SVITZER Australia has come to an in-principle agreement with the three maritime unions for a new national harbour towage enterprise agreement.

According to a spokesperson for the company a ballot for the proposed new agreement is to open at midday (AEST) on Thursday 8 June. It is to close at midday the following Saturday.

The in-principle with the Australian Institute of Marine and Power Engineers, the Australian Maritime Officers Union and the Maritime Union of Australia covers masters, engineers and deckhands working at 17 ports in Australia.

The company declined to comment on the details of the deal and thanked the Fair Work Commission for its assistance in reaching this stage.

Svitzer Australia managing director Nicolaj Noes said the company’s priority throughout has been to reach a new, fair agreement with our colleagues on the water.

“[An agreement] that recognises the common-sense changes we need to make as a business; ensures we can continue to deliver critical harbour towage infrastructure; and, that provides fulfilling, well-compensated work and conditions for our colleagues,” he said.

“We are proud to provide what are recognised by many as the best in-shore maritime jobs in the country and we look forward to the certainty and stability a new enterprise agreement offers for all parties.

“We encourage our colleagues to vote in favour of the new agreement so we can focus, together, on continuing to deliver our customers the best possible service through safe, reliable and efficient towage, and to accelerate decarbonisation across the Australian maritime industry.”

The path to this in-principle agreement has been long and, at times, acrimonious.

In November 2022, Svitzer announced it would lock out its nearly 600 maritime employees indefinitely, which would have essentially crippled shipping in the 17 ports in which it operates.

This came after more than three years of negotiations between the unions and the company.

The Fair Work Commission prevented the lockout from occurring and put a moratorium on further industrial action for six months, which ended in May.