‘Offensive’: Carnival Cruises slams planned union demonstration

Carnival Cruises has pushed back on a demonstration being organised by the Maritime Union of Australia, which is alleging “exploitation” of workers on cruise ships.

This morning (Wednesday, 21 January), the Maritime Union of Australia (MUA) will stage a demonstration at Station Pier, Port Melbourne, meeting the Carnival Adventure as it docks for the Australian Open.

Union allegations

According to union organiser Shane Reside, “Carnival Cruises is paying its crew as little as $2.50 an hour to work on its Australian cruise ships”.

“It’s disgusting – this has got to be the worst labour exploitation we have ever seen, and it’s happening in plain sight,” he said.

In a statement, MUA said that Carnival Cruises has three ships home-ported in Australia and “exploits a loophole in the Coastal Trading Act, flying workers in from some of the poorest economies on earth to work on short-term contracts sailing up and down the Australian coast”.

Workers, the union claimed, have reported being made to work more than 10 hours a day for more than a month without break, and going for weeks trapped working below deck without seeing daylight.

Victorian Trades Hall Council assistant secretary Danae Bosler said: “There is not a single ordinary Victorian who thinks that paying people $2.50 an hour to work in Australia is okay. This is such an extreme example of what billionaires will try and get away with if they think no one is looking.”

“The Victorian union movement has a message for Carnival Cruises: if you think you can bring your ships of shame to Melbourne without a fight you’ve got another thing coming.”

Adam Portelli, deputy chief executive of the Media, Entertainment & Arts Alliance, added that there are many Australian performers, musicians and backstage crew working on these ships alongside the international crew.

“We stand in support of our members’ and their co-workers’ rights – including fair compensation for their work and good working conditions – regardless of their country of origin,” he said.

“Taking advantage of any worker via a legislative loophole is unacceptable.”

Reside said: “It’s a shame for the Australian Open to be caught up in this kind of mess. When companies like Carnival behave like this, it casts a cloud over all of us. We will not stop until this ugly exploitation is stamped out for good.”

Carnival Cruises pushes back

In a statement provided to HR Leader, a spokesperson for Carnival Cruises Line said: “Let’s call the Maritime Union of Australia (MUA) activity for what it is: an organising drive to increase membership and raise revenue for their organisation. They don’t care about our employees except to try to get a portion of their paycheck for their treasury.”

“This so-called campaign is offensive to the dedicated shipboard team members who take pride in their work and in the culture of respect that defines Carnival Cruise Line.”

The company’s terms of employment “meet, and in most cases exceed”, the standards set by the International Maritime Organisation under the Maritime Labour Convention, the spokesperson continued.

The crew are further supported, the spokesperson said, by free accommodation, meals, medical care, training, transportation, and other benefits. “Furthermore, the Australian Maritime Safety Authority ensures strict international crew welfare standards are met through regular port state control inspections,” the spokesperson added.

“Carnival’s shipboard teams include crew who have been with us for 30 or even 40 years – people who build careers with us, support their families through their work, and in many cases, sail alongside spouses, siblings, or relatives.”

“We are proud of the fact that our retention rates lead the industry – in fact, more than 95 per cent of P&O Cruises Australia crew stayed on with CCL, when P&O folded into Carnival last March.”

Their loyalty, the spokesperson argued, “speaks far louder than the MUA’s claims”.