Lyttelton strike deferred after last-chance talks yield progress

Wednesday, 7 March 2018

Rail and Maritime Transport Union South Island organiser John Kerr discusses the ongoing industrial dispute with Lyttelton Port Company during a break in a last-chance mediation meeting ahead of two weeks of planned strikes at the port.

Strike action at Lyttelton Port has been deferred after 'progress' was made at a last-chance mediation meeting – but some union members will still go without pay.

The Rail and Maritime Transport Union (RMTU) has withdrawn strike notices for Friday through until Monday when a new meeting is planned with the Lyttelton Port Company (LPC).

However, strike notices remain in place from Tuesday until at least March 21. LPC said uncertainty around the notices and the realities of international shipping meant substantial disruption would still occur.

Lyttelton Port Company (LPC) is offering at least 3 per cent salary increases a year for the next three years.

LPC operations manager Paul Monk said the port was working with customers to see if they could readjust their shipping schedules to bring in cargo during the period no-longer covered by the strike, but 'we think there may be only limited options'.

**READ MORE:

Lyttelton Port Company boss Peter Davie is said to be 'fully involved' in Wednesday's strike talks, despite being overseas on port business.

* Strike action looms at Lyttelton Port after court win for trade union

* Lyttelton Port of Christchurch workers plan 24-hour strike

Union workers who turn up for work on Thursday, but are no longer needed, will not get paid.

* 'It will shut the port': 200 Lyttelton Port staff ready to strike

* Lyttelton Port workers unanimously back industrial action**

Wednesday's mediation was the 23rd meeting between the two parties in a prolonged and increasingly bitter dispute over a new collective contract for the RMTU's 200 members.

RMTU South Island organiser John Kerr said the union withdrew the strike notices in a show of 'good faith' after the all-day meeting, but concerns lingered over Thursday's work situation.

LPC earlier said it would not be able to pay some members if strike notices were withdrawn with less than seven days' notice 'as shipping will already have been diverted from Lyttelton'.

The RMTU withdrew Thursday's strike notice on Tuesday ahead of the mediation meeting. According to Kerr, as many as 150 RMTU members will not be paid in what the union considered an 'illegal lockout'.

Monk said there was 'likely to be no work for a number of the RMTU members for the period during which the strike notices have been withdrawn'.

However, Wednesday's meeting did yield some 'progress', Kerr said. One of the remaining sticking points was the difference in pay between RMTU members and members of the other major waterfront union.

Previously contentious roster changes had been taken off the table. Monk said LPC made a 'very generous' offer of 3 per cent salary increase for three years with 'no changes to their terms and conditions of work'.

'This means we are no longer asking for the roster changes that would allow the port to offer customers more flexibility in servicing vessels.'

Kerr earlier on Wednesday described the mediation as 'crucial' in avoiding what could be 'potentially the biggest piece of industrial action on the [Lyttelton] waterfront this century'.

LPC chief executive Peter Davie, who was Christchurch's highest paid public boss last year – taking home $950,000 – was overseas and unable to attend the meeting to the consternation of the union.

'[He] gets paid [close to] $1 million a year and apparently he's away for three weeks . . . and from our perspective that's not helpful,' Kerr said.

LPC said Davie was overseas on 'port business', but did not respond to questions about where he was or when he was likely to be back. However, port staff said he was 'fully involved, and closely directing, LPC's response'.

'LPC remains genuinely committed to resolving the industrial situation but RMTU's inflexibility in its demands is challenging given our very generous offer to its members today,' Monk said.