BY DAVE ANDREWS
FREMANTLE — Meeting on February 24, Maritime Union of Australia (MUA) employees at P&O Ports here decisively rejected an enterprise bargaining agreement (EBA) negotiated between their union and P&O.
Despite heavy promotion by national and local MUA officials, the vote for the deal only attracted just over 10% of P&O employees.
Opposition to the EBA centred on three major issues. The first was that it was too vague, allowing P&O to push its corporate agenda through the three-year duration of the EBA with only assurances the union would be involved in consultation. Experience under the current EBA has made many wary of P&O's intentions.
Secondly, conditions won in the past, such as provisions that no permanent employee would be required to work on "closed port days", were up for sale. Thirdly, the the EBA offered no path towards permanent employment for casual employees. If the agreement had gone through, many casuals would have to work at least 10 years on the waterfront with no guarantee of permanent employment.
The meeting to vote on the EBA was also held under duress from P&O. A previous meeting was abandoned when P&O refused to pay casuals for attending and tried to get permanents to work after a 5-6 hour meeting. The February 24 meeting resulted in permanents being docked 1.5 hours' pay, despite allowable stop-work meetings under the current EBA.
Following the February 24 vote, MUA officials have unsuccessfully asked P&O for a resumption of talks but with no clear industrial strategy to fall back on, the EBA process seems at an impasse.
From 91×ÔÅÄÂÛ̳ Weekly, March 5, 2003.
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