PWCS labor unions call for a 24-hour strike Wednesday

Mining News  |  2013-05-27 07:14:16   |   By

The labor unions at the Newcastle Port Waratah Coal Service (PWCS) terminals who carried out an eight-hour work stoppage Friday have resolved to hold a 24-hour strike this Wednesday

BRISBANE (Scrap Monster) : The labor unions at the Newcastle Port Waratah Coal Service (PWCS) terminals who carried out an eight-hour work stoppage Friday have resolved to hold a 24-hour strike this Wednesday.

The call for a full-day strike was announced by Maritime Union of Australia (MUA) through a statement released Friday.

The talks between PWCS officials and union leaders held Tuesday and Thursday failed to arrive at a breakthrough. The union leaders say the company continued to remain firm in their stand, but the doors are open for further negotiations. In the meantime, the union has decided to further step up their campaign.

Around 200 members representing the five trade unions- the Australian Manufacturing Workers' Union, Australian Workers' Union, CEPU for communications and electrical staff, Maritime Union of Australia and the Transport Workers' Union participated in the strike. The unions are mainly concerned over the settlement procedure of contracts and use of contractors, which they say may pose threat to job security of its workers.

The labor unions on May 15th had observed a short duration strike for 4 hours.

PWCS operates one of the world’s largest coal handling operations. PWCS operates two coal terminals, Carrington and Kooragang which are located in the Port of Newcastle. Carrington Coal Terminal has a shiploading capacity of 25 million tonnes per annum (‘Mtpa’) and Kooragang Coal Terminal has a shiploading capacity of 108 Mtpa. These terminals receive, assemble and load Hunter Valley coal for export to customers around the world.