Maritime Union of New Zealand

Four Seafarers Scholarships are available from the New Zealand Seafarers Union Scholarship Trust, for current or former seafarer members, and children or grandchildren of New Zealand seafarers, for study in 2010 at University or technical institutes.

Details and application information for the scholarships is available here. Applications close in early December.

The Maritime Union of New Zealand is hosting a public meeting on the future of the Port of Timaru. The meeting will be held at the conference room at “Robbies” (Hibernian Hotel), Latter Street, Timaru on Thursday 17 September starting at 7.30pm sharp.

All concerned local people are invited to the meeting, including port workers, unions, business, industry, farmers, and all those concerned with the future of the port.

For more information see the Port of Timaru campaign website.

The Maritime Union says it is helping the Burmese crew from the seized vessel Annapurna in the Ports of Auckland.

The Liberian-flagged Annapurna was seized yesterday by creditors after it berthed in Auckland, following the bankruptcy of its owners Eastwind.

Maritime Union Auckland Seafarers Branch Secretary Garry Parsloe, who represents the International Transport Workers Federation, says the primary concern of the Union is that crew members are paid their wages.

He says the Union is ensuring that the interests of the 23 Burmese crew members are looked after.

He says provisions for the crew have been supplied as well as telephones, as some of the crew had not spoken to their families at home in months.

Mr Parsloe says he has an undertaking from the agents that a payment would be made to crew to assist them in the meantime.

He says some of the crew members had not been paid for up to a year.

Mr Parsloe says he was pleased to hear representatives of the creditors had indicated that crew wages would be at the top of the list to be paid once the ship had been sold.

He says the crew will either be repatriated with their wages or may be re-employed by a new owner of the vessel, which was their decision.

Mr Parsloe says there are often problems with “flag of convenience” ships and the treatment of their crew around the world.

ENDS

For more information contact Maritime Union Auckland Seafarers Branch Secretary Garry Parsloe on 021326261

The Maritime Union of New Zealand was formed in 2002 when the New Zealand Waterfront Workers’ Union and the New Zealand Seafarers’ Union joined together. We represent waterfront workers, seafarers and related workers in New Zealand.

The union offers a range of services to members, including negotiating employment agreements, providing work related legal advice, promoting health and safety on the job, and promoting the interests of working people – our members.

The Maritime Union of New Zealand says a free trade deal signed with ASEAN nations including the military dictatorship of Myanmar is bad for workers.

Maritime Union General Secretary Trevor Hanson says a free trade deal including Myanmar will boost the violently anti-worker regime in Myanmar and threatened workers rights.

He says the Maritime Union has many concerns about the treatment of Burmese maritime workers, some of whom work in New Zealand waters, and who have been mistreated and abused in the past.

The Maritime Union has previously spoken out about the murder of Ko Moe Naung, a Seafarers’ Union of Burma (Myanmar) organizer in the Ranong region, who was killed by Burmese military forces on 19 May 2005.

The Seafarers’ Union of Burma is a fellow affiliate with the Maritime Union of New Zealand to the International Transport Workers’ Federation.

Ko Moe was tortured to death over three hours during interrogation at 8-Mile Village Army Base LIR 431 in Kawthaung, Burma.

Ko Moe was targeted by the Myanmar regime as he was a dedicated trade union leader, who was organising Burmese fishermen and migrant workers from Burma at the Ranong area.

Mr Hanson says free trade deals mean that New Zealand is now effectively endorsing dictatorships such as Burma which murder workers such as Ko Moe Naung.

He says the Maritime Union has a long history of opposing repressive regimes, refusing to work on American nuclear warships in New Zealand harbours and supporting the struggle against apartheid.

“New Zealand waterfront workers refused to load pig iron for Japan before World War 2, which they were denounced for, but shortly afterwards the pig iron was coming back towards us as bullets.”

Mr Hanson says sometimes doing the right thing comes with a cost.

He says the Maritime Union is extremely concerned that free trade deals will mean the use of short term, casual labour imported across borders to drive down wages and conditions, a problem that is now occurring around the world.

The Maritime Union says that it has had enough of cowboy tactics on the Cook Strait after further revelations of another potential ferry
grounding that was narrowly avoided.

The Union is concerned about reports the ferry ‘Santa Regina’ was on auto pilot in the Tory Channel on June 9 in breach of Maritime Safety Authority rules.

Maritime Union of New Zealand Wellington Seafarers Branch President Mike Shakespeare says the latest incident aboard the ‘Santa Regina’
could have ended in disaster.

“We can no longer have these type of incidents occurring that pose a grave threat to the safety of the public and of our members.”

He says incidents such as this are the result of cost-cutting by ferry operators in a highly competitive market.

The Maritime Union is calling for stronger safety regulations and appropriate crew levels.