Ships caught in dispute depart with goods to keep to their schedules

Ports of Auckland. Photo / Brett Phibbs

Two container ships affected by the Auckland port dispute are said to be cutting short visits to New Zealand, taking with them goods which should have gone to the South Island.

Unionists last night agreed to obey an Employment Court injunction to let the Maersk Aberdeen discharge cargo in Wellington, after a four-day delay caused by a picket in support of more than 300 striking Auckland port workers.

But Maritime Union president Garry Parsloe said another vessel chartered by Denmark's giant Maersk shipping line, Irenes Remedy, had cut and run after unloading cargo on Tauranga on Monday under an earlier court order.

"It has left the coast and given up going to any other port - it has capitulated and run away," he said of the ship, which was last night observed sailing north from Great Barrier Island.

A spokesman for Maersk, which brought the ship and a transtasman cargo including foodstuffs from Brisbane last week to Auckland to be unloaded by non-union labour, could not say whether its original schedule included other ports after Tauranga.

But he said the Maersk Aberdeen would cut short its visit to New Zealand after its Wellington call, instead of sailing on to Lyttelton as originally planned, to unload supplies for the South Island and pick up export goods.

That would be to "get back on schedule" rather than any capitulation to the strike Auckland dock workers.

Wellington's CentrePort chief executive, Blair O'Keeffe, said that although pleased the Employment Court had supported its legal position, "we're disappointed to be in this position and we think many of our workers are too".

"We didn't create this situation but we've worked to resolve it in a reasonable and responsible manner ..."

He said the court decision confirmed CentrePort staff acted unlawfully by not agreeing to work on the Maersk Aberdeen.

The Maritime Union's Wellington branch secretary, Mike Clark, said the union would allow the ship to be worked from 8pm last night as "we are not in the business of disobeying court orders and putting our members' freedom in jeopardy".

He said it was just a case "of losing one battle in the war", and expected other skirmishes associated with the Auckland strike, which began 12 days ago and is due to continue for more than two more weeks.

Prime Minister John Key said yesterday that the Government had still not been asked to intervene in the dispute, which follows a breakdown in collective employment negotiations and a threat by Ports of Auckland to contract out jobs.

It would be an "enormous call" for the Government to do so, even though the ports were important to New Zealand's reputation and economy.

But Importers' Institute secretary Daniel Silva questioned the Government's priorities in changing industrial law last year to avoid potential union disruption to filming The Hobbit yet refusing to become involved in the port dispute. He was unaware of any supply shortages, but said that was because importers were going to great cost to transport goods by air or by rail from ports other than Auckland.

All at sea during dispute

Container ships affected by the dispute:

* Irenes Remedy - discharged cargo in Auckland last week, blockaded in Tauranga at the weekend, heading to Southeast Asia last night.

* Maersk Aberdeen - discharged cargo in Auckland last week, blockaded in Wellington from Friday night until yesterday, due to sail back overseas after unloading and loading freight by court order issued yesterday.

* Lisa Shulte - discharged cargo in Auckland at the weekend, heading to Brisbane yesterday.

Ships due at Auckland's strike-hit Fergusson container terminal today, to be worked by non-union and management labour:

* Maersk Brani, Passat Spring.

Ships bypassing Auckland this week:

* Spirit of Endurance, Merkur Sky, Maersk Batur, Rudolf Schepers, Pescara.