EnergyNewsBulletin.

net - Mermaids union stoush: round three

Page 1 of 2

HOME

ABOUT US

ADVERTISE

PREMIUM

SUBSCRIBE

JOBS BOARD

HELP

CONTACT

Tuesday 20 September 2011

RELATED LINKS
[COMPANY] - MERMAID MARINE AUSTRALIA LIMITED [SECTION] - General News - Marine [REGION] - Australia [RELATED STORY] - UPDATED: Mermaid Marine in for union rumble - Mermaids union stoush: Round two - Dampier strike comes to an end [OTHER] - Printable Version

Make PNN my HomePage

Mermaids union stoush: round three

Monday, 1 August 2011 James McGrath

STEVEDORES at Mermaid Marines Dampier supply base are four days into a ten-day strike after negotiations between the company and the Maritime Union of Australia broke down last week.
The 30 wharfies were due to walk off the base beginning last Friday and return this Thursday but the MUA has extended the strike to ten days. The union has been locked in a dispute with the company since January over the cost of living for workers at the base. The union rejected an increased offer from Mermaid during Thursdays negotiations, and while Mermaid has been hesitant to discuss details of negotiations so far it released details of a pay offer to unions after negotiations broke down. The company said it offered its employees a total of $700 per week for rental reimbursements while employees seeking to buy homes in Karratha would be offered interest subsidies.
Courtesy of Mermaid Marine

- Send to a Friend

Company Search Company Name

Mermaid Marine's Dampier supply base

Company Description

It said total remuneration including rental assistance for the average employee would go up to $191,820 from the current base of $155,454, or $176,878 for those not renting. As reported by ENB, the 30 workers first walked off the job in the middle of last month for four days and flagged further strike action if the company didnt respond to what it saw as restrictive cost of living arrangements. According to the MUA, the 30 workers at the base face rents of $900 per week and electricity bills of $1500 over a 60-day period. While Mermaid Marine said in a statement to the market that the action is not expected to directly impact upon MMAs slipway or vessel operations, managing director Jeff Weber told the ABC that the action was hurting the company. Our guys are paying for it, our clients are paying for it and obviously the company is paying for it, he said. MUA spokesperson Will Tracey told Energy News Bulletin the company was kidding investors if it was saying that the action wouldnt impact on operations. The 30 guys who are walking off are the full-time guys, he said. The rest of the 75-odd are part-time, so basically when the full-time guys walk off nothing gets done. Mermaids shares have taken a hit in the week past, closing at $3.02 on Friday after hitting $3.29 on Tuesday, a loss of 8.94% in a few days. In a media statement made on Friday, the company said it was dismayed that the union rejected the offer. Union delegates have rejected an offer that would have provided workers with rental and mortgage assistance, real wage increases and increased certainty around annual salaries through more consistent rostering, Weber said. It is incredible that a responsible union official can reject an offer that addresses all the key claims. He also attacked the unions propensity towards taking strike action. Continuing industrial action is not in anyones interests, least of all our employees, who are not being paid while they strike, Weber said.

Story Search Type Text Here Section Commodity Region Feature

Advanced Search Site search sponsor

USED EQUIPMENT
Cameron G2 Spool Tree

View Full Used Equipment list

UPCOMING EVENTS
Oil & Gas Investor Summit Asia 2011

Energetic Women

SEAAOC 2011 Australian Gas Markets Fundamentals - A Technical & Commercial Bridging Course

http://www.petroleumnews.net/storyview.asp?storyid=2420837&sectionsource=s90&... 20/09/2011

EnergyNewsBulletin.net - Mermaids union stoush: round three

Page 2 of 2

In response, Tracey said while the figures looked good on face value, they were severely misleading. The thing about those numbers is that, with the rental assistance its tied into whether or not you have your name on the lease, he said. Often when people come up to Karratha to work theyre just trying to find a room. With those with mortgages, the company actually wanted to dictate how the employees structured their mortgages. Its a little bit hard to go back and restructure a mortgage if youre locked in as most of our guys are. Despite the tough talk from both sides, Tracey said the union would walk back onto site if Mermaid Marine came back with an increased offer. In our eyes, were only really about 5 per cent [from]where we want the deal to be, he said. Well continue to negotiate if we cantheres every chance this can be resolved. Click here to read the rest of today's news stories.

Australia Gas 2011 Asset Maintenance in Resources

View all events

LATEST NEWS
LNG bulls stampede Advent investigating shales China CTL emerges from cold freeze Industry welcomes skills funding Oil and gas pay packets get heavier Greenpeace, Maoris face off against Petrobras Butlers-4 adds to PEL 92 success Rialto upgrades African resource Methanex keen on restarting second Motunui train US update

Disclaimer | Copyright Aspermont Ltd | Privacy Policy | Terms and Conditions | Sitemap

http://www.petroleumnews.net/storyview.asp?storyid=2420837&sectionsource=s90&... 20/09/2011