Tugboat workers stop work over dispute with towage company Svitzer

Tugboat workers at Geraldton Port walked off the job in protest on Thursday over a wage dispute with employer Svitzer. Geraldton Svitzer workers held a four-hour work stoppage, beginning at 12pm, joining workers in Fremantle, Albany and Kwinana who stopped work for 24 hours. The action was part of an ongoing campaign by workers at Svitzer, and Geraldton workers previously went on a work stoppage on August 5. Svitzer, a subsidiary of Maersk, and its Australian unions have been locked in negotiations over a new enterprise agreement since 2019. The unions, including the Maritime Union of Australia, the Australian Institute of Maritime and Power Engineers and the Australian Maritime Officers Union, have said Svitzer have been unwilling to offer a fair wage which matches inflation. A Svizter spokesperson said the company has made reasonable attempts to fix the dispute and is attempting to address issues critical for the company’s sustainability and competitiveness. “We would like to sincerely apologise to our customers and port stakeholders for the disruption this protected action is having and are doing all we can to minimise the disruption to services,” they said. The Mid West Ports Authority said it was aware of the industrial action taking place, and coordinated shipping so the port’s operations could continue.