Layoffs loom in Ports of Auckland restructure

Thursday 23rd April 2009

Ports of Auckland, the country’s largest container port by volume, may lay off 30 staff as it centralises its operations at its Fergusson terminal in the face of dwindling trade volumes due to the global economic downturn.

The port will merge its operations at the Fergusson and Bledisloe container terminals as it seeks to cut costs and improve productivity by reducing duplicated overheads.

Container volumes sank 7.4% for the first quarter compared to the same period in 2008. The company’s attempted acquisition of rival Port of Tauranga’s container business foundered in February.

The current “labour model is not sustainable and does not make sense, particularly in the current economic climate,” said managing director Jens Madsen. “Maximising the volumes we handle at Fergusson provides the greatest opportunity for the largest number of full time employees, without in any way compromising customer service levels and productivity.”

Auckland Regional Holdings rebuffed a proposed merger between the two largest ports in 2007, and the Tauranga port decided against advancing discussions to merge their container businesses earlier this year.

Shares in Port of Tauranga slid 0.2% to $1.14 in trading on the NZX 50 Index this morning.

Almost 60 staff will be made redundant in the restructure with 29 new positions created at the Fergusson site out of the 500 employed by the port.

The majority of visiting container ships will berth at the expanded Fergusson terminal, with the Bledisloe site used to ease capacity during peak periods.

The Ports of Auckland are fully-owned by Auckland Regional Holdings, the corporate arm of the Auckland Regional Council, which is set to disappear under the proposed “supercity” council.

Madsen said the company considered other options, including the government’s subsidised nine-day working fortnight, before settling on the current plan put out for consultation.

A final decision will be made on May 11.

Businesswire.co.nz

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