Threat of Waterfront Disruption Escalates

Current DP World Situation:

Below is an industry Newsflash that gives the latest update on what is happening in the DP World vs Australian Maritime Union dispute, as well as the various interviews and publications that have run articles on the work the Freight Industry in general has been involved with in trying to bring this matter to public attention.

If this situation is not resolved quickly the situation is likely to get a lot worse, GPSM will continue to update all clients as further news comes to hand.

FTA / APSA feature on Channel 7 “Sunrise” – threat of waterfront disruption escalates

MEDIA UPDATE  13

Today marks the final day of the current round of bargaining between DP World and the Maritime Union of Australia (Tuesday 9 January to Thursday 11 January 2024), with Protected Industrial Action (PIA) scheduled to resume tomorrow through to Monday 22 January 2024.

In response to the DP World advice about docking workers’ pay for taking PIA (effective tomorrow, Friday 12 January 2024), alarming overnight media speculation suggests the union’s PIA may escalate to include delays to servicing arriving vessels for 16 hours and not to work on some ships indefinitely.

If true, will this force the hand of DP World to take more drastic action?

When Freight & Trade Alliance (FTA) and the Australian Peak Shippers Association (APSA) interviewed Nicolaj Noes (Executive Vice President Oceania – APAC of DP World) on 5 December 2023, the option of a lockout of employees was not ruled out.

 

It is important to note that this was a strategy deployed by Svitzer tug operator last year when Nicolaj was CEO. In terms of the Svitzer experience, it had the desired result of forcing Fair Work Commission (FWC) intervention with independent arbitration.

This is a high risk strategy should it be deployed by DP World.

While they may well get the same positive outcome as the Svitzer experience, what would happen next should a lockout of employees be deployed by DP World without FWC or federal government intervention?

Would we face an escalation of crippling disruption experienced in infamous 1998 Patrick waterfront dispute?

Putting this speculation aside, FTA / APSA will continue to pressure the federal government and FWC for intervention.

For members’ reference, FTA / APSA were again active in the media yesterday highlighting the implications on Australian trade, the broader economy and the ‘cost of living’ as a result of the failed bargaining process to date – this included a live interview on Channel 7 ‘Sunrise’, ABC Perth, leading agriculture publication Stock and Land, and highly respected US publication Journal of Commerce..

ABC Perth – Christian Horgan interviews Nicolaj Noes (DP World) and Paul Zalai (FTA/APSA) – recording HERE

Channel 7 Sunrise – Mark Beretta OAM interviews Paul Zalai (FTA / APSA) – recording HERE

Journal of Commerce – Australian shippers face worsening delays from DP World-dockworkers dispute

Reaching an international audience, JOC referenced FTA / APSA before quoting an anonymous APSA member (you know who you are, thank you).

QUOTE:

Paul Zalai, director of the shippers group Freight & Trade Alliance said international vessel delays now vary from two to five weeks.

Highlighting the impact on shippers, a senior executive at a major grain and pulses exporter said not only are cargo owners having to deal with the uncertainty of freight delays, but they’re also being charged substantial extra costs by carriers.

“Vessel schedule changes and omissions have the biggest impact on us,” the source told the Journal of Commerce. “With shipping lines having container availability issues for food-quality boxes, we have to take what we can when we can.

“When terminals close due to union action or carrier schedules change, the containers are either stuck in our own yard, returned to already full storage yards or sent to port where they can be moved back to storage yards,” he added. “All of this double, triple handling comes at a cost.”

He said attempts to recoup the additional costs are ongoing, “but progressing very, very slowly.”

Stock and LandPort of Melbourne dispute adding hundreds of dollars to export costs

Implications of the failed bargaining between DP World and the union was highlighted in a detailed article referencing APSA member Mark Lewis from Riordan Grains (cost to grain exporters through Melbourne) and FTA / APSA.

QUOTE:

“Shipping lines are charging additional fees due to the industrial action and are not able to help mitigate delays by offering alternate services, particularly to Asian destinations,” he said.

“The lack of predictability of shipping schedule is also seeing many exporters, who rail from regional centres direct to the wharves, now moving and storing their loaded containers at nearby port facilities.”

This was adding transit delays, double-handling costs and additional truck movements, Mr Zalai said.

“Trains often operate on a ‘take or pay’ method, meaning you either use the slot or pay for it anyway,” he said.

“The decision for our regional exporters then becomes whether to double handle the container at the port and pay for storage or pay for the empty train slot and rail it again the following week.”

Mr Zalai said the FTA had not yet had a response from the federal government.

He said members were “hammering” the FTA, letting it know the impact of the dispute.

“We just want the issue resolved,” he said.

“We are not siding with the unions, or the employer, we just need business continuity and to have our wharves open.

“The government is very proud to talk about free trade agreements, trade liberalisation and having a better relationship with China, which is all fantastic and very important, but I think it counts for nothing if we can’t get our boxes (containers) on and off ships.”

FTA / APSA MEDIA COVERAGE REFERENCING PROTECTED INDUSTRIAL ACTION

9 JAN 2024 : Daily Cargo News – MORE MUA PIA, DPW CALLS FOR GOVT INTERVENTION

9 JAN 2024 : Farm Weekly – Ongoing wharf dispute is resulting in multi-million dollar costs

8 JAN 2024 : Australian Financial Review – DP World to dock pay in escalation of waterfront battle

8 JAN 2024 : Triple M Network, SBS and Channel 10 – Industrial dispute impacts on small business

5 JAN 2024 : Australian Financial Review – Australian grape growers fear export hit from port dispute

5 JAN 2024 : Sydney Morning Herald – Shoppers warned to expect empty shelves, delays if ports strike continues

4 JAN 2024 : Australian Financial Review : Australian grape growers fear export hit from port dispute

4 JAN 2024 : ABC Radio National – Breakfast – Australia”s response to Houthi attacks on shipping in the Red Sea

4 JAN 2024 : SBS – Disruption to trade is threatening innocent lives

3 JAN 2024 : 2GB Sydney – Red Sea conflict having impact on Australian trade

2 JAN 2024 : The Australian Financial Review : Industrial action at ports ‘bigger problem’ than Red Sea attacks

2 JAN 2024 : The Australian : Australian trade flowing from Asia is safe but eventually Red Sea disruptions will hit home

28 DEC 2023 : The Australian Business Journal – Global Trade Faces Uncertainty as Red Sea Tensions and Port Strikes Threaten Supply Chains

27 DEC 2023 : SMH: Send navy to the Red Sea for sake of local economy: Dutton

27 DEC 2023 : News.com.au – Price hike fears over Red Sea shipping chaos, crippling port strikes

27 DEC 2023 : The Australian – Price hike fears over Red Sea shipping chaos, crippling port strikes

21 DEC 2023 : The Australian – Red Sea call ‘leaving our allies in the lurch’

19 DEC 2023 : Stock and Land – Red Sea freight blockage has potential to disrupt all supply chains

19 DEC 2023 : Australian Financial Review – Freight, oil climb as Red Sea attacks shut down shipping

17 DEC 2023 : ABC News – UK and US shoot down more Houthi drones in the Red Sea as shipping companies pause operations

 

MEMBER FEEDBACK

We again wish to remind members that while we have an excellent relationship with a wide cross-section of trade, agriculture and mainstream media, we need of “real life” experiences highlighting the impacts to business and the wider economy – this is essential to maintain the momentum and interest for what appears will be a long, drawn out campaign.

Should any member or industry participant be prepared to go on the public record, please contact me at [email protected] on 0408 280123.

Paul Zalai – Director FTA | Secretariat APSA | Director GSF

Copyright © 2024 Freight & Trade Alliance (FTA) Pty Ltd, All rights reserved.

DP WORLD

A major development has now occurred with DP World Australia (DPWA) indicating to its customers and employees that from Friday 12 January 2024, DPWA will no longer tolerate partial work bans as part of the Protected Industrial Actions (PIA) being taken.

The Notice says “As a result, employees participating in these actions will not be entitled to any payment until they are ready and willing to perform all of their normal duties.”

The full statement from DPWA is reproduced below.

IMPORTANT ANNOUNCEMENT: DP WORLD AUSTRALIA’S STANCE ON PARTIAL WORK BANS AND ENSURING SUPPLY OF CRITICAL GOODS

 

Dear Valued Customers,

We hope this email finds you well.

We are writing to inform you of an important announcement regarding DP World Australia’s stance on partial work bans amidst the ongoing industrial dispute.

Effective Friday12 January 2024, DP World Australia will no longer tolerate partial work bans. As a result, employees participating in these actions will not be entitled to any payment until they are ready and willing to perform all of their normal duties. This decision comes after exhaustive negotiations with the Maritime Union of Australia (MUA), with the assistance of the Fair Work Commission.

This is a necessary step to address the detrimental effects of the industrial action on vital industries such as meat, agriculture, and retail. The livelihoods of countless individuals are at stake, and we must take action to curb economic losses and stabilise port operations.

We want to assure you that DP World Australia remains fully committed to resolving the dispute while protecting our business interests and the broader economy from the impacts of the industrial action. Our Executive Vice President, Nicolaj Noes, emphasises that finding a fair and sustainable solution remains our top priority.

Amidst this challenging situation, we want to emphasise our unwavering commitment to ensuring the supply of critical goods and medicines. Throughout the industrial action, DP World Australia will prioritise the handling of vessels carrying perishable foods, medical supplies, and humanitarian aid. We have put in place procedures to ensure swift and efficient processing of these essential goods, minimising any disruption to vital supply chains.

We understand the importance of these critical goods and medicines, especially during this period of industrial action. We are fully aware of the impact that any disruption in the supply chain can have on individuals and communities. Rest assured, we are working diligently to ensure their timely and uninterrupted delivery.

We would like to take this opportunity to express our gratitude for your continued support and understanding during this challenging time. We value our partnership with you and remain committed to providing the highest level of service despite the ongoing industrial dispute.

If you have any questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to reach out to us. We appreciate your patience and cooperation as we navigate through this situation.

Thank you for your attention, and we look forward to serving you.

Sincerely,

Ravi Sheshadri

Vice President – Commercial – Ports & Terminals

Oceania – APAC

DP World

 

The impact of this could be that DPWA employees may turn up for their shift this coming Friday, refuse to work the full shift (given the notified PIA by their union), and then will not be paid. Effectively, this might lead to what could be described as a “reverse lock-out” of employees by DPWA.

This is a significant escalation of the industrial situation, and ultimately (worst case scenario) may mean that by the end of this week, some or all of DPWA’s container terminals will not be staffed for operations.

In other words, it could mean that more than one third of Australia’s container terminal capacity to handle imports and exports will not be available to service Australia’s container trades, except perhaps for “urgent” cargoes already within the terminals (i.e. the notice talks about critical goods and medicines).

We understand that the scheduled Enterprise Agreement negotiations between the bargaining parties are still proceeding on Tuesday, 9 January, with the assistance of the Fair Work Commission (FWC). How though the two announcements today from DPWA will influence these discussions is a question that only time will answer.

DPWA is clearly seeking Government intervention to terminate the PIA, and for the Federal Minister (or the President of the FWC) to order arbitration to be commenced through the FWC.

The economic harm to Australia will escalate rapidly if DPWA’s terminals are non-operational for any length of time. 

Shipping Update

Red Sea and Suez Canal situation:

All shipping lines are again avoiding the Red Sea and Suez Canal after a missile attack on a container vessel over the past weekend, lines are now transiting the East-West-East trade route via the Cape of Good Hope.

Maersk Lines had previously announced they were halting movements via Suez Canal in a “watch and wait” approach, that decision has now been reversed and all Maersk vessels will also now avoid using the Suez Canal until further notice.

The re-routing via Africa will come at an additional cost, lines announcing they are implementing a Contingency Surcharge on all traffic. CMA Group have announced all traffic to Australia will incur a surcharge of USD 1500.00 per 20ft or 40ft container, while Hapag-Lloyd have announced a surcharge of USD 500.00/20ft and USD 1000.00/40ft will be applicable. Other carriers are yet to confirm their applicable surcharges.

LCL consolidators have also announced they are implementing the surcharge as a result of higher costs, all LCL cargo will attract a surcharge of between USD 35.00 and USD 45.00 per cbm/1000kgs on all UK, European and Mediterranean LCL cargo destined for Australia.

 

Updated DP World Industrial Action:

The dispute between DP World and the Maritime Union is still ongoing with bans continuing into January. It is understood another round of negotiations will commence on 8th January, 2024, meanwhile we are still facing major issues collecting or delivering containers at all DP World Terminals around Australia.

It is estimated that industrial action taken by maritime unions in Australia against stevedore DP World is costing the local economy about $20 million per day but we are still to see any intervention by Government to assist in resolving the dispute.

 

Shipping Rates:

Carriers from Far East Asia to Australia have announced rate increases leading up to Chinese New Year as lines try to claw back income lost as a result of what they call a quiet peak season period.

Rate have increased by around USD 200.00 to USD 250.00/20ft and USD 400.00 to USD 500.00/40ft container from Taiwan, Korea, Japan and China to Australian East Coast ports from 1st January, 2024 with further increases announced to be applied from 15th January, 2024.

Rates from South East Asian ports are also expected to increase from 15th January, 2024, the actual increment to be advised when known.

 

Local Australian Costs:

Further to our Newsflash in December, 2023, Australia Terminals/Shipping Lines have announced increases in charges for Side-Loader Trailer Port Access as well as Vehicle booking fees and Empty Container park booking fees in all states. The new rates have been and are being added to our GPSM rates portal.

The previously announced increase in Port Infrastructure Levies has been postponed until 1st February, 2024.

LATEST PORT AND COST NEWS

DP World Terminals vs CFMEU Union:

The Protected Industrial Action continues at all terminals around the country, DP World have received further advice from the Maritime Union of Australia (MUA) division of the Construction, Forestry, Maritime, Mining and Energy Union (CFMMEU) in terms of work bans and stoppages associated with the PIA for the period Monday 18 December to Sunday 31 December 2023.

The bans and stoppages will continue as they have done for the past 6-8 weeks and the parties being affected most are importers, exporters and the general public. The cost to the industry has been horrendous, trucking companies have had to pay drivers overtime and weekend penalty rates in order to move their clients containers to and from the ports, these are additional costs not budgeted for by truckers or importers and exporters and these unwanted extra costs are affecting everyone’s bottom lines. On the other hand, Government appears to be doing little to try and resolve the situation despite Freight Forwarders and Trucking Associations pushing for some action apart from the two party conciliation which clearly is not working.

The GPSM Transport Team will continue to keep all clients fully updated by the disruptions on our ports during this difficult period.

 

More port cost increases for 2024:

While the DP World dispute rages on, the port terminals have announced a range of exorbitant landside fee increases that will take effect from 1 January 2024.

Included in the mix are many increased fees for trucking companies in the form of fines and port infrastructure levies as well as surcharges for late slot arrival, bulk container runs, over-length vehicle fees, etc, etc.

Increases in Terminal Access charges have also been announced, particularly impacting Australian east coast container terminals, although they have now been postponed for implementation on 1st February, 2024. The cost levels are being added to the GPSM rate portal.

Red Sea Vessel Movements suspended:

Several shipping lines have diverted their vessel from passing through the Bab al-Mandab Strait crossing the Red Sea following attacks on commercial vessel by Yemen based Houthi rebels.

The Strait is at the entrance to the Red Sea, the approach lane to the Suez Canal.

Asia-to-Europe shippers are facing huge increases in sea freight costs Ocean carriers are already adding war-risk surcharges to shipper invoices, but with the situation deteriorating daily, shipping lines will increasingly look to re-route vessels around the Cape of Good Hope, rather than transiting the Suez Canal.

 

Delays at Panama Canal:

Panama Canal draught restrictions on one side of the world and rebels attacking shipping transiting the Red Sea enroute to the Suez Canal on the other side, are giving ocean carrier ship managers sleepless nights. According to an industry source, diversions of carrier proforma loops are being scaled up as more services avoid the two waterways.

The water level in the Panama Canal is at all time lows with little hope of rain increasing the level soon, delays for transiting the canal are growing week by week as authorities restrict the vessel draught being allowed to transit.

GPSM wished to thank all our clientele for their continued support throughout 2023 and look forward to again servicing your needs in 2024, we wish you a safe and happy Xmas and a prosperous New Year.

Australian Port Situation

UPDATED DP WORLD SITUATION

The Protected Industrial Action that has been on-going at DP World terminals around Australia for the last few weeks was expected to end at end November, however the CFMEU Union have lodged a fresh list of actions for December that will see the work bans, stoppages and refusals to load/unload trains and trucks continue until at least 11th December, 2023.

The Industrial Action is causing havoc to inbound and outbound sailing schedules on all lines, many lines are avoiding certain ports and dropping containers at alternative ports, to be moved back to original destinations by either rail or the next vessel. Export containers are being rolled to next sailings with little or no advice from shipping lines.

The schedule situation is also causing backlogs at the Transhipment hubs in Singapore, Malaysia and Hong Kong as vessels are not returning on time for their next sailing, however containers are still arriving at these hubs on the East and West trade routes. Singapore is currently showing a two (2) week delay in connection of containers to Australian ports.

Our Transport Team are working under extreme pressure at present trying to schedule all deliveries under extremely difficult circumstances, please bear with them during the course of the industrial action, the Team will keep all clients updated on daily deliveries as usual.

Fall out from DP World Cyber Hack and Industrial Action

DP World Industrial Action – Employee Roster Changes Announced

Significant Landside Delays & Costs:

Landside logistics operators in Melbourne, Sydney, Brisbane and Fremantle have struggled significantly this week in obtaining vehicle booking system slots to pick-up import containers and deliver export receivals from DP World’s Terminals, and have suffered from lengthy truck turnaround times and in some instances non-service of vehicles.

The efforts of DP World to recover from the crippling cyber-attack last weekend and to reopen landside operations have been welcomed.

But now it is taking far longer to recover from the backlog of containers combined with the continuing discharge of imports and receival of exports due to the ongoing industrial actions by DP World’s workforce and the maritime union as part of disputed Enterprise Agreement (EA) negotiations.

The flow-on landside impacts are the imposition of significant additional costs incurred by transport operators, frustrated importers not able to take delivery of their delayed import cargoes, and export containers missing vessel cut-offs and having cargoes rolled to subsequent voyages.

Exporters aren’t fulfilling their overseas supply contracts, and importers are faced with import containers potentially incurring storage fees for late pick-ups from DP World’s terminals despite poor terminal performance.

Insidiously, container shipping lines are indicating to importers that they will not provide container detention relief for the late return of the empty import containers, despite the delays being attributable to their contracted stevedore provider.

This is another clear example of why the ACCC should be authorised to develop mandatory guidelines on when the levying of container detention fees by shipping lines is “reasonable” and when it is not.

Transport operators are incurring the added expense of working additional night and weekend shifts just to try to get sufficient slots to meet the freight demand, and then finding that they end up not being able to service all of the slots due to the cascading effect of terminal delays.

The cost of these delays and added operational pressures are borne initially by the transport operators who either choose to pass on those costs to their customers in the form of waiting time charges or congestion surcharges, or absorb the costs to the substantial detriment of their operating margins.

The delays being incurred are not sustainable. They are costing landside operators collectively hundreds of thousands of dollars per week – a cost eventually borne by exporters, importers and consumers.

DP World Announces Changed Roster Arrangements:

In a move clearly designed to break the impasse with the maritime union on the stalled EA negotiations, DP World has announced today (16 November 2023) to their employees the implementation of roster changes across their four terminals in Melbourne, Sydney, Brisbane and Fremantle (under the terms of the existing EA).

Download from the link above a copy of the DP World statement on the roster changes.

DP World has described the changes as “adapting its roster system to meet dynamic shipping and berthing schedules.”

“This change aims to optimise workforce use and align with new trade patterns. The expected outcome includes increased operational efficiency and flexibility at terminals, as well as adjustments to employee remuneration.”

CTAA understands that in the EA negotiations, DP World has been seeking greater roster flexibility, particularly for night and weekend shifts, which presumably these roster changes will seek to address.

DP World’s letter to its employees also anticipates increased earnings for the vast majority of their workforce resulting from the roster changes, and also laments that their employees “take home pay” has been reduced by -30% on average due to the current strike action. They note that their employees last received a pay increase in October 2022.

We await the reaction of DP World’s employees and the maritime union to these roster changes and how they impact on the ongoing EA negotiations. Importantly when the roster changes are implemented, we wait to see if they will have a positive impact on landside terminal productivity and slot capacity availability.

 

Calls for Federal Industrial Relations Minister to Intervene to Terminate Industrial Action:

Shipping Australia, representing container shipping lines servicing Australian trades, has written to the Federal Industrial Relations Minister, Tony Burke, seeking the Minister’s intervention in the current DP World industrial dispute under Section 431 of the Fair Work Act 2009.

Section 431 of the Act gives the Federal Minister power to make a declaration, in writing, terminating protected industrial action … if the Minister is satisfied that (among other matters) … “the industrial action is threatening or could threaten to cause significant damage to the Australian economy or an important part of it.”

The Shipping Australia letter estimates that the current industrial actions could be causing up to $23 million per day in economic harm to Australia.

CTAA supports the calls from Shipping Australia for the Federal Minister to intervene.

Under the current provisions of the Fair Work Act, the maritime union is entitled to pursue protected industrial action through to June next year. CTAA believes that the current disruption levels to containerised trade through DP World’s terminals are unsustainable for such a lengthy period of time and will cause significant economic harm if they are allowed to continue.

From the above, you will note that the working week from DP World for transport has been cut from seven (7) days to two (2) days, and half days on weekends with all the bans and strikes in place.

This has led to the other Terminals (Patrick’s, VICT and Hutchinsons) are all experiencing high traffic volumes and lengthy delays as a result of the DP World situation. Some of the alternative terminals are also at full capacity at present.

Slots are being booked as early as possible, however many of those bookings are being cancelled by the terminal (often when a truck is already there) as they are unable to service the volume of bookings made, this is causing a backlog of thousands of containers nationally.

We have had staff working overtime and weekends to rebook slots and to move as many containers as possible, but despite all our efforts, shipping lines are not making any adjustments to equipment detention free time during this period, they are all advising that any additional detention charges will be passed on to importers and exporters.

The GPSM Transport Team are working exceptionally hard in trying to ensure that you, our clients, are not adversely affected by the situation, the team will continue to strive to achieve the earliest possible delivery times despite working under an extremely stressful and frustrating situation with little assistance from any outside parties.

Breaking News-DP World Cyber Attack

Further to our earlier Newsflash this morning, we have now received notification that the situation with DP World operating systems has improved and operations are expected to return to normal.

Extensive system testing was undertaken on Sunday and DP World have now advised the situation has been contained and operations are slowly returning to normal, there will still be delays but at least a gradual return to operations is a good sign the threat has been resolved.

GPSM Transport Team will continue to monitor the situation in all states and they will keep affected clients updated asap.

DP WORLD CYBER ATTACK

As you may have seen and heard on the news, DP World Terminals have suffered a Cyber Attack that was detected late on Friday and all systems in the terminals around Australia are affected.

It has been indicated that the national emergency response coordination mechanism had been evoked as DP World Australia seeks to recover its software systems. It was reported that National Cyber Security Coordinator, Air Marshal Darren Goldie, was providing technical advice and assistance, and was quoted publicly as saying that that “this interruption is likely to continue for a number of days and will impact the movement of goods into and out of the country.”

It is understood that some 30,000 containers are impacted by the Cyber Attack in DP World Terminals in Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane and Fremantle, no official statement has yet been released by DP World at this time and to when systems are expected to be returned to normal.

The Cyber Attack comes after protestors rallied on Friday outside DP World Sydney Terminal against an Israeli ZIM Line vessel that was due to berth, however the vessel was delayed and sat off anchor to avoid the clash. There has also been on-going protected industrial action by the Maritime Union for the past 2 weeks with work-bans and full day strikes disrupting operations.

DP World handle approximately 40% of Australia’s import and export containers so major delays are expected to be encountered in finalizing deliveries of imports and exports, the GPSM Transport Team will keep all clients fully updated on developments as soon as further information is available.

DP WORLD TERMINALS – SYSTEM ISSUES

Dear Customers,

Please see below Newsflash regarding DP World Terminals, GPSM Transport Team will be in contact with clients directly affected by these outages:

DP WORLD TERMINALS – SYSTEM ISSUES

URGENT NOTICE

Freight & Trade Alliance (FTA) and the Australian Peak Shippers Association (APSA) would like to inform members that DP World terminals are currently experiencing a systems outage, impacting communications both internal and external.

As a result, extensive disruptions are being experienced at DP World Terminals around the country with transport operators being informed by DP World to not send drivers to the terminals whilst they deal with the issue.

DP World have suggested that if customers are trying to contact R&D, to please be patient, and that emails will be responded to once systems are restored.

Updates will be posted on the FTA / APSA website

 

Tom Jensen – Head of International Freight & Logistics – FTA / APSA

Copyright © 2023 Freight & Trade Alliance (FTA) Pty Ltd, All rights reserved.

Update on industrial action at DP World

Hi All,

A further update on the Industrial Action at D P World Terminals follows with new stoppages announced for end October/early November:

INDUSTRIAL ACTION AT DP WORLD

UPDATE 5

Freight & Trade Alliance (FTA) and the Australian Peak Shippers Association (APSA) have been in contact with DP World senior management in order to update members on the latest on the protected industrial action continuing around the DP World terminals nationally.

 

VIEW FULL LIST OF UPCOMING PROTECTED INDUSTRIAL ACTIONS HERE

 

Following is the updated advice received today from Ravi Sheshadri (DP World Australia Vice President – Commercial Ports & Terminals Oceania – APAC) on the current status at DP World terminals, with industrial action continuing until 6 November:

Dear Valued Customers,

In accordance with Section 414(2)(b) of the Fair Work Act 2009 (Cth), we wish to notify you of the upcoming protected industrial actions scheduled to be taken by members of the Construction, Forestry, Maritime, Mining and Energy Union (CFMMEU) covered under the respective DP World Enterprise Agreements.

This includes:

  • Work stoppages, bans, and other measures in Brisbane, Fremantle, Sydney, and Melbourne.
  • A 24-hour work stoppage in Sydney on the 30th of October.

For any concerns or if further clarification is required, please reach out via email at [email protected] and [email protected].

We apologise for any inconvenience this may cause and assure you of our commitment to resolve these matters at the earliest possible opportunity. Your continued patience and understanding during this period are much appreciated.

Sincerely,

Ravi Sheshadri

Vice President – Commercial – Ports & Terminals

Oceania – APAC

Freight & Trade Alliance (FTA) and the Australian Peak Shippers Association (APSA) once again urges all parties involved in the industrial dispute to work together on a quick resolution to minimise the impact on workers, freight and the nation.

Tom Jensen – Head of International Freight & Logistics – FTA / APSA

Copyright © 2023 Freight & Trade Alliance (FTA) Pty Ltd, All rights reserved.