Mainfreight’s Braid says strike ‘disruptive’ in peak week

The fight to save rail is being set back by threatened industrial action on KiwiRail's Cook Strait ferries in the biggest freight week of the year, Mainfreight managing director Don Braid says.

KiwiRail's Interislander ferry business will enter mediation with unions tomorrow to try to avert a strike that will halt Interislander ferry sailings from December 1-8.

Mr Braid says the selfish and "bloody disruptive" act by unions takes the country back to the bad old days on the ferries.

"What disappoints us the most is there has been so much effort gone into getting rail back up and running in the last few years under this new ownership that the government has. Not only KiwiRail, ourselves and a lot of other customers have put a lot of effort into working on rail.

"We are moving more freight than we have ever before on rail and we have the support of our customers," he says. "And here we have the unions taking us back to the 1980s, which is just bloody stupid."

Last year Mainfreight moved 10,000 tonnes of freight, or 14,000 consignments, across Cook Strait in its busiest freight week of the year – the first week of December – and there would be more this year, Braid says.

Freight moved "just-in-time" these days and the disruption would not help the people of Christchurch, where warehousing was reduced after the earthquakes.

"Freight is moving in and out as quickly as possible. This is just more pressure that Christchurch does not need."

As occurred with Auckland bus drivers, members of the Aviation and Marine Engineers Association and Merchant Services Guild did not ratify a settlement recommended by the unions, according to KiwiRail.

KiwiRail has said all Interislander ferry sailings will be suspended in the first week of next month because of  the strike.

KiwiRail chief executive Jim Quinn saysthat the strike will have a severe impact on New Zealand's supply chain at a vital time of the year.

Interislander general manager Thomas Davis earlier says it is disappointing to receive a strike notice on November 16, rather than a request to return to mediation.

AMEA represents 70 engineering officers and MSG represents 54 deck officers.

"If the strike proceeds it will affect about 14,000 passengers and 4000 cars. About 1200 rail wagons and a similar number of trucks will also be disrupted," Mr Quinn says.

"Our major freight customers have advised that they are already making alternative plans for their cargo."

He says the Interislander immediately sought to arrange timely mediation between all parties and was disappointed to learn that the unions would not be available to engage in mediation until November 23.

Bluebridge ferries are still operating and freight companies are trying to get customers to move freight earlier.

KiwiRail's ferries make 4600 sailings a year, carrying 755,000 passengers, 53,000 rail wagons, 73,000 trucks and 212,000 cars. Two years earlier the ferries carried 845,411 passengers, according to annual reports.

Two of its three ferries have rail decks, which effectively make them part of the national rail network.

The Interislander business contributed 17% of KiwiRail's revenue in 2012, when there was a drop in passenger numbers, a sluggish economy and the Aratere ferry was out of action for stretching.

Cheap airfares and declining freight rates over a 10- to 20-year period have been cited by the company as challenges for the Interislander business.

Union officials were not immediately available to comment.

(BusinessDesk)