ITF Docker's News.

Ban on Hong Kong dockers' strike action extended

http://www.itfglobal.org/news-online/index.cfm/newsdetail/8769

5 April 2013

An injunction which prevents members of an ITF affiliate union in Hong Kong from staging strike action has been extended.

The High Court in Hong Kong has ruled in favour of extending the temporary injunction which was put in place earlier this week, forcing the Union of Hong Kong Dockers (HKDU) to halt action at the Kwai Tsing Container Terminal in the Port of Hong Kong. Industrial action began as a last resort measure by the union in their attempts to secure transparent, good faith dialogue with their employer Hong Kong International Terminals (HIT), a subcontractor of global network terminal (GNT) operator Hutchison Port Holdings.

Some restrictive terms have been put on the injunction. The trade union’s right to enter the workplace and strike is allowed but it has to be limited to lawful and reasonable acts and the number of strikers is limited to 80 trade union members and must take place in a designated area agreed by both parties, namely the car park inside the terminal.

The ITF and International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC) have reacted jointly with ITUC general secretary Sharan Burrow commenting: “This ruling is an acknowledgment of the trade union’s right to strike. If HIT had won this case outright more employers could well have followed suit to ban workers from picketing at their workplaces altogether.”

The union wants HIT to come to the table and negotiate over issues of health and safety, working conditions and pay parity between directly employed and subcontracted workers.

In addition, the ITF is calling on HIT to take full responsibility for its subcontractors, to put an end to the exploitation of outsourced dockers who are earning less for working longer; and to return to the table to discuss the reinstatement of the hourly overtime rate for contracted dockers.

Meanwhile an ITF campaign in support of HKDU has been escalated.

Letters have been sent from the ITF to HIT and to HIT and Hutchison and dockers’ affiliates are being asked to lodge their concerns and show solidarity with the union via the dedicated solidarity page. http://www.itfglobal.org/solidarity/Hong-Kong-dockers.cfm

ITF president and dockers’ section chair Paddy Crumlin commented: “This dispute has reached a critical stage. The ITF is calling on HIT and on Hutchison Port Holdings Trust (HPH Trust), to put health and safety, decent working conditions and respect for union rights first. The dockers have the full support and backing of the 4.5 million member strong ITF global union. Dockers in global network terminals around the world are watching closely, as are transport workers along the supply chain. Global network terminal operators in the stevedoring industry in particular have a critical responsibility to work with their employees to ensure basic labour rights are acknowledged and respected.”

Union wins more time for Chile cabotage discussion

http://www.itfglobal.org/news-online/index.cfm/newsdetail/8763

5 April 2013

Access to Valparaiso Port in Chile was virtually closed on 4 April when maritime and seafarers’ union members and supporters marched to oppose government proposals to open the country’s cabotage to foreign competition and to push through legislation quickly.

Privately owned terminal 1 was partially closed while state owned terminal 2 was completely brought to a halt when truckers, customs officers, dockers, seafarers, university students and staff and port agencies joined the march, which was organised by the Maritime Council of Workers (MCW).

Union pressure had already resulted in some changes to the government proposals. Presentations were made to the lower chamber of the Congress on 2 and 3 April by ITF inspector Juan Luis Villalon Jones, giving an international perspective; Hector Azua of Sindicato de Oficiales de Southship and the ITF Fair Practices Committee, representing the MCW; and others, including shipowners and the Chief of Navy. As a result, the chamber lowered the priority of the legislative project, which means that it will allow more time for debate, requested the government ministry to modify their proposals and announced a seminar later in April for all parties to discuss the issue in more detail. 

Juan Luis Villalon Jones commented: “We will keep up the pressure until the government sees sense and puts an end to attempts to open Chile's cabotage.  We believe one of the reasons to requests the opening of the cabotage is to lower the contractual conditions of Chilean Seafarers and this is unacceptable. The government needs to recognize the skills and expertize of Chilean workers  and  the strategic asset they represent  for Chile's economy."