 1890 and crossed Four years later in 1912, during a six- “Like Massey, an Orangeman and free- the Tasman on 15 September. The strike month strike by miners at Waihi, the police mason, this is a legacy we are still having lasted 56 days, involved 8000 unionists attacked Fred Evans moments after a to deal with today. He was the one who and ended with the qualified defeat of the constable was shot in the stomach. ordered protestors to be attacked on horse- unions. The event on 12 November is known today back.” Hill has studied social history in New as Black Tuesday. On November 11 about 1000 strikers Zealand and is well known for giving Evans never regained consciousness from marched along Ponsonby Road and down historical walks in Auckland. His father a severe beating. After 90 minutes lan- College Hill to a rally in Victoria Park. Led Toby Hill was the national secretary of guishing in a police cell he was taken to a by Australians Michael Joseph Savage, the Waterside Workers’ Union and a key hospital where he died the following day. Harry Holland, Pat Hickey, Paddy Webb player in the 1951 dispute. He became a martyr of the United Federa- and Bob Semple, they called for more sup- “The defeat in 1890 was qualified in the tion of Labour (UFL) that was formed a port and attempted to raise morale as they sense that the unions realised they had to year later and made up of members of the fought a losing battle. get politicized,” says Hill. hard-line Red Feds and moderate unions. In 1913 there were 16,000 unionists, “The legacy of it is that John Millar, who most of whom were new members of the was the founder of the Seamen’s Union 1913 - ‘class war in Wellington’ Federation of Labour. Some supported the Wobblies – a radical organization that was elected to Parliament in 1891.” The country’s second major industrial pushed for the formation of a single union Hill says although the 1890 strike ended dispute flared up on the Wellington wa- and one strike. badly for union members, the unions terfront as a result of the Union Steam- “The strike was the biggest stoush in New remained intact, although weakened. ship Company cutting travel time for its Zealand’s history with exception of the It led to the Liberal/Labour coalition to shipwrights on 17 October, 1913. come to power led by Dick Seddon. land wars of the 19th century,” said Hill.

26 | The Maritimes | July 2008 www.munz.org.nz UNION HISTORY

“In one incident two scabs were chased by watersiders into a Wellington Whitcombe and Tombes bookstore on Lambton Quay, which is a Whitcoulls store today. The shopkeeper produced a shotgun to protect his stock. “Things heated up when the authorities put machine guns either side of Buckle Street, but they were never fired. “Pat Lawlor, a famous Aussie journalist, writing in the Sydney Bulletin at the time, said the smell of cordite could be smelled over Te Aro Flat (the centre of Wellington) for three weeks.” Hill says in end the strikers were defeated and that had a huge impact on Savage and the other strike leaders. “They had come to New Zealand intent on revolution and this defeat ended with them sitting in Terrace Jail in Wellington, a site that is a school today.” Waiting in their cells the strikers decided the Parliamentary system was probably their best bet for reform and so the seeds of the Labour Party took root behind bars. The Party was officially created in 1916 Women lead peaceful marchers in Upper Queen Street, Auckland, on ‘Bloody Friday’ during the 1951 waterfront lockout and made up of anti-war groups and un- ions. Savage was the Party’s vice-president by 1918, and became its national secretary the following year. “In addition, soldiers returning from the Unions through launched a campaign “It was in 1919 that Savage was elected to Second World War saw that plenty of through the Federation of Labour which the Auckland City Council, along with 17 people had made money while they were had taken over the dispute and national opposition councillors and one independ- away. support followed. ent, Savage’s boss Ernest Davis,” says Hill. But Freeman’s Bay was still a slum area, “The employers reached agreement with Savage’s hard work paid off when he was despite 15 years of a Labour government the union after seven weeks but Prime elected as MP for Auckland West (Pon- that had made significant improvements in Minister Muldoon intervened,” says Hill. sonby) in the 1919 general election, a seat people’s living conditions. “This led to another four weeks’ stoppage which he retained until he died in 1940. “It is the working class that fight wars and which resulted, in the words of FOL presi- “During his time in Parliament he became they had seen their friends killed – they dent Jim Knox (a 1951 wharfie) “as the Labour’s greatest tactician,” says Hill. came home to a land where they saw a lot greatest victory he had ever seen.” There was a flare up in Auckland’s Queen of people doing very well and they felt “Unions can claim success with equal pay, Street in 1932 that ended, like the 1913 short-changed. National was in power, additional holidays, paid parental care and troubles, with police on horseback “con- inflation galloped and the Cold War had for campaigns over minimal wages,” says trolling” protestors. come over the top of us.” Hill. “People had been trampled in 1913, and The dispute became violent at times when Earlier this year McDonalds abolished its then again in 1932,” says Hill. “After protestors had run-ins with police bran- youth rate, deciding instead to pay young- Labour was elected there was a review dishing batons. Violence came to a head er workers the minimum adult wage. of the police and the mounted unit was in Auckland on 1 June – “Bloody Friday” I wonder if that would have happened had abolished,” says Hill. – when 1000 people marched up Queen it not been for union Unite’s SuperSizeMy- Street. Pay campaign. The ‘51 Lockout With tempers getting shorter, Toby Hill, Gerard Hill’s father, was among those Thanks to Gerard Hill for his valuable information. The biggest strike to have hit the country Contact author Steve Hart at www.stevehart.co.nz who helped disperse supporters to avoid was in 1951. The arbitration court had Thanks to the New Zealand Herald for permission to further violence. awarded a 15 per cent pay increase to all republish this article At the end of the day, strike-breaking those covered by the arbitration system. scabs replaced union staff and eased them Waterside workers were not among as out. On 15 June the dispute was over and they were governed by the Waterfront striker Jock Barnes, president of the Water- Industry Commission. side Workers’ Union,was sentenced to two Wharfies were offered nine per cent saying months in prison for defaming a police- previous pay raises should be taken into man. Barnes died in 2000, aged 92. account. The Waterfront Dispute lasted for 151 days From 13 February they refused to work and involved more than 22 000 wharfies, overtime and the shipping companies de- freezing workers, drivers, labourers and cided not to hire them unless they would. miners. So were they on strike, or were they locked The Kinleith strike of 1980 is seen as a out – it depends who you talk to. significant victory. Around 3000 thousand “The cause of the dispute was a booming workers were on strike or suspended. economy, higher cost of living and stag- nant wages,” says Hill.

www.munz.org.nz The Maritimes | July 2008 | 27 BLACKBALL ‘08

The miners themselves were more likely to have read Thomas Paine’s “The Rights of Man” than Karl Marx. The Centenary of The parade was a colourful event which included all sections of the Blackball com- munity with historical vehicles carrying everything from the mining strops to kegs the Blackball Strike of beer. There was a good turnout of miners, some even standing there in their black- He grew up at Burnet’s Face at Denniston. ened faces, as well as some exciting street His father was National President of the theatre, and the school children with their Miners in the 1920s, and Dai would have bright banner: “But without our brain and added much. muscle not a single wheel could turn.” 86-year old Izzy Mountford, matriarch of The unions who were represented with a famous mining and league family, hit their banners were the EPMU, the Nurses one of the high spots of the opening night Organization, and the PSA. EPMU flags when she raised a toast to the working were everywhere. class women who held the communities Among those who spoke at the mine were together. mayor of the Grey District Tony Kok- This was one of the most memorable shoorn, who spoke with conviction and celebrations organised by the local com- warmth of the industrial character and munity and former residents that I have color of the miners. attended anywhere. It attracted a wide and diverse group Unions essential to society – imagine Save Happy Valley Snails He said ”Trade Unions have a special campaigners in the same space as miners role to play in the balancing act between and two National MPs (one of whom was employers and their work force. They are there I am sure to stir and was recognised essential in the development of society as such.) and one can say about the West Coast, From a union perspective, it was as good that relationship can only be described as as event as any we have held. turbulent.” by Gerard Hill Hilton Street, the main street, was re- He like all the coasters who I met there splendent, decked out in bright red was proud of his heritage and the contri- flags attached to lampposts proclaiming The small town of Blackball came alive bution of the families and working class “United We Stand Divided We Fall” which in a commemoration of the great labour communities set the mood for the subsequent days. victory of the 1908 Blackball Strike over Minister of Housing Maryan Street an- The Labour Party was represented by cabi- Easter Weekend. nounced that the Labour Government net ministers Ruth Dyson, Lianne Dalziel, Events included a celebratory dinner, poet- would be adopting a private members’ Maryanne Street and Damien O’Connor, ry recital by poet Jeffrey Paparoa Holman bill from Labour list MP Sue Mulroney to and a football team of Labour MPs and a of some of his Blackball Bridge Sonnets, a provide for meal breaks and smokes. good number of members, and the Green market, a parade through Blackball with It may surprise members to know that party was represented by Sue Bradford. floats by unions, schools and community today, these basic rights have disappeared All mixed well with the working class folk groups, followed by ceremony at the mine for many workers due to the “Employers making the event what it was. entrance. Contract Act”. Other activities included concert perform- Minister of ACC Ruth Dyson would be Four generations present ances by Choir, Choir Pants on Fire and holding an inquiry into accident and death the West Coast Wobblies, the premiere of We were privileged to be in the company in the mining industry. Paul Maunder’s play Rain, Love and Coal of four generations whose whakapapa Under the OSH act that covers all indus- Smoke, a book launch of a history of the stretched through the industrial disputes tries, Labour had worked out that one size Blackball miners’ strike The Great ‘08 by of 1890, 1908 through to 1951, the 1981 doesn’t fit all, and that mining is a par- Brian Wood. Springbok Tour, and 1991. ticular industry that may require specially There was also a day-long seminar about It is rare to be in the company of such tailored legislation. the strike. Speakers included 82-year-old people who have such a deep understand- Congratulations to the miners and the author of Blackball ‘08 Eric Beardsley, and ing of labour, our history, our victories and EPMU, who have long campaigned for Department of Conservation historian our losses. this. Peter Clayworth who spoke on Pat Hickey All the MPs and the others who shared The contribution of the recent arrivals to about whom he is writing a biography. these conversations were enriched and the survival and creative life of Blackball Historians Melanie Nolan and Neville respectful of this lineage. was also recognised. Bennett, Labour Court Judge Coghlan, La- In fact, CTU Economist Peter Conway, The dispute itself is famous for a strike to bour Historian and Mediator Peter Franks, when speaking the following day said, get a half hour unpaid lunch break, the and EPMU National Secretary Andrew “that in labour, we measure our progress victimization of the union executive and Little. not in moments or hours but in months, other lesser known issues. Apologies were received from mining his- years, decades and centuries.” For example, the influence of the Socialist torians Dai Haywood and Len Richardson, Much has been made of the Wobblies (In- Party and the role played by Hickey, Sem- and NDU Secretary Laila Harre. dustrial Workers of the World) connection ple and Webb, whose pictures hung in the Dai’s speech was read by Brian Wood and to Blackball 1908, but an equally important Blackball Miners Hall revered as saints. a poem by William Burns was read at the contribution to the character and soul of The strike, being one the longest in NZ his- formal dinner by Les Nelson. these heroes of 1908 were the Chartists, tory, commenced on 27 February and ran Dai was unwell and to have missed deliv- and the Tolpuddle Martyrs. through to 13 May, 1908. ering his own speech is regrettable.

28 | The Maritimes | July 2008 www.munz.org.nz BLACKBALL ‘08

This victory was to inspire many in the working class, not only unions, but lead- ing to the strengthening of the Socialist Party in NZ, and the foundation of the Federation of Labour, known colloquially as the Red Feds, where the miners, the seamen and watersiders joined shearers, laborers and flax workers. This was the most militant, largest and socialist group ever in New Zealand. The Wobblies had a strong influence in this wider grouping, which was incredibly youthful, male and mobile, a fine example of crew culture.

Wobblies, Chartists and Martyrs Much has been made of the Wobbly (IWW) connection to Blackball 1908, but an equal- ly important contribution, now sometimes forgotten, was made by the Chartists, and the Tolpuddle Martyrs. It is a mistake not to acknowledge this great working class movement and mar- Photo by Simon Nathan, licensed under Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 2.0 Generic tyrs, which are so much of our history and the birth right of labour and clearly The social programme that this first National Prime Minister Sid Holland influenced so many of our forbears. Labour Government introduced was the closed the Roa mine, one of the richest When you look at the nationalities of the product and achievement of industrial seams in the world in the 1950s. miners and note the date of the establish- labour as much as political Labour. It was said this was payback to Blackball. ment of their unions not to mention our After the defeat of the Maritime Strike in This same mine has reopened and their own union the real myth becomes apparent. 1890, unions had been rebuilding, but, product makes steel in other lands. To some they lack the colour and the generally, confidence was not overly Today, the miners are members of the romance of the Wobblies. However to the strong. EPMU and are well represented and re- working class these are people of great They used the Industrial Conciliation and spected within this union. mana and internationally recognised as Arbitration (IC & A) Act to rebuild and They interface today not with seamen or such. today there are still many workers who watersiders but with railway workers who When we failure to record their contribu- would like an Arbitration court and also are members of the RMTU. tion we fail ourselves and propagate the the right to strike then as now. Having said this, there is no reason why real myth. In writing this I do not want Not to acknowledge this we do ourselves we cannot reestablish links with these min- to diminish the influence of the Wobblies a disservice. ers. Throughout the celebration weekend, but to acknowledge these other important The miners in 1890, in 1913, and again in former President of the Miners Les Nelson forebears as well. 1951, living in isolated communities, paid and an up-and-coming Miners official Among those who founded the Labour the highest economic price. Harold Gibson were warm, welcoming Party in 1916, most of them had been Mining communities had little in the way and insightful. battle-hardened in 1908, and in the great of social infrastructure, and often the Their knowledge of their industry and strike of 1913. unions funded their schools, paid for their their general understanding of issues These people had also cut their political doctors, as well as funding sports teams, would sit comfortably in any mess room, teeth in the Socialist Party of New Zea- doctors and brass bands. or waterfront pub. land. The Labour Party in 1916 was a very We can share the stories of the banjo radical beast. Maritime and mining connection and the hard yacker that our fathers and They had paid the physical price of their grandfathers did and the struggles they convictions and it is worth remembering Their closest alliance in New Zealand shared. that Paddy Webb was stripped of his par- labour was between the miners, seamen It would be of worthwhile for both the liamentary seat, imprisoned and banned and watersiders. Maritime Union and the Miners through from public life for ten years. No other citi- In 1908 when the Blackball miners traveled the EPMU, to reestablish and build on the zen in our history as suffered this penalty. around New Zealand, and even Australia strengths in appreciation of each other’s Yet this is forgotten and only remembered to arrange support for this strike, they role in building New Zealand labour and by a few. traveled as ringbolts and their first meet- in shaping our society. In 1935 the Red Flag was sung loudly and ings were in ships messes, and on the We are capable and have the resources to proudly in every Miners’ Union Hall, as wharves. build on our common history and pos- news of the result of Labour victory led This connection was not part of the official sess the necessary skills to build on this by that former Australian miner Michael celebration, and these were ongoing links relationship. Joseph Savage and fellow Red Feds Peter that lasted right through the late 1970s “An injury to one is an injury to all.” Fraser, Bob Semple and Paddy Webb MP when the MV Karetu, the last Union Com- for Grey. pany collier was withdrawn. Gerard Hill was the last Auckland secretary of the Ship horns blew long into the night in The miners’ support for the seamen in Federated Cooks and Stewards Union, and was assistant every port in the country. the heat and light dispute of 1947 another secretary of the Auckland branch of the Seafarers Union example.

www.munz.org.nz The Maritimes | July 2008 | 29 PORT ROUNDUPS

We see this as a massive exploitation of New Zealand resources, at the expense of the New Zealand taxpayer who has funded a decade of exploration data gath- ered by New Zealand scientists. These large multinational companies will reap potentially vast profits, and we note Nautilus has done the same to the Aus- tralian government, exploiting the data gathered by Australian scientists on the coast of Papua New Guinea. We have asked whether it is the intention of the New Zealand Government to let these companies trade and explore New Zealand waters with foreign crews at the expense of New Zealand seafarers? We have some further questions which we seek answers to. • What nationality of crew do these com- panies use (eg, if Australian controlled do they use Australian nationals)? • If not, where do they source their crews from, and what terms and conditions will these workers receive? • The Maritime Union has a collective Maritime Union Wellington Seafarers Branch Secretary Joe Fleetwood and executive member Barry Millington present agreement that covers survey and explora- President of the Wellington Irish Society Jim Bowler a $500 cheque towards the Kevin McGarry Trust. The Trust was formed for the benefit of a young Irish worker seriously injured while on a working holiday in New Zealand. tion vessels. Will this be undermined by the operations of such companies in New Zealand waters? A vote for National is a vote to return back • What effect will this sort of mining have Wellington to the Employment Contracts Act that on our underwater environment? crushed many unions and workers wages • Why is New Zealand not mining its and conditions. own resources, rather than selling off such Seafarers Some haven’t recovered even today. rights to overseas companies, as has al- So remember before you can have your say ready occurred in the oil and gas industry? by Joe Fleetwood you must be enrolled on the electoral roll. We are currently awaiting a response from The Wellington Seafarers’ Branch has been the Government on this issue. National meeting busy sending around some posters and discussing the issue amongst our members. FPSO The branch attended the MUNZ National Executive and Finance Committee meet- Free trade The Maritime Union of New Zealand ings, held 18-20 May 2008. wrote to the Prime Minister earlier this Mike Clark, Barry Millington and Peter Well, brothers and sisters, it looks like year raising our concerns about the man- Stills attended as observers from the everything we have been saying about ning of FPSOs. branch. this so-called great free trade agreement is For those who don’t know, the FPSO or Also in attendance was Presiding Officer coming true. Floating Storage Production Offloading of the Maritime Union of Australia Jimmy Since it has been signed we have seen the vessels are a specialist type of vessel being Boyle. I believe we had a good two day meat workers come under the hammer, the brought into New Zealand waters to work session with much debate on the way displacement of 500 bank jobs overseas, in the offshore maritime sector to service forward for our union, making job secu- our fear of the free movement of labour the oil and gas industry. rity, organizing workers a high priority as cross borders is in there. The union has a number of concerns with always. Why have industry training when it is the crewing practices on these vessels Other items also high on the agenda were easier to steal qualified workers from which we have raised before with govern- Coastal Shipping, a central funding/un- developing countries on reduced rates or ment agencies, including Maritime New ion plan document, yellow associations, minimum rate? Where is the career path Zealand, and the Minister of Transport. casualization, industry training, the Port of for young New Zealand workers? The There is potential for serious problems Tauranga, and our Veterans’ Association. question we have been asking for years is with these vessels unless they are crewed These issues are very important to the still unanswered. and operated to the highest standard of survival of our union, so the strategy safety. committee must get it right and provide a Mineral mining on seabed There have been a number of incidents on way forward for our survival now and for The Wellington branch recently wrote to such vessels in overseas waters and the future generations to come. the Minister of Transport Annette King, union would like to ensure that any dan- Minister of Labour Trevor Mallard, Green gers to human life and wellbeing, and the Elections MP Sue Bradford and New Zealand First safety of the environment, are minimized. Many FPSO vessels are oil tankers that There was much debate about the up-and- MP Peter Brown, explaining our concern have been converted then moored to the coming national elections and the mas- the Australian controlled companies sea bed. They are then deemed no longer sive repercussions on the working class Nautilus Minerals and Neptune Minerals to be a vessel, and as a result are then cov- and trade unions if the National Party is are both seeking licenses to offshore mine ered by OSH, not Maritime New Zealand, elected. minerals including gold, silver and zinc, within the New Zealand economic zone. which enforce marine legislation in New Zealand.

30 | The Maritimes | July 2008 www.munz.org.nz PORT ROUNDUPS

There is no provision for mari- time crew (seafarers) onboard New Plymouth these ships. They are manned by shore-based workers who by Ryan Cox have no maritime experience or qualifications as we see it. With the end to all the major The Union view is this may oil projects in late May, the lead to a scenario where during boys have been enjoying a few extreme weather conditions, idle days. the lack of qualified seafarers On the container side new runs aboard FPSO’s in New Zealand and a ferry service also meant a waters may contribute to few weekends off. avoidable problems. I’d also like to say a well- re- Maritime skills such as the spected member John Lam- operation of ships cranes are borne has retired – thanks for necessary in a emergency situa- the years of hard graft. tion, for example connecting towing wires in a rough sea, which requires seafarer to sea- MUNZ Wellington Seafarers Secretary Joe Fleetwood and MUNZ General Secretary farer communication between Trevor Hanson at the celebrations for the renaming of the “Hungry Mile” at the MUA the FPSO and seafarer-manned Conference, Sydney, April 2008 Gisborne tugs that would be required in this scenario. Toll New Zealand Shipping Branch clothing by Dein Ferris The decommissioning of FPSO vessels is being driven by a The Arahura is currently in Branch clothing is running out There is very little to report at desire to remove seafarers Singapore dry dock undertak- quick, but we have a new batch the present time from Gis- from the industry, rather than ing a major refit that will add of t-shirts and caps available borne. the first priority of ensuring some 5-10 years to her life. for purchase. Winter has arrived and along a qualified and able maritime The crews have been absorbed with it our quiet period. crew. within the fleet, and the Branch amalgamation We are still awaiting the ar- company have been providing The goal of the Maritime Union The Wellington branch execu- rival of our next ply vessel and extra training courses for the of New Zealand is to ensure tive of the Seafarers and Wa- maybe one or two kiwifruit crew. the appropriate crewing of all terfront will be meeting in late ships. We will be initiating bargaining vessels in New Zealand waters, June to discuss the amalgama- Other than this there is not soon then into another round with trained and qualified tion of the two branches, and much on the horizon. of agreement negotiations. The seafarers. we have a draft set of branch We transferred to Whangarei branch deals with many issues We are looking forward to the rules that Victor Billot has put (Marsden Point) the other day, on a daily basis. Government taking some ac- together for us. There probably which is a long drive from tion in this area. will be a working party set up Gissy. Strait Shipping and Terminal You have to do it to note the stevedore to work through issues. Off-shore number of Big Rigs on the road The off-shore industry in New After a couple of meetings with Delegate system – definitely a need for coastal the company, it looks like the shipping here. Zealand seems to be settling I would like to thank all the teething problems we had with It was good to see some of the down now. stand up people that have STCW training upgrade has old faces again. We have seen two of the big been, and still are, delegates on fixed itself. I can’t say cheers from the construction vessels leave the board your vessel and wharf We are currently talking over sunshine city as we have had coast. The Toisa Proteus has site. some outstanding issues that possibly the wettest couple of left and the RockWater2 will be You with the rank and file are need to be fixed, as they have months for a long time, cheers leaving the coast in early June the back bone of our union and the potential to turn into prob- anyway. which will see a lot of seafarers provide the grunt your union lems. unemployed. officials need. Thank you. We are currently talking with The Picton terminal seems to be fairly problem free, I believe the employers about pos- “It’s often a fine balance for this is due to the delegate sible vessels on the way, but governments needing to be system in place and the calibre how long is a piece of string? seen and heard to be concerned of the delegates we are lucky to MUNZ and the EPMU (Engi- for the peoples welfare whilst have in the Port. neers Union) have had mean- keeping corporate business ingful talks over organizing the happy.” off-shore workers’ coverage, NIWA and we are in the process of A letter has been sent to the finalizing a Memorandum of vessels calling for remits for Understanding that will be the up-and-coming round of binding for our unions futures negotiations to renew the multi in the oil, gas and mineral min- collective, and we will be visit- ing areas. ing the vessels to attend ship board meetings.

www.munz.org.nz The Maritimes | July 2008 | 31 PORT ROUNDUPS Lyttelton by Les Wells As I write this the combined unions at Port of Lyttelton RMTU and MUNZ are about to take back to the members at LPC a new agreement for ratification. I believe we have made some break- throughs in a couple of areas. One of these is contracting out, we now have a document that says they will consult with unions before there is any contracting out. This may not seem like much but we had nothing in writing previously to cover this. We have also achieved a 1% increase in the employers’ contribution to the Super Fund (now 8%). This we believe is a major step forward as this will give the young members especial- ly an opportunity to secure a better future At Auckland May Day 2008, from left, Henry NeeNee (Local 13), Archie Hawkins (Auckland Seafarers), going forward. Daniel Stacey (Auckland Seafarers), Auckland Seafarers Secretary Garry Parsloe, Auckland Seafarers Vice President At a meeting of the members on Thursday Peter Davis, Craig Harrison (Local 13) 29 May the document was presented to the members by the Union delegates, and I then took the opportunity to acknowl- although it was not unanimous there was Auckland edge the magnificent act of solidarity in a good majority in favour. South Africa where Dockers refused to dis- As always you can’t satisfy everyone. Seafarers charge a vessel carrying arms and weap- One of the major concerns of both advo- ons that were going into another country cates was to have an agreement in place in by Garry Parsloe in Africa to be used against workers in that an election year as things at this moment country. do not look good for Labour. We hope this Auckland May Day activities 2008 This magnificent action makes us all proud will change as we near the Elections. to be part of the trade union movement. I must remind members that if you do not On Thursday 1 May 2008 we assembled at Our first speaker was Secretary of the get out and vote it is as good as giving a the bottom of Queen Street at 5pm where Council of Trade Unions Carol Beaumont. vote to the opposition. we offered speakers an open mic to deliver Carol’s speech was well received by all Anyone who thinks National is a better workers’ issues to the Rally. the unions as she took the time to mention alternative to Labour are in for one hell of At 5.45pm we marched from the bottom every union and spoke on some of their a shock if they get in. of Queen St to Aotea Square where the recent activities especially their victories. Delegates and activists were treated to a The unions acknowledged Carols massive Pacifica Shipping BBQ cooked up by Todd Douglas and Phil contribution to the trade union movement. Graham both from AWUNZ. We have settled the Wharfies and Cus- After Carols speech I asked everyone to As Chairman of the May Day Commit- tomer Service areas agreement and we stand for one minutes silence to acknowl- tee I had the privilege of introducing the still have to do the Foreman’s again. I edge Workers Memorial Day. speakers. believe we have made some advances on The function then continued with an The first speaker was Council of Trade the previous document. EPMU presentation then a SFWU presen- Unions’ Vice President Richard Wagstaff, tation. Both presentations were about past, who was followed by Darien Fenton MP C3 present and planned activities. (Labour Party), then Ivan Sowerby (Green The last presentation was from the Work- As their agreement is expiring this year Party.) ing Women’s Resource Centre. they have indicated that they would like All speakers spoke on current issues and The presenter Tanja Bristow gave an to get into talks before the expiry date so were well received by the Rally. indepth report on all the work that this hopefully this is a positive thing. After the speeches most of the MUNZ group is involved with. In general I would like to say that it is very members went down to the Maritime Club After the speeches we were treated to an disappointing when we have two areas in where we continued the May Day Celebra- excellent dinner, which was followed by this Port that are not represented on our tions well into the evening. videos and music to set the tone for a most executive. On Saturday 3 May 2008 the Auckland enjoyable evening. Now that we have gone to company em- unions celebrated both International Work- When I summed up at the end of the ployment, it is imperative that each area ers Day and Workers Memorial Day at the function, I thanked both Russell Mayn has someone on our executive to pass back May Day Function that was held at the (MUNZ) and Linda Holt (PSA) for all the to the members what is happening in our Onehunga R.S.A. work they put into making the function port and others. As Chairman of the May Day Committee I the success that it was. opened the function by welcoming all the I concluded by thanking all the delegates delegates, union officials and friends of the for being part of this most important oc- trade union movement. casion. I welcomed the Labour MPs Mark Gosche, Lynne Pilay and Darien Fenton.

32 | The Maritimes | July 2008 www.munz.org.nz PORT ROUNDUPS

Susan has left the industry and we wish Susan all the best in her new endeavours. Susan was easily approachable, she was readily available to attend branch meetings and always found time to answer any queries that the members had on superannuation.

Retirement The branch would like to wish Peter Waddel all the best in his retirement. Peter was a true loyal, staunch member who always had the union at heart. Peter served on our local executive for a number of years and his experience and straight talking will be missed. We thank Peter for contribution and support of the union over the years. Bluff branch President Harry Holland, Prime Minister Helen Clark, Labour MP Lesley Soper and Bluff branch Secretary Ray Fife at Invercargill Government–Union forum

MUA Conference Bluff Branch President Harry Holland Napier

attended the Maritime Union of Australia by Ray Fife by Bill Connelly conference held in Sydney along with 28 other New Zealand delegates. MSC The conference was timed to coincide Around and about: The Mediterranean Shipping company has with the 10th anniversary of the Patricks The port is reasonably quiet at the moment added a weekly call at Bluff. Streamlining dispute and the role many played in the and at the time of writing I am sitting the direction of the service through New 1998 victory. in the office, being the only member of Zealand from the previous north-south- Many issues were discussed and debated MUNZ gainfully employed. north format has enabled South Port to be at the conference that our union can take added without the need to drop any other on board to progress our union and benefit Hawkes Bay Stevedoring Services Limited: calls. The result will see more jobs created our members. in the port and a more stable future for our There were approximately 140 At this time I usually say who has left the members. international guests from throughout industry, but this time I am pleased to the globe in attendance. After listening report, and welcome, two new permanent Seismic Research to the international guests report on the employees, they are Andrew Maclean and problems they are facing, it seems the Anthony Warren. The first stage in the search for oil in the issues we face in our country are the same Although they have been on the Napier Great South Basin has drawn to a close in other countries. register for many years, the officers, execu- with both the seismic research vessels The sense of belonging, the camaraderie tive and members of the Napier branch which have been working there having and pride in being part of a union that welcome Andrew and Anthony to their completed their duties and headed north has links globally makes you realise the permanent ranks and hopefully their con- before the onset of winter. importance of how we must continue tinued association with the branch will be Both the 'Western Trident' and 'Discoverer to encourage and support international a long and fruitful joint venture. 2' worked through Bluff and their chase solidarity. It was a great conference and boats were regular visitors here, the 'Ocean I would like to thank the Branch and Workers’ Memorial Day: Pioneer' for the 'Western Trident' and the members for the opportunity for both 'Margaret Philippa' for the 'Discoverer 2'. A service was held at the port on Monday myself and Harry to attend. The enormous volume of recordings 28 April 2008 to commemorate Workers’ the vessels have produced will now be Memorial Day. The weather for a change Elections analysed by their respective charterers was fine and representatives from the before any decision is made to take oil The coming elections are going to be very CTU, RMTU, MUNZ and Port of Napier exploration in the Great South Basin to the important to our union. gave their respective addresses on safety next stage. If a National Government is elected within the workplace. we will see the gains we have made Tasman Orient changes through the Labour coalition lost and find Hawke’s Bay Stevedoring Services Limited: ourselves back to the union bashing days The port is to stand to gain from the The current Local Port Schedule expired of the 1990s. recently announced enhancements to on the 28 February 2008. The branch and All union members are reminded to make Tasman Orient Line's service through Bluff membership met on 16 June to discuss sure that you are enrolled, make sure that to East Asia. their concerns and a draft claims list is in you vote and make sure that you do not Direct calls will now be made in the the process of being formulated for the vote for National. Philippines on this service while retaining employer. the existing frequency. WISF The most obvious change to the Tasman C3 (Formerly Toll Logistics New Zealand Limited) Orient service through Bluff will be the Our branch would like to acknowledge the introduction of the gantry-crane equipped contribution Susan Leuchers has made to The Collective Agreement expires on the sisters 'Tasman Independence' and the Waterfront Industry Superannuation 31 December 2008. 'Tasman Resolution.' Fund while Fund Director. www.munz.org.nz The Maritimes | July 2008 | 33 PORT ROUNDUPS

Clothing Remember we have polo shirts, beanies, caps and jackets with the MUNZ emblem for sale. See the Secretary for orders.

Government Elections The elections for Government will be held near the end of the year. All members should be politically active otherwise we will be looking at a government hell bent on taking off any gains we have made while under the current government. It is indeed very interesting to see the lo- cal National Party nominee for Dunedin North is the son of a former Tally Clerk in the terminal, Alan Woodhouse. Members should make sure they attend election meetings to put the hard questions to these people.

Holiday unit There are some gaps at our Queenstown Port Chalmers Dunedin Branch Executive, June 2008: front row from left, Stuart Crawford, David Dick, Paul Napier, Ian Quarrell, back row from left, Graham Wall, Andrew Jennings, Graham Wright, Phil Adams (photo by V. Billot) unit for people wishing to use the unit over winter. All you skiers see Ian Quarrel and Alan Middleditch for bookings. Our negotiating team is made up of a cross Port Chalmers section of all departments working for Port Retirees Otago and this gives a true reflection of Dunedin what all departments seek in the negotia- Bruce Law and Murray Gillon will enter tions. retirement soon. Both are popular mem- by Phil Adams bers so we wish them all the best for their MUA conference retirement. Greetings from the south. As winter starts The national MUA conference, which was Sports tourney to bite we are particularly busy in the held in Sydney in April, was attended by terminal where more permanent cargo four members from our branch as well as We are currently asking members to put handlers are being taken on. The termi- myself. Albie Patton, Paul Napier, “Tank” their names forward for the sports tourney nal has gained more work at the expense Lysaght and Ian Quarrell all enjoyed the in Timaru in February 2009. Any inquiries of Timaru which has lost some Maersk experience of meeting dockers and seafar- see Winky Waugh. services, and the return to Port Chalmers ers from all over the globe. All represented of Hamburg Sud. our branch in a way expected from us all. Super and Medical A reminder to all to make sure you join Port Chalmers Cargo Services Branch elections the medical and super scheme to plan for Port Chalmers Cargo Services continues to Our recent elections have concluded with years at Port Otago. be busy with fish, fertiliser, cement, logs Davy Dick back as President after a close In addition we note that the manager of and out of port transfers. Negotiations for tussle with Andrew Jennings. Ian Quarrell the Waterfront Industry Super Fund Susan a new agreement is currently taking place is back as Vice-President and Phil Adams Leuchars has moved on to a new job. with Phil Adams and Noel Currie respre- as Secretary/Treasurer. The Executive Susan was in this position for a number of senting the union. are: Graham Wall, Paul Napier, Andrew years and had a challenging job as many Jennings, Stuart Crawford, and Graham of our members take an active interest in Staff Wright. their super fund and would ask the tough questions. We wish Susan all the best and The new staff that have started at the Congratulations to all and commiserations thank her for her contribution. port company have joined our union and to those who missed out, we hope they give it another go in the future. we hope in the couple of weeks to have Retirees a meeting with them to give a run down of our union and the expectations of new New arrivals We are currently asking all those retired to members. Congratulations to Fraser Adams and part- look at being part of our National Veteran ner Margaret on the birth of your daugh- Association and those interested should Port Otago negotiations ter, and to Glen Clarkson and wife. speak with the President or the Secretary. The port company negotiations continue ITF on with changes being asked for in the New pilot boat working of 4100 vessels and three cranes The new pilot boat has arrived from Our branch would like to extend our over a 24 hour period, which is a major Australia and it is rumoured that Davy thanks to Kathy Whelan for her work as negotiating point. Dick and his crew are being fitted out with ITF representative in New Zealand. The unions have been subject to change uniforms along with the gold braid which We wish you all the best as you explore over the terms of the agreement in the Dicky should look good in. other avenues. hours they work. Well that’s about it from our port.

34 | The Maritimes | July 2008 www.munz.org.nz PORT ROUNDUPS Mount Maunganui by Eddie Cook and Peter Harvey

We have an executive committee up and running now with Peter Harvey as Presi- dent, Glen Hicks as Vice President, Eddie Cook as Secretary and 10 members from C3, NZL Group, Ballance and Seafarers. We have been quite busy with mediation, collective agreements and other problems which we are getting on top of and things are coming together rather well. It has been rather difficult with the prob- lems that the previous Branch Organizer left for us but we are getting more mem- bers each week and the branch is on the move forward. Our thanks to Russell Mayn and Gary Parsloe and everyone else for the helping hand we have received, it is greatly appre- ciated from our members of the committee and the branch. The branch attended a CTU Government Forum on Thursday 19 June with Prime At the MUNZ National Executive meeting, May 2008, from left, Timaru Branch Secretary Kevin Forde, Wellington seafarer Minister Helen Clark and Mita Ririnui MP. Peter Stills, MUA National Presiding Officer Jimmy Boyle, Auckland Local 13 President Denis Carlisle, Wellington Sea- farers Branch Secretary Joe Fleetwood, Wellington Waterfront Branch Vice President Bradley Clifford (photo by V. Billot) We are trying to get as many branch members active as possible in the election campaign and formulating our different This new work together with recent activities. Wellington retirements has resulted in the following We need as many activists on the ground personnel moves: as possible to get a worker friendly Gov- Waterfront Vince Little, Bradley Clifford and Jason ernment re-elected. Crown to permanent 40 hours. by John Whiting New starts as permanent part-timers (GWEs) are Fabian Elliot, Zac Isaako, Pacifica Michael Mace, Grant Hyland, Johnny Hen- son, and Garry Carter. The collective agreement for the Pacifica All positive news for these members. Wellington stevedoring operation has been renewed for a one-year term with a wage Wellington branch unity rate increase acceptable to these members. Personnel changes include the resignations We intend to proceed with urgency to of Daniel Whelan and Robert Tiatia and bring about the merging of the Wellington the move from GWE to fulltime for Jason Waterfront and Seafarers Branches into Simi. Also new GWE Rupert Simi and one united entity. further additions to follow. Firstly, via full consideration by both ex- The decision of Robert Tiatia to seek new ecutives to shape the new combined struc- opportunities in Western Australia is a ture, followed by seeking the endorsement major loss for the branch and our members of our respective memberships. at Pacifica and we acknowledge his loyalty This move, overdue, and arising from to the union and the members over his 15 the formation of the Maritime Union of years service, the last eight as a very effec- New Zealand will improve our strength tive job delegate taking on the role of work and resources, enable better membership place leadership. service, and enhance our primary function Our loss is a gain to the MUA and the West – the protection and advancement of our and we wish Robert and his family all the members terms and conditions of employ- best for the future. ment, both ashore and at sea. In short, to continue on an even better CentrePort footing the ability of the Maritime Union to punch above its weight! The recent moves by Maersk to call week- ly, MSC to continue the Trans-Tasman call weekly with the addition of MSC Frisia, and also the PIL/MISC decision to change to a weekly call with bigger ships are good news for the members at the Port Co.

www.munz.org.nz The Maritimes | July 2008 | 35 36 | The Maritimes | July 2008 www.munz.org.nz