Stevedore Remuneration at POAL

1. ​Leading accountancy firm Ernst & Young has examined the remuneration of stevedores at Ports of Auckland during the 2011 financial year.  
2.  Ports of Auckland commissioned the work in response to claims by the Maritime Union of New Zealand – Local 13 (MUNZ) that remuneration figures quoted by the company were overstated and relied on excessive amounts of overtime being worked. 
3.  Ernst & Young found Ports of Auckland was correct in stating that the average remuneration for full time stevedores was $91,000. 
4.  Not a single full-time stevedore earned as little as the $56,700 described by the Maritime Union as the basic wage at Ports of Auckland. 
5.  Ernst & Young found that even part time stevedores made more than this, earning on average $65,000. 
6.  43 individuals earned over $100,000 with the highest earner making $122,000. 
7.  Union claims that a stevedore would have to work around 32 weeks of overtime a year to receive the average remuneration of $91,000 are untrue. 
8.  The $91,000 includes a range of allowances, benefits and shift payments with the average number of hours paid per week averaging 43. 
9.  However, the real issue is the lack of flexibility which results in an excessive amount of paid downtime at the port. This means that for every 40 hours paid, Ports of Auckland’s stevedores are only working 26.  This is not financially sustainable. 
10.  Superannuation contributions and medical insurance worth $2,055 annually are included in the remuneration figures.  Ports of Auckland matches the superannuation contributions of employees covered by the collective agreement up to a maximum of 7%. 
11.  Employees are also entitled to 15 days sick leave per annum, accruing up to 45 days.  All shift workers are entitled to five weeks annual leave.  Training for all stevedoring tasks (crane driving, straddle driving and lashing) is undertaken in house and is paid for by the company.  

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