‘Workers at Darwin port just want to go to work and do their jobs without being worried that they may unknowingly take a killer virus back home’: Union says port staff fear outbreak
DARWIN port workers say they are in fear of a COVID-19 outbreak due to the lack of consistent federal policy addressing the risks of international shipping
Northern Territory
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DARWIN port workers say they are in fear of a COVID-19 outbreak due to the lack of nationally consistent policy addressing the risks of international shipping.
The Maritime Union of Australia (MUA) said the concerns of waterfront workers had been escalated after a 25-year-old crew member from the Diamantina livestock carrier tested positive for COVID-19.
MUA NT Acting Branch Secretary and National Indigenous Officer Thomas Mayor said workers in the Territory and across Australia were burdened with trying to prevent COVID-19 entering the Australian community because of inadequate federal protections.
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“Workers at Darwin port just want to go to work and do their jobs without being worried that they may unknowingly take a killer virus back home and into their communities,” he said.
“Port workers, their families, the Darwin community and all the vulnerable Indigenous communities in the NT continue to be put at risk because the federal government lacks a cohesive and consistent national policy addressing the unique risks posed by maritime supply chains.
“The current system, which is reliant on international shipowners, driven by profit, self-reporting potential illnesses — knowing that this will cause them costly delays — cannot guarantee the safety of our members or the broader community.
“The federal government must stop shirking their responsibilities and step in with an improved, nationally-consistent set of measures that include mandatory health checks and COVID testing for all international vessel arrivals.”
Mr Mayor said the efforts by the NT government to diagnose the case aboard the Diamantina were why the federal government needed to implement more cohesive practices and policies.
“Thankfully, in this case the additional quarantine steps put in place by the Territory government, which were developed in consultation with workers and the union, were effective at identifying the confirmed COVID case, highlighting why these should be standard practices across the country,” he said.
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“I’ve spoken with representatives from Indigenous health organisations and they share the union’s view that an urgent inquiry into the current system is needed.
“Any weak links, whether at Darwin or any other port handling international arrivals, puts these vulnerable communities at risk.”
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