Maritime union says protests will continue over sacking of workers by text
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Version 0 of 1. The Maritime Union of Australia (MUA) says workers will continue to protest mass sackings by shipping giant Hutchison Ports Australia, which dumped almost half its workforce with late night text messages. The MUA says about 100 protesters in Sydney and 50 in Brisbane will continue to occupy the company’s terminals after 94 workers across Australia were notified they were being sacked by text messages at 11.30pm on Thursday. “We’re just really disappointed and frustrated,” MUA Sydney branch Secretary Paul McAleer said. “We have 50 families who are crushed. This isn’t about 50 people made redundant because there is no work. There is work here. “The women and men they work with, who have been lucky enough to escape the brutality at the moment, are incredibly distressed about the future they have.” The MUA has sought a federal court injunction against the sackings. The union says Hutchison Ports is using the sackings as a strategy to downsize their business, de-unionise their workforce and completely automate their workplace without any union involvement over the next 18 months. Related: Text-message sacking of shipping workers 'an attempt to break union' Meanwhile, Labor and the MUA have attacked as “heartless” a comment from the federal employment minister, Eric Abetz, that the sackings by text message may be appropriate. Senator Abetz told the ABC on Friday: “If the culture is that employees can text message the boss and they in fact expect the boss to text message them then that may be an appropriate methodology.” Labor’s employment and workplace relations spokesman, Brendan O’Connor, said the comment is heartless. “Senator Eric Abetz’s comments yesterday are heartless and demonstrative of a government that is out of touch with the challenges facing Australian workers,” O’Connor said. “Mr Abetz’s comments come the day after the latest ABS labour force figures showed that for the first time in 20 years, there are more than 800,000 Australians unemployed.” The MUA’s McAleer said Abetz’s comment showed the government is out of touch. “He says it’s OK to sack workers via text message or email,” McAleer said. “He should be standing up for Australian workers.” Queensland secretary of the MUA, Bob Carnegie, said the company was trying to break the union’s influence. “We will do whatever we have to do to defend those workers’ working lives,” Carnegie said. “If it goes for a couple of days, great, if it goes for a couple of years so be it. “We won’t be giving in until they come to the negotiating table and act in a reasonable manner towards our people. We have to win this, because defeat is unimaginable.” Hutchison, the Fair Work Commission and Senator Abetz have all been contacted for comment. |