HUTCHISON terminals in Sydney and Brisbane are set to be hit with protected industrial action as part of a CFMMEU campaign against what it sees as company attempts to cut working conditions.
A 24-hour stoppage is to occur at the Port Botany and Fisherman Island terminals, starting at 6am Thursday 11 April.
Hutchison confirmed the stoppages in a notice to customers issued this week.
“The employee claim action… is being taken for the purpose of supporting or advancing claims made in respect of the proposed enterprise agreement,” the Hutchison statement read.
“During this period of industrial unrest Hutchison Ports Australia will endeavour to minimise any delays where possible.”
Hutchison and the union have been at loggerheads since early in the year over the terms of a future EA. A large demonstration occurred outside the Hutchison terminal in Sydney in the year.
According to the union, the workers are walking off the job to protest Hutchison Ports’ “ongoing refusal to move away from outsourcing of jobs and overseas remote controlling of already semi-automated equipment”.
Speaking with the national media earlier in the year, Hutchison indicated its workforce was on a good wicket, saying Port Botany wharfies earned on average $150,000 a year with superannuation while Port of Brisbane workers received $130,000 annually for an average working week of 30 to 33 hours.
A Hutchison spokesman told DCN they were seeking to schedule dates to resume negotiations.
