Cargo On The Move, But Only At Three Ports
Sydney Morning Herald
Saturday May 9, 1998
Wharfies had returned to six of Patrick's 13 terminals last night but cargo was moving out of only three ports.
More than 500 containers were moved out of Port Botany and 835 boxes were shifted from East Swanson in Melbourne after workers returned on Thursday.
Dockers in Burnie, Tasmania, began unloading two ships of general cargo after returning to work shortly after 8 am yesterday.
Elsewhere, disagreement between unionists and Patrick over the company's so-called "unsuitables" - a list of 25 dockers Patrick refuses to allow into terminals - prevented the return of workers in Townsville and Darling Harbour, and delayed workers returning to the Fisherman Islands terminal in Brisbane.
Some wharfies entered the Darling Harbour terminal shortly after 4 pm. According to Patrick, unionists verbally abused and pushed the terminal manager, Mr Anthony Hughes. The maritime union denies the claim.
Patrick dismissed claims by the Maritime Union of Australia (MUA) that unionists' lockers had been broken open and thousands of dollars of damage had been caused to equipment in Port Botany and Darling Harbour terminals.
"All the tools in the maintenance area have been destroyed, stolen or mixed up," MUA official Mr Glen Wood said. "Wires on the straddle cranes have also been broken."
Fremantle's 102 full-time workers were not expected to return until today because of difficulties the administrator was having supplying maintenance staff, Patrick said.
The company said its bulk cargo handling sites in Newcastle and Port Kembla, NSW, Alma in Queensland, Geraldton in Western Australia, Bell Bay in Tasmania and Adelaide would remain closed until further notice.
However, in Newcastle, wharfies returned to the picket line after being refused permission to discharge the bulk carrier Bay Bonanza on Thursday night.
Patrick expected the backlog of 10,000 containers to be removed in the next three days. The bulk of containers - more than 7,000 - were stranded in Sydney and Melbourne, with the rest waiting to be moved in Brisbane and Townsville.
On Monday the NSW Supreme Court will rule on applications by three unions - the MUA, the Construction Forestry Mining and Energy Union and the Automotive Food Metals Engineering Printing and Kindred Industries Union - to set aside subpoenas served on them by Patrick.
Patrick's lawyers have argued that documents sought by the subpoenas were needed to support a contempt hearing Patrick is pursuing.
© 1998 Sydney Morning Herald
