Employers balk at waterfront compromise call

By PAULA OLIVER

Employers say a compromise suggested by the mediator of a long-running dispute between Mainland Stevedoring and the Waterfront Workers Union goes too far.

The draft report into the dispute, leaked by National MP Nick Smith yesterday, rejects the views of the Waterfront Workers Union.

But it suggests a compromise hiring agreement in which local workers would have preference when Mainland sought to hire staff.

The report, by veteran mediator Walter Grills, follows a bitter four-month dispute over Carter Holt Harvey's use of out-of-town Mainland Stevedoring labour to load logs on to ships in the South Island.

The Waterfront Workers Union claimed that the practice casualised the work previously done by permanent employees, undermined safety standards and conditions, and used North Island labour.

But Mr Grills' draft report found no legal substance to the complaints. Several Mainland workers were employed on permanent contracts, and Mainland was employing South Island people, the report said.

He acknowledged some genuine concerns over a reduction in the number of breaks allowed and the lack of a "hatchman" to oversee the loading of logs.

But Mr Grills still pushed for a compromise in Mainland's future hiring practices - a move that the Employers' Federation and Mainland Stevedoring said was unfair.

"The simple thing is that there is no substantial base on which the WWU can make their claims," Mainland chief executive Greg Dickson said. "The move suggested by the mediator, we think, is too much."

He said the idea would result in Mainland discriminating when it looked for new staff.

Mainland planned to continue loading Carter Holt's log ships, and would continue using its present employment process. Applicants with port experience, appropriate skills and the right attitude would be frontrunners for jobs.

Employers Federation chief executive Anne Knowles said it was a concern to employers that even though the report showed no breaches of the law occurred, Mainland and Carter Holt Harvey were still being asked to take on extra responsibilities and liabilities.

Although the case was so unusual that she did not see it as a precedent for others, Ms Knowles did say it could have a wider effect if it met its logical conclusion - where a new contractor had to automatically take over the terms and conditions of people working for another employer, rather than negotiate its own deal.

"Mainland really has an obligation to its existing workforce and to its clients to employ the best people possible to do the job," she said.

"It's a question of choice. As long as they are not acting in an unlawful way, employers must retain the right to employ the best person for the job without any qualifications attached."

Waterfront Workers' Union national secretary Trevor Hanson said that the leaking of the report was a disappointment because it was supposed to be confidential.

"There are things in there that we don't agree with, sure," he said. "But we will continue. We will put amendments forward for the final report."

He said the protests would continue until solid talks began.

Carter Holt Harvey chief executive Chris Liddell said it was time for the union to move on.

"This is a dispute that should never have happened," he said. "We would like to hope it is a one-off, and we would like to hope it is not part of a wider trend."