Maritime Union of New Zealand

A public meeting in South Dunedin on Monday 12 July to support the campaign to build new trains for Auckland in New Zealand workshops attracted around 50 people.

The message they heard was that Dunedin people will have to stand up and fight to make this goal a reality, with this years local body elections and next years national elections providing an opportunity to apply political pressure.

Rail and Maritime Transport Union (RMTU) Hillside Branch Secretary Les Ingram, who works at Hillside, said an estimated 500 to 1200 extra jobs and nearly $500 million dollars in income were at stake.

“Dunedin cannot afford to let opportunities like this pass it by if we want to provide jobs for local people in the future.”

The RMTU were continuing their campaign and wanted to get across to the public how building rail units locally would provide a massive boost in jobs and income.

The Maritime Union of New Zealand (MUNZ) is supporting the RMTU campaign and MUNZ General Secretary Joe Fleetwood, visiting from Wellington, addressed the meeting on free trade issues.

He told the audience that they needed to get behind the Hillside workers campaign and demand that politicians listen.

He said the push for free trade policies was largely responsible for the situation where jobs were threatened due to unbalanced economic policies.

Both speakers agreed that the notion that New Zealand did not have the expertise to do the rail work was discredited nonsense.

Mr Ingram detailed previous work done at Hillside and his view was backed up by a retired engineer in the audience who recounted the many large scale projects other Dunedin firms have undertaken in the past.

The meeting was chaired by Victor Billot of the Alliance Party who said that highly skilled, high value jobs that would be created through building trains locally were exactly what was needed in New Zealand at the current time.

The approach of the National Government was reprehensible, he said.

The Maritime Union of New Zealand and International Transport Workers’ Federation (ITF) are investigating a shipjumping incident in Dunedin where nine Indonesian seafarers left the fishing trawler Marinui on Friday 10 March.

ITF New Zealand co-ordinator Kathy Whelan says the Union has been in touch with the Ministry of Immigration about the case, and ITF representatives will try to speak to the fishermen at Auckland Airport before they are sent home tomorrow.

She says she is extremely concerned about the increasing numbers of foreign seafarers leaving their vessels in New Zealand ports, in this case claiming they were subjected to 24 hour shifts with no breaks, two hour sleep breaks, and physical abuse.

Mr Hanson says the Maritime Union and the International Transport Workers Federation, as well as the Council of Trade Unions, were recently given assurances by the Minister of Immigration that problems in the fishing industry would be fixed.

“We want to get the real facts on the matter, as we are always seeing these shipjumping workers spirited out of the country before the matter is properly investigated.”

He says the Maritime Union position is that the employment of overseas fishermen in New Zealand waters needs to be closely monitored and regulated by New Zealand Immigration officials in their country of origin.

“This is the only way to make sure these exploited workers are employed on proper terms and conditions at New Zealand market rates with proper employment agreements, and that they are not subject to corrupt practices like having to pay ‘fees’ for their job.”

For further information contact:

Maritime Union General Secretary Trevor Hanson on 04 801 7614 or 021 390585

ITF New Zealand Co-ordinator Kathy Whelan on 04 801 7613 or 021 666405