Maritime Union Wins a Small Victory as Foreign Crews to Get Vaccinations
Campaign Highlighting Covid Risk Begins to Come to Fruition
AUSTRALIA – In an Australian-first, NSW Health will provide Covid-19 vaccinations to a small number of foreign seafarers on board vessels that transport gas between Australian ports in an effort to reduce the risk of the virus entering the community. The Maritime Union of Australia (MUA) sees this initiative as a small win having campaigned relentlessly for increased Covid-19 measures, but finds that more needs to be done to protect seafarers in the ongoing pandemic.
The MUA has welcomed the initiative between NSW Health and NSW Ports, which will cover vessels that regularly visit the Port Botany Bulk Liquids Berth, but said the model must be rolled out nationally to reduce the risk of Covid transmission to waterfront workers. MUA National Secretary Paddy Crumlin said there was an urgent need for a nationally-consistent approach to close the gaping
Maritime Union of Australia
The Federal Government has abandoned the ‘Blue Highway’ Australia’s maritime supply chains responsible for carrying 98 per cent of the nation’s imports and exports after the Budget failed to invest in the nation’s shipping industry.
Despite a cash-splash that allocated billions of dollars to road and rail infrastructure, the 2021-22 Budget failed to make any significant investment in the shipping industry, which is integral to Australia’s economic prosperity as an island nation.
The Maritime Union of Australia said the Morrison Government had revealed once again that it was unwilling or unable to provide the investment and strategic direction needed to revitalise Australia’s maritime sector.
May Day in Parramatta. Photo: Peter Boyle
Sydney’s May Day march on May 1 highlighted the green ban imposed by the Construction, Forestry, Mining and Energy Union on the demolition of Willow Grove, a heritage-listed building which the NSW government wants to “move” to make way for the Powerhouse Museum.
Around 3000 trade unionists and supporters took part in the upbeat rally through the city’s streets from Prince Alfred Park to Willow Grove.
Following the welcome to country by a Dharug woman trade union member, speakers addressed a variety of struggles including the need for international solidarity under COVID-19, the resilience of frontline workers and the injustice of wage freezes and austerity. Natalie Lang from the Australian Services Union and Allen Hicks from the Electrical Trades Union criticised the federal government for its complete failure to act on sexual harassment at work.
3 May 2021 5:07 GMT Updated 3 May 2021 6:08 GMT in Perth
Unions have reported a second mercury poisoning incident at the Chevron-operated Gorgon liquefied natural gas project in Western Australia.
The Offshore Alliance, a coalition between the Australian Workers’ Union and the Maritime Union of Australia, claimed a Contract Resources worker had been contaminated with mercury at the Chevron-operated facility.
It claimed the worker entered a mercury impacted vessel in the Acid Gas Removal Unit at the plant wearing insufficient personal protection equipment for the task.
“Instead of wearing a standard Tyvek suit and respirator, the Contract Resources employee should have been wearing a full air vest for cooling, chemical suit, fully taped gum boots with breathing apparatus,” the Offshore Alliance stated in a social media post late last week.
A May Day to Remember: March in Support of Willow Grove Green Ban
Willow Grove is set to be relocated in favour of the construction of a second Powerhouse museum. Photography by Vivienne Guo
May 1, 2021
A coalition of trade unionists, activist groups and students have used this year’s May Day to protest against the dismantling of Willow Grove, an 19
th century heritage building in Parramatta. Willow Grove is set to be relocated in favour of the construction of a second Powerhouse museum.
May Day, or International Workers Day, is a rally held annually to support workers and express solidarity to the labour movement. Though the event normally takes place in the city, this year it was held in Parramatta for the first time in its history. The move, proposed by the Construction, Forestry, Maritime, Mining and Energy Union (CFMEU), aimed to express support for a green ban on Willow Grove. A green ban is a form of strike action where members of a trade-uni