Affects the ports of Brisbane, Fremantle, Melbourne and Sydney
A seven-day strike by industrial workers has started at four Australian container terminals, where containerised trade has been temporarily disrupted. The strike led by Maritime Union of Australia (MUA) from Wednesday has affected the ports of Brisbane, Fremantle, Melbourne and Sydney.
The strike is the result of a wage dispute between the workers and stevedoring firm Patrick. Patrick has requested that MUA enter voluntary conciliation, which would end the strike and allow the terminals to resume operations.
A Patrick spokesperson said its shipping line customers warned that the cumulative loss for them will be over A$15m ($15.9m), while the disuprtion to the cotton industry will be over A$56m in lost revenue. The protest in the form of bans and limitations will stop the movement of approximately 50% of Australia’s containerised trade, expected to directly impact 32 vessels and 35,000 shipping containers.
Source: Seatrade Asia
