A third cruise ship has cancelled its visit to a Tasmanian port due to ongoing industrial action by marine pilots.
The Vasco Da Gama, carrying around 1,250 passengers and 500 crew members, has abandoned its scheduled stop in Burnie on Tuesday.
TasPorts CEO Anthony Donald said work was being undertaken to “minimise the impact” of the continued strikes and stressed that the company was looking to “find ways to ensure scheduled itineraries could be maintained wherever possible”.
“While we respect the right for our marine pilots to take protected industrial action, we understand the impact this has on our regions and small businesses, whether that is a long stopover or a short one,” he said.
“Vasco Da Gama will still visit Hobart and Port Arthur but, unfortunately, has cancelled the scheduled three-hour stopover at Burnie.”
The protected industrial action includes an indefinite stoppage of work on Saturdays, Sundays and public holidays and a ban on conducting any work outside usual rostered hours – unless in emergencies.
In addition to the existing protected industrial action, which only allows for pilotage services in emergencies, there is also an indefinite ban on communication with agents and schedulers, as well as a prohibition on nighttime pilotage services.
Marine pilots are currently protesting a proposed move that would have seen them switch to driving electric vehicles and are seeking a salary increase above the 12% already offered over three years.
READ MORE: Another cruise ship visit to Hobart cancelled as TasPorts pilots strike
Labor leader Rebecca White has voiced concerns about the significant ripple effects of these disruptions and called on the state government to intervene and resolve the issue, but Transport Minister Michael Ferguson says the dispute is a matter for TasPorts.
