Jul-Aug 2008

Another Battle Won

MUA court victory hailed as a victory for all workers

(click here for Geraldton Update (July, 2000)

JANUARY, 2000: The Maritime Union of Australia has won a major legal victory against employers attempting to de-unionise their workforce by contracting out.

In the Federal Court in Perth on January 14, Justice Nicholson ordered that the Geraldton Port Authority re-establish stevedoring services - a year and a half after they were contracted out, on the urging of the Court Government in July 1998.

Justice Nicholson also ordered that the MUA members receive compensation for lost award entitlements, including overtime.

The decision has been hailed as a legal precedent, which will prevent employers, across all industries, from outsourcing to avoid union labour.

The MUA first launched a conspiracy case against the port authority, former state minister for transport Eric Charlton and the current minister Murray Criddle in November, 1998, claiming a conspiracy to 'rid the port of its workers because they were MUA members'.

It also sought damages and an injunction against further redundancies.

The case was modelled on the successful Federal Court action against Patrick boss Chris Corrigan and Federal Workplace Relations Minister Peter Reith. And the parallels do not end there. For it was in July, 1998, only weeks after MUA members walked back in the gates at Patrick enterprises, that the Geraldton Port Authority announced it would outsource all stevedoring work, with preference going to companies using individual contracts (Australian Workplace Agreements)

Not only that, the Port Authority contracted Patrick lawyers, Freehill Hollingdale & Page, to prepare the licensing agreement.

Then on July 18 the Australian Financial Review confirmed that a new stevedoring labour hire company had been formed from the Webb Dock/Dubai workforce.

"We sighted them lurking about town soon after," said Geraldton union secretary Peter Winchbuist. "The Dubai blokes even attended a meeting at the Geraldton Port Authority offering their services."

Up until this time the west coast port had been operating very successfully with an integrated labour force. The IPLF - a union brainwave, tripled productivity and cut costs at six WA regional ports by $3 million.

Under the scheme maintenance and office workers helped work the ships when they were in and waterside workers helped with maintenance and other work when they sailed. (See MWJ December, 1998) But the port authority undid this,, contracting out stevedoring work and restricting port employees to port work.

Round one of the legal battle went to the MUA with the Federal Court ruling against the port authority dismissing any of this employees on grounds of redundancy in December, 1998.

The MUA won round two in July last year when the court found the WA transport ministers and the port authority in breach of the Workplace Relations Act.

Justice Nicholson found that the port authority had threatened to injure or prejudicially alter the position of its employees because they were members of the union and that this was in breach of section 298 of the Act. But despite a letter from the minister's office to port authority chairman John Durant seeking 'to rid the port of MUA influence' the conspiracy case was dismissed.

Meanwhile the GPA proceeded with its plot to exorcise the port of the MUA, ordering the union rooms off the wharves. The MUA had a 'peppercorn agreement' with the GPA to lease one of the offices. "I received three registered letters from Hollingdale and Page and one hand delivered on, giving me one month's notice to quit the office and get out," said Peter Winchbuist. "When I approached port management about our long standing agreement, he informed me that the port authority did not want the mua occupying any of its premises under any agreement. They would not even tolerate us there as a tenant. So I had to move out of the building and operate my office from home, 10 kilometres away from wharves.

While the court battles dragged on keeping the port running was a hard job.

During this time MUA stevedoring workers still picked up jobs on the ships with P&O, Patrick cbh, Western Stevedores, wa Mercentile and United Stevedores. But the maintenance and office workers could not. The companies had to fly workers in from out of town when the port was busy, as local MUA port employees trained and able to do stevedoring work, watched. As well they could only work nine to five, severely restricting their earning capacity.

"It was a gruelling 18 months," said Peter Winchbuist. "This port has been an absolute mess. The authority went along with the government wishes and dismantled a perfect working arrangement. "Manning the vessels on the wharves was very difficult," he said. "We were using ex industry blokes who took redundancies and supps. But, without the port workers, we did not have enough specialised labour. They had to bring them in from Fremantle or from other companies. It was a joint effort just to keep the port operating."

Things did not go right until the New Year after the court order came down. Justice Nicholson ordered the port authority to resume stevedoring work, by 'making the labour of the employees available for hire to stevedores'.

He also ordered that port workers once again be classified as irregular shift workers under the award and the agreement and that GPA compensate MUA members for lost award entitlements including overtime. (The court order calls for individual payments made up of 24 hours for each calender month at 1.5 times the ordinary rate of pay).

The court also rejected an application by the former and current state transport ministers that the MUA pay their court costs.

Once the decision came down in favour of the MUA, the outcry from the local press and the community was deafening.

In Geraldton the 15 remaining MUA members demanded the sacking of the port authority board and this chief executive John Durant.

"Their credibility has been destroyed," said MUA port secretary Peter Winch-Buist. "It's a great victory. Absolutely fantastic to be part of an organisation prepared to take on the fight not just sit back and let a conspiracy get by."

The Geraldton Guardian called on the port authority to 'finish saga now' and stop 'the waste of taxpayers' money' - an estimated $1 million.

And the national ramifications of the court ruling for all unionists, in all industries won the victory coverage in all national dailies.

MUA National Secretary John Coombs told the press that the decision was a major victory, not just for Geraldton waterside workers, but for all union members.

"This decision draws a line in the sand for outsourcing in Australia," said the National Secretary. "Employers who try to use contracting out to break unions and slash working conditions could now wind up paying hundreds of thousands of dollars in legal fees and restructuring costs for their businesses."

Maurice Blackburn Cashman partner, Josh Bornstein, who acted for the MUA, said it was the first time a court had ordered an employer to restore a whole employment regime.

"This judgement graphically illustrates the breadth of powers available to courts to remedy anti-union conduct. The court has now reversed the Port Authority's decision to contract out stevedoring by ordering the status quo to be restored," he said.

The enterprise agreement which aims to restore the successful integrated port labour force is now being renegotiated.

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