This extraordinary letter was the subject of an article in Lloyds List on 18th November. The article has been reproduced on various internet ferry websites so hopefully there is not a problem with copyright but I leave it to Paul to judge. This copy is from the Yahoo group "Ferries of Northern Europe."
Major customers slam Dover Harbour Board
David Osler - Tuesday 18 November 2008
http://www.lloydslist.com
ALL three leading customers of Dover Harbour Board have accused Britain's
number one ferry port of "abusing its dominant position",
"misrepresentation", "lack of transparency" and not telling the truth, in an
explosive round robin letter seen by Lloyd's List.
The accusations, levelled by P&O Ferries, SeaFrance and Norfolkline, centre
on Dover's plans to outsource mooring, trailer handling and security work,
precisely the issue that triggered this week's 48-hour walk out by
dockworkers at Dover.
Unite, the trade union organising the strike, instantly seized on the
document as proof that the changes are unnecessary and not supported by
Dover's clients, the very people in whose name they are being carried out.
The letter from the vessel operators was sent to all members of Dover
Harbour Board, and is signed by P&O Ferries ports director Terry Cairns;
SeaFrance managing director Robin Wilkins; and Norfolkline route director
Andreas Teschl. It is dated September 25.
The letter's signatories accuse the trust port of carrying through the
outsourcing process "with indecent and unnecessary haste". Although the port
has justified its action by its proposals to build a second terminal, the
operators say that "there is certainly no urgency" on this score.
They added: "The impression has been given to all that this process has been
undertaken at the behest of one or more of its customers. This is simply not
true and we wish to make clear that this restructuring has been presented to
us as a fait accompli over which we have had no choice and very little
consultation."
Dover Harbour Board chief executive Bob Goldfield is said to have promised
tranparency, but in practice meetings with the operators have been
"unhelpful" and the extent of savings to the port have been "concealed".
The three ferry companies said that it was "totally unacceptable" for Dover
Harbour Board to pocket all the savings resulting from the changes and said
they "expect to receive a permanent tariff reduction reflecting the full
amount of the savings".
In the final paragraph, the signatories wrote: "In summary, we believe that
Dover Harbour Board is abusing its dominant position, is not acting in the
interest of its stakeholders by ensuring a smooth transition to outsourced
services, and is following a process which is designed to minimise our
choices in this matter and will lead to significant extra costs for all
operators."
Dover Harbour Board said: "The issues raised in the letter have been
discussed at length with the ferry operators and have been resolved in the
two months that have passed since it was received."
However, a representative of P&O Ferries, who said he was speaking for
SeaFrance and Norfolkline as well, contradicted the port spokesman, saying
that issues were still outstanding. However, he was unwilling to elaborate
on what they were, owing to the sensitivity of the industrial relations
situation.
Brendan Gold, Unite's national secretary for docks and waterways, said:
"This comes as no surprise to me whatsoever. Bob Goldfield has had total
disregard and contempt for his workforce. He seems to be self-centred and
determined, irrespective of other stakeholders' views."
Mr Gold pointed out that the Dover workforce was not militant, and had not
even participated in the strike against the abolition of the National Dock
Labour Board in 1989, the last nationwide dockers' strike in Britain.
"They have engaged with the port through our stewards over the years,
through market testing, to make sure they are competitive. I've never
believed the management case, and I don't think there is a logical argument
for outsourcing 190 jobs. His case is totally undermined, and I think the
letter reinforces that very succinctly."
Meanwhile, Dover Harbour board has insisted that all operations went ahead
as normal yesterday, despite the start of a two-day walkout by Unite
members, after managers were trained to carry out manual and security
operations. Unite disputed this account, saying that services were limited.
Some port sources indicated that a further stoppage, possibly of four days'
duration, could come as early as next week, although Unite declined to
comment on the suggestion.