Maritime Union of New Zealand

The Maritime Union of New Zealand says secure jobs, improved wages and conditions, national sovereignty, and major improvements to New Zealand’s maritime and transport policy are its election priorities.

Maritime Union of New Zealand General Secretary Joe Fleetwood says there is an immediate need for an effective, efficient and environmentally friendly transport and logistics chain.

He says that the potential privatization and overseas buy up of New Zealand ports is a major threat to New Zealand remaining in control of its supply chain.

The current Government had no plan for coastal shipping, and the stranding of the Rena and problems with Foreign Charter Vessels (FCVs) in the fishing industry were glaring examples of how deregulation and falling standards were reducing New Zealand to the status of a developing nation.

“The National Government has focussed its entire transport strategy on putting more trucks on the road, when we need to be moving in the opposite direction of rail and coastal shipping to provide low impact, environmentally aware transport for the future.”

Mr Fleetwood says that worker’s wages and conditions were under enormous pressure, and unemployment was wrecking the lives of many, including the vulnerable young.

“The reality is that most workers in jobs are working longer, harder and for relatively less, and at the same time we see tens of thousands excluded from work and then attacked for being beneficiaries.”

The working class in New Zealand today are underpaid and over-worked, with high unemployment, casualization and a shrinking share of the economic pie, says Mr Fleetwood.

“This must be addressed not only by economic growth, but by increasing the share of wealth produced going to the producers – the workers.”

Casualization of jobs was creating massive problems in working class communities and was being ignored by the Government.

The third concern of the Union was how New Zealand’s sovereignty was being undermined.

New Zealanders must have the right to make our own economic and political choices, says Mr Fleetwood.

“This right is undermined by free trade deals such as the Trans Pacific Partnership Agreement, and John Key’s proposed asset sales that will remove our ability to determine our collective future as a community and nation.”

New Zealanders were in serious danger of becoming tenants in their own country if the National Party asset sales and privatization agenda was allowed to continue.

The full Maritime Union election statement could be viewed online at http://www.munz.org.nz/2011-election/

The Maritime Union says that the responsibility for the Rena disaster lies with Government and authorities as much as with individual crew members.

Maritime Union of New Zealand General Secretary Joe Fleetwood says the arrest today of the master of the Rena on serious charges should not deflect attention away from the greater responsibility for the disaster.

He says New Zealand Government and authorities have created a situation where substandard flag of convenience shipping has been encouraged and enabled.

“1990s legislation from the then National Government created the so-called ‘open coast’ policy and this has meant that unacceptable practices have become the norm in New Zealand waters – it’s a case of out of sight and out of mind.”

Mr Fleetwood says a Maritime New Zealand “inspection” of the Rena in Bluff on 28 September 2011 apparently consisted of the inspector asking the Master whether previous problems had been fixed.

“This is the same Master that the authorities are now trying to pin the blame on a couple of weeks later after the disaster.”

“But at the time of the inspection they obviously were prepared to take the Master at his word that everything was hunky dory on his ship, despite the fact it had been hauled up in China and Australia for multiple problems.”

Mr Fleetwood says if this is the standard approach of Maritime New Zealand to dealing with obviously problematic vessels, the only surprise in the grounding of the Rena is that it hadn’t happened earlier.

He says the Union is very concerned about the welfare of crew members and wanted access to them to provide independent support.

“Can you imagine the stress of these seafarers, many with dependent families, who have spent nearly a week onboard a stricken vessel in mortal fear of their lives, and some only being taken off by helicopter after a Mayday call when the ship appeared to be in imminent catastrophe.”

He says it is now becoming a regular theme that systemic policy and regulation failures are resulting in serious harm to workers, the community and the environment.

“It is about time that the elected leaders started copping it when things go wrong rather than putting a smother over it and trying to shift the blame.”

He says the Union was repeating its call for all Maritime New Zealand reports on the Rena to be made public as soon as possible.

“If the authorities have managed to arrest the captain in such a fast manner, they can start to make public their own processes for full transparency and accountability to the New Zealand public.”

Mr Fleetwood says the Union has been arguing for stronger regulation of shipping for years in New Zealand waters, but Government’s have not wanted to hear the message.

He says the Union has had longstanding concerns that Maritime New Zealand regulations and inspections of flag of convenience vessels were superficial, limited and not strict enough.

The Union has compiled a short list of some of the flag of convenience shipping issues that it has been involved in over the last few years (see end of media release).

Mr Fleetwood says comment by Transport Minister Steven Joyce that the Maritime Union’s views were “political” were accurate.

“Mr Joyce is right. The issue is political. It is political because the John Key led National Government have been happy to have flag of convenience ships running on the New Zealand coast as a result of their political decisions.”

“In this case their political decision to promote and allow flag of convenience shipping on the New Zealand coast has had real life consequences, which have proved far beyond the political ability and the practical ability of the Government to deal with.”

“If we allowed trucks on New Zealand roads that were licensed in Liberia or some other semi-functioning failed state, and driven by unregulated overseas drivers, there would be an outcry. Yet that is what we allow on the New Zealand coast and now we are paying the price.”

Mr Fleetwood says in addition to its campaigning against Flag of Convenience shipping it had lobbied the Government last year with a plan to provide a fast response vessel for offshore oil spills.

The Union approached the Minister of Energy and Resources, Hon Gerry Brownlee, as well as the Minister of Transport Hon Steven Joyce and Minister of Environment Hon Nick Smith, in July 2010 to support the introduction of a ready response vessel for the maritime sector to cope with oil spills and similar events.

This ready response vessel would have been aimed at the offshore oil and gas industry but could easily have been used to quickly respond to oil leaks in the current Rena disaster.

The Union was told to send their information into a Ministry of Economic Development review, which it did.

Further background information: Some previous incidents on Flag of Convenience vessels in NZ waters including cargo and fishing vessels and crews

May–July 2011
In May 2011, Southern Storm Fishing held a “media event” in Dunedin where journalists were invited on board to inspect their new vessel, the Oyang 75, that replaces the Oyang 70 that sank last year.
But less than two months later, in July 2011, the crew abandoned the Oyang 75 en masse in Lyttelton, claiming physical and verbal abuse and underpayment.

July 2011
Overseas crew members left the ShinJi in Auckland due to underpayment and mistreatment. DOL investigating.
In 2009 the ITF and Maritime Union previously investigated the Shin Ji after 12 Indonesian crew members left the vessel.

December 2010
Five Korean crew are confirmed dead and 17 missing presumed drowned after the No. 1 In Sung sank in the Southern Ocean in unexplained circumstances.

August 2010
Oyang 70 fishing vessel sinks in Southern Ocean. Six deaths. Survivors brought to Lyttelton. Claims of underpayment by surviving crew investigated (Korean, Filipino, Indonesian, Chinese).

May 2010
Two sailors, one Korean and one Burmese, died after suffocating in the TPC Wellington’s timber hold at Marsden Point wharf near Whangarei in May 2010.

2010
10 Sri Lankan crew members aboard the MV Charelle docked at the Ports of Auckland were not paid for 3 ½ months.
The vessel and its previous crew were held by Somali pirates for six months last year, only being released after a ransom was paid on 3 December 2009.
Crew members were being paid well below ITF rates and even less than International Labour Organization (ILO) minimums.

2009
The Liberian-flagged Annapurna was seized by creditors after it berthed in Auckland in 2009, following the bankruptcy of its owners Eastwind.
The Maritime Union looked after 23 Burmese crew members, some of the crew members had not been paid for up to a year.

June 2009
12 Indonesian fishermen from joint venture fishing vessel Shin Ji leave vessel in Tauranga, citing non payment of wages, harassment and substandard conditions.
NZ$52,776 back pay obtained for crew and repatriation to country of origin.

2008
The Maritime Union took action to recover the unpaid wages of a Russian crew aboard the Southern Pearl after it was arrested in the Ports of Auckland.

June 2006
Burmese crew aboard Sky 75 in Timaru approach union for help.
Wages were unpaid, physical and verbal abuse. 10 Indonesian crew previously jumped ship in Nelson in 2005 with similar claims.

May 2006
Joint venture fishing vessel Malakhov Kurgan involved in crew dispute in Lyttelton.
Crew wished to be paid New Zealand minimum wage when working in New Zealand waters. Threats from Ukraine based employers received by crew.

March 2006
9 Indonesian fishermen from Korean fishing vessel Marinui jump ship in Dunedin, claiming severe physical and mental abuse.
Crew were being paid US$6 per day. Repatriation and backpay organized.

January 2004
33-year old Vietnamese fishermen Vo Minh Que drowned near Stewart Island after falling from the trawler Tasnui.
Maritime New Zealand reported that poor condition of vessel and lack of safety gear or procedures contributed to his death.

January 2004
Several watersiders were lucky to escape when several tonnes of collapsing equipment from a ship’s crane crashed onto the wharf at Southport in Bluff on Wednesday 14 January 2004.
At around 1.30pm, a gantry crane on board the Marshall Island-flagged ‘Tasman Independence’ had a large turntable crash onto the wharf with cargo after metal ropes snapped.
Three waterfront workers and a forklift driver were ‘a couple of metres away’ from where the wreckage fell.

November 2003
A crane on board the Hong Kong-flagged Maritime Friendship snapped while loading logs onboard at Port Chalmers at around 9.18pm on Friday 28 November 2003.
The boom of the crane swung around onto the operators’ cab, breaking windows and bending the cab’s window frame.
A local watersider operating the crane had to dive for cover in the back of the cab.

International incidents of note with Flag of Convenience vessels in recent years include the grounding of the Panamanian flagged bulk carrier “Pasha Bulker” in Newcastle, Australia, 8 June 2007.

The Maritime Union of New Zealand has welcomed today’s announcement by the Government of the terms of reference and panel for an official and wide ranging inquiry into foreign owned vessels in the fishing industry.

Maritime Union General Secretary Joe Fleetwood says the Government’s objectives sound good on paper, but the Union wants real answers.

“Enforceable rules and regulations for labour standards, and the need for New Zealand to benefit from our own resources, including jobs, are the big issues. This inquiry will need to shine a light into dark places.”

“This inquiry is long overdue and the Maritime Union have been calling for one for many years. But we know in advance that this inquiry will confirm what we already know, that disgraceful practices have become the norm and accepted by the industry.”

This has caused great harm, says Mr Fleetwood.

He says in 2006 new regulations were brought in to tighten up the rules around overseas crews on joint venture vessels, but the inquiry was effectively an admission that previous efforts had not cleaned up the industry.

“This is a problem that has been allowed to grow and grow for decades.”

Mr Fleetwood says the Maritime Union’s goal for the fishing industry was simple.

“We want to have the fishing and processing done by New Zealand operators employing New Zealand workers on decent wages and conditions. We want the phase out of joint ventures. They’ve been a failure, that has resulted in New Zealand being identified internationally as a place where disgraceful practices are condoned.”

“If overseas crews are phased out, the abuse, exploitation and underpayment will be solved.”

Mr Fleetwood says the Maritime Union would be working with other bona fide unions and the International Transport Workers’ Federation to discuss ways to organize local and international labour in the industry.

The Maritime Union will be among official campaign supporters attending the handover of the Tax Justice petition at Parliament Buildings tomorrow Tuesday 16 August 2011.

The Tax Justice campaign has collected nearly 40 000 signatures for its petition to remove GST from food and introduce a Financial Transactions Tax (FTT).

Maritime Union General Secretary Joe Fleetwood says the union was the first to officially back the Tax Justice campaign, but has been joined by several other major unions.

He says the goal of taking GST off food is a urgent necessity for the wellbeing of New Zealand workers and families.

“GST was always a bad tax, it was bad when it was introduced in the 1980s and it has been made worse when it was put up to 15% by John Key.”

Mr Fleetwood says that with inflation running ahead of wage increases, and major hikes in the cost of basics like food, there needs to be some relief for hard pressed working New Zealanders.

“We have seen recent reports that the wealth of a tiny minority of the richest New Zealanders has surged ahead in the last few years, while the majority are going backwards.”

Mr Fleetwood says the union is supportive of a financial transactions tax that would provide the income to remove GST on food.

He says that around the world, people are questioning why major finance institutions have been bailed out by taxpayers money, while the majority of workers are under attack from unemployment, low wages and so-called “austerity measures.”

“Where is the austerity for the very rich?”

“What the tax justice campaign is about is taking the tax burden off those who are struggling to feed their children and putting it back on those who can afford to pay.”

Mr Fleetwood says the Maritime Union congratulates the Tax Justice campaign for running a successful grassroots campaign to build support for a fairer tax system.

The announcement of a ministerial inquiry into foreign fishing charter vessels in New Zealand waters is long overdue.

The Maritime Union says ongoing problems with the abuse and underpayment of overseas crews on joint venture vessels in New Zealand waters have become an international embarrassment.

Maritime Union of New Zealand General Secretary Joe Fleetwood says the Maritime Union and International Transport Workers Federation (ITF) had intervened in numerous cases in the past few years.

“We are interested to see the industry is now calling for the inquiry, but we have been calling for an inquiry like this for years. It has been a long time coming.”

Mr Fleetwood says the current regulation of the New Zealand fishing industry and joint venture operators using international crews was being shown up as a failure.

“It is time to lance this boil. There needs to be a thorough investigation of the industry and immediate concrete steps, not just talk, to clamp down on the abuse and exploitation of overseas crews in New Zealand waters.”

Mr Fleetwood says the Union will be demanding that the ministerial inquiry is not just a “smother job” that sits on the bookshelf gathering dust.

“This must not be a box ticking exercise. We know what the problems are, what we need now is action, proper regulation, proper enforcement, to clean up a mess that has been allowed to grow for years under successive Governments.”

He says the Union wants an industry with world class wages and conditions for all workers, and employment opportunities for New Zealand workers in their own industry.

Mr Fleetwood says a recent incident where 32 crew left the Oyang 75 in Lyttelton earlier this month was an example of some of the problems in the industry.

The company responsible for chartering the Korean vessel, Southern Storm Fishing, were the charterers of the vessel Oyang 70 that sank last year with the deaths of six crew.

In May 2011, Southern Storm Fishing held a “media event” in Dunedin where journalists were invited on board to inspect their new replacement vessel, the Oyang 75.

But less than two months later, the crew of the new flagship of their fleet have abandoned the Oyang 75 en masse in Lyttelton, claiming physical and verbal abuse and underpayment.

In the latest development, a diplomat from the US State Department is currently visiting New Zealand as part of a investigation into global “human trafficking” which includes the abuse of fishing crews.

Mr Fleetwood says the Maritime Union is meeting with Ambassador Luis CdeBaca during his visit tomorrow to discuss concerns about the abuse of international crews in the global and New Zealand fishing industry.

Background to Oyang 75
A pattern of activities has been identified by the Maritime Union going back several years, in relation to the operations of Southern Storm Fishing and their vessels and crews.

ShinJi and Mr Hyun Choi
Department of Labour is reported to be currently investigating claims of abuse and underpayment of crew on ShinJi.
Crew members told media they left the vessel in Auckland several weeks ago due to underpayment and mistreatment.
The Shin Ji is chartered by Christchurch-based Tu Ere Fishing, went into voluntary administration recently.
A director of the company is Hyun Choi, also a director of Southern Storm Fishing, currently engaged in the Oyang 75 crew dispute in Christchurch.
In 2009 the ITF and Maritime Union investigated the Shin Ji after 12 Indonesian crew left the vessel.
The reasons they gave for leaving the vessel were non payment of wages, problems with harassment from officers, and substandard living and working conditions.
ITF inspector Grahame MacLaren reported a number of problems – “the vessel was in need of a good clean and there were large areas of rust on the deck in the galley, no bed linen, no hot water with the crew expected to shower in cold sea water. We also pointed out that the life rafts were almost inaccessible due to fishing gear being stowed all around them.”
NZ$52,776 in back pay was secured for the crew by the ITF and the crew were repatriated back to Indonesia despite initial resistance from the charterers.

Southern Storm media promotion
Southern Storm represented by publicist Glenn Inwood of Omeka Communications in Oyang 75 media promotion in May 2011. Inwood’s previous clients have included Japanese whaling industry and tobacco companies.

The $1000 “Bounty”
An advertisement placed in the Otago Daily Times in 2007 offers an $1000 bounty for information about missing crew member Kismo Pakistan who left his vessel the FV Oyang 70 in Dunedin on 5 June 2007.
The contact listed in the advertisement was Fisheries Consultancy Limited of Lyttelton and the advertisement was authorized by Southern Storm Fishing (2007) Limited of Christchurch.

Breach of RMA
In 2009 Southern Storm was found guilty of breaching the Resource Management Act following an oil spill from the Oyang 70 in Port Nelson. They contested that they were not the responsible party, but the judge found otherwise.

Sinking of Oyang 70
Southern Storm chartered vessel Oyang 70 sinks on 18 August 2010, 400 nautical miles off Otago coast. Six crew drowned.
Surviving crew kept away from media when taken ashore. The crew were then bused to a secret location, with police closing the Lyttelton tunnel so a media contingent could not follow the survivors’ bus through to Christchurch.
A former police officer involved in the case stated that crew were “treated appallingly” (Sunday Star Times, 12 April 2011).
“All the survivors came with the same story, and they all said they were hauling a bag of fish,” says Greg Lyall, captain of the Amaltal Atlantis, who rescued the survivors.
“The vessel lent over to one side – the factory filled up with water and the engine room filled up with water. There were no alarms, no lighting, nothing, and within 10 minutes the boat was gone and most of them had to swim to the life rafts.”

New Zealand maritime workers will be going up the gangway this week to check out ships flying “flags of convenience” and ensure that crew conditions, wages, and health and safety standards are up to scratch.

The International Transport Workers’ Federation (ITF) is holding its New Zealand Flag of Convenience Week of Action this week, ending Friday 3 June 2011.

Members of the ITF-affiliated Maritime Union of New Zealand will board vessels in New Zealand’s main ports, and go over documentation such as wage books, talk to crews, and inspect the seaworthiness and safety of ships.

Maritime Union of New Zealand General Secretary Joe Fleetwood says this is part of an ongoing international campaign to improve standards in the shipping industry.

He says that there have been a number of serious incidents on overseas vessels, including FOC vessels, in New Zealand ports and in and around New Zealand waters in recent years.

“We have had ongoing incidents ranging from underpayment of wages, failure for crews to be returned home at the end of their contracts, mistreatment and abuse, all the way up to serious injuries and deaths, and the sinking of vessels.”

Flag of Convenience (FOC) vessels are registered in countries with very lax or non-existent regulation of the maritime industry.

FOCs provide a means of avoiding labour regulation in the country of ownership, and become a vehicle for paying low wages and forcing long hours of work and unsafe working conditions.

ITF New Zealand inspector Grahame MacLaren says the week of action is intended to convey a clear message to Flag of Convenience operators who trade in New Zealand waters that they need to abide to basic ITF standards.

“The main focus will be to target FOC vessels without ITF agreements for the crew, but any other foreign flagged vessels will come under scrutiny.”

The ITF is made up of 681 unions representing 4,500,000 transport workers in 148 countries. It is one of several Global Union Federations allied with the International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC).