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Filthy, reprehensible, repugnant literature?

by Whaleoil on December 16, 2011

The Maritime Union boss says that letters sent by Ports of Auckland CEO are “filthy, reprehensible, repugnant literature“:

Union president Garry Parsloe said the offer equated to “the minimum rates” included in the individual agreements, but the latest strike notice was in response to letters sent to members’ homes threatening to contract out their work if the dispute went on.

“We’ve never said anything about the money – we will get around to addressing that soon,” he told the Herald.

“We’ve said [to the company] we don’t mind you having a fight with us and locking us out, but you stop attacking our families and if you do it again we are going to give you another strike notice, and [Mr Gibson] has done it again.”

Told that the company had decided against issuing any more lockout notices, Mr Parsloe said: “We would sooner have him lock us out than send filthy, reprehensible, repugnant literature to our houses.”

Well are they? Where are these letters that are so filthy, reprehensible and repugnant?

Surely if they were so bad they would see the light of day?

I contacted the Ports of Auckland and they have kindly proved me with the copies of the 3 letters, plus the offer that the Maritime Union has rejected. I’ll let you be the judge as to whether or not these letters are ”filthy, reprehensible, repugnant literature”.

POAL – Letters to Staff and Offer

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  • Agent BallSack

    Reads to me like POAL are doing everything in their means to resolve the issue. Of concern to the workers is that POAL would look at contracting out the services, while being held over a barrel by the union. Perhaps the workers should be extremely concerned that the unionists are happy for many people to die in a ditch over this.

  • Davidw

    The old style union finds any attempt by an employer to talk directly to its employees rather than through the union as filthy, underghand and reprehensible.  I struck the same attitude in 1985 when I put a full page ad in the paper advising all and sundry (including clients and end-consumers) about a strike that the union did not want publicised.  The vehemence was vile and vindictive and was accompanied by threats to my personal safety and a bullet hole in my office window.  It worked though and when the strikers were met by people’s understanding of the pointlessness of their actions, they folded quickly.

    The rank and file generally only get fed what Trades Hall want them to know and that is painted with a viewpoint that is so slanted that it bears little resemblance to the tructh.  The Union Secretary is figghting for his own livelihood here so he will resort to any bullshit statement that gets him some airtime and confuses the issue.

    Dollars to a knob of goat scat that the stevedores will lose more pay than they will make up in 5 years (if their jobs last that long.  They perhaps have also yet to twig to the fact that they will become persona non grata with the enterprises that will take up the outsourcing contracts thus making their experience and “skills” a liability rather than an asset to a future employer. 

    • Misanthropic Curmudgeon

      Davisw suggestion that the stevedores ”will become persona non grata with the enterprises that will take up the outsourcing contracts thus making their experience and “skills” a liability rather than an asset to a future employer” is precisely the reason they’re hanging on for grime death: there is no way they’ match their cushy life outside their cloistered environment

  • ConwayCaptain

    The productivity of Tauranga has always been streets ahead of POAL even when comventional shipping was still around.

    Trying to get these people to see sense is almost impossible.  They imbibe “class warfare” with their mother’s milk.

    I see nothing wrong with the POAL proposal.  Maybe they should just sack them and recruit new labour.  The most difficult job in a container terminal is straddle driving.  Most people could be trained to use lashing bars etc in a few hours and a crane driver in maybe 2-3 days.

    • Vij

      Absolutely correct, well said

    • diabolos

      The only problem is – these union members are members of your class – they are all on 90K per annum plus.  Classic case of (possible) National Voters using the system – its free enterprise and alls fair in capitalism and war.

      Effectively this is not to do with a union movement – but rather a collective of well paid morons.  The maritime union are not a union – they represent closet national voters.

      Welcome to your very own bright future.  Anything goes.

      Its the “new confucianism” of New Zealand.  God isnt dead – its New Zealand and its culture thats dead – forever this time.

      • Vij

        Join Kosh103, you are another moronic idiot, writing absolute rubbish all the time.  So now we have 3 moronic idiots.

      • Phronesis

        You mistake money for class.

      • Alex

        Tell me where your theory leads.  Is it either that if they were paid a “Labour party voter” wage (whatever that would be) we wouldn’t have the strike?

        Or are you a few dots away from saying that these closet Nats at the waterfront are the Fifth Column for that evil John Key’s attempt to discredit the unions?

  • frosty

    POAL sound like a fantastic employer!  If only MY boss was as forthcoming, transparent and indeed generous.
    The first letter in particular showed great restraint when discussing the relocation of the Maersk service to Tauranga – in no way attributed any of the blame to the Union – instead simply outlined the situation and the potential impact on the company and employees.
    When we currently have such a large number of unemployed, and supposed lack of job opportunities… MUNZ actions are just plain wrong.  Pack of morons.

  • Anonymous

    “We’ve said [to the company] we don’t mind you having a fight with us
    and locking us out, but you stop attacking our families and if you do it
    again we are going to give you another strike notice, and [Mr Gibson]
    has done it again.”

    I couldn’t work out where, in any of that literature there was the slightest suggestion of an attack on MUNZ families. It’s a complete lie & the union have been exposed as bullshit artists of the highest order.

    Emotive rhetoric soon gets called out as BS these days thanks to social media. Good work Whale.

  • joe bloggs

    Fuck me!

    So inclusiveness, openness, honesty and transparency, combined with an offer of a 10% increase on a working wage that is already double the average wage for NZers is deemed to be filthy, reprehensible and repugnant?

    I wish my employers were that reprehensible.

    Parsloe’s bully-boy, stand-over union tactics have finally been given a cleansing dose of sunlight! Good onyer Cam!

  • Super Guest

    This seems like a fairly standard letter a company would send to a union. They make out like it’s Mien Kamph (sp?) or something.

    • diabolos

      Mein Kampf 

      • Vij

        Here we go again, crap from a moronic idiot.

  • http://keepingstock.blogspot.com/ Inventory2

    What is “filthy” and “reprehensible” is that the Maritime Union has set out to clash with POAL, and the losers are the people who are waiting for products to be unloaded on the wharves at Auckland.

    The Maritime Union probably thought that it was a good time to have POAL over a barrel; I can only applaud the company for its response. Those who are forced to pay a portion of their weekly earnings to the MU in union fees should be taking a long, hard look at the union’s motives, especially when the redundancies start. Surely, a union’s first responsibility is to PROTECT the jobs of its members, not to put them at risk.

  • Anonymous

    Of  course it is “ filthy, reprehensible and repugnant” if you are a workshy fucking wharfie, seriously ,are they supposed to actually work down there?

    • Judy Garry

      Why dont You go to the next Maritime picket and call them work shy fucking wharfies 
      to their faces? You have the mind and backbone of  a worm, or am I insulting that breed of insect? 

      • Anonymous

        I`ve had the experience of working on the wharves Judy, and indeed they are a pack of racist ,workshy ,lazy fuckwits.
        Nary a braincell to be seen , goes for their wives also, it seems.

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  • Mariner

     As for being racist the membership is absolutely multi racial.Listen dickhead You have no idea what You are talking about You make statements with no substance what so ever.Who are you to label a whole sector of the workforce as unintelligent sounds to Me if anyone is racist and unintelligent it would be glaringly obvious to anyone who was even partially aware it would be You.I really really wish You had the guts to confront the Guys personally with Your brilliant insights . You Sir are the racist and a moral coward.      

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