At the May 2012 Maritime Union of New Zealand National Executive meeting, Waterside House, Wellington, New Zealand, from left to right are Ben George (delegate, Port Chalmers Dunedin Branch), Tristan Ormsby (delegate, Lyttelton branch), Dave Thorpe (Observer, Lyttelton), Bradley Clifford (Observer, Wellington Branch), Andrew Parker (Observer, Wellington Branch)
Port Chalmers Dunedin By Ben George
Retired members’ shout
Recently a number of long serving members of our branch have taken the opportunity to exit the industry to enjoy the fruits of their labour. This has marked the end of an era. Six of the members who left took with them over 140 years service combined. In honour of these outstanding examples to us all, a members’ shout was held in the WIC building in Port Chalmers on Friday 27 April. The unpredictable nature of shipping resulted in many of our members having to work a vessel. Despite this, a good turn out of veterans, retired and current members were able to attend and the evening was a success. Retiring members were recognised with a presentation by Branch Secretary Phil Adams and Branch President Ben George. Bruce Malcolm also received life membership to MUNZ for his services to the union.
Marine Services
Two areas of the Marine services division in Port Chalmers have been under review. 1. Entitlements of Tug and General Deckhands if working on their RDO. 2. Entitlements for General Deckhands’ leave when working various rosters. We believe both of these issues are close to resolution pending acceptance of the affected parties.
www.munz.org.nz
Lost Time Injury
Recently it seems there is an obsession with keeping LTI’s within the Terminal to an absolute minimum. The motivation for this is not entirely clear but one could hazard a guess and the reasons for this could be linked to managers KPI’s and bonuses. The result is that our members are being put in a position of being encouraged to return to work, albeit on light duties before they are ready. We need to monitor this situation closely and collectively to ensure this is not happening, as anyone who is not fit to work in this extremely hazardous environment is a danger not only to themselves but to others as well.
Health and Safety
Health and Safety is a hot topic for all employers at the moment in light of what has happened with the Pike River Mine disaster. Local 10 is supporting the Port Company in their initiatives to improve Health and Safety across all areas of the business but need to be mindful that this doesn’t result in rules for some and not for others, or becomes a tool for employers to isolate and crucify employees.
Local Elections
Local elections are underway at present with nominations closed and returning officers currently conducting voting for positions where required. President – Ben George (Elected unopposed) Vice President – Stu Crawford (Elected unopposed) Secretary/Treasurer – Phil Adams (Elected unopposed) Trustees (2 required) G Hutton (Elected) R Crawford (Elected)
Executive: Paul Napier, Tim Camp, Nic Abernethy, Mark Middleditch, Stephen Smith
Vega Mars
There were a number of safety issues with the ship’s gear on the Vega Mars that were detected by our guys working for Southern Cross Stevedores and remedied prior to leaving. These members need to be commended for the work they have done here and there is concern that the issues were not addressed earlier at previous ports.
Negotiations
Both the RMTU and MUNZ have jointly initiated bargaining with the Port Company and negotiations are currently underway.
Random drug and alcohol testing
Random Drug and Alcohol testing has been in place on all Port Otago controlled sites. I am pleased to report that despite the company claims of a culture of drug and alcohol problems with its staff there have been only a very small number of positive tests for drugs triggered by proscribed medicines. The random aspects of the testing appear to be satisfactory at a glance as there are some who have been tested more than once already which is truly random.
Passing of a member
The branch is deeply saddened to report the passing of a long term member Colin Scoles. Colin passed unexpectedly on Saturday 12 May in the early hours of the morning. Colin was a well respected member and colleague and will be missed by all that knew him. Our condolences go out to his family and friends. The Maritimes | Winter 2012 | 33