Australian dock workers are demanding a 28-hour work week with no lost wages as the use of artificial intelligence (AI) and automation increases in the country’s ports.
The AI push is being led by port logistics giant DP World, which the Maritime Union of Australia (MUA) has said has put workers’ jobs “in the dock”.
The union said: “If DP World wants AI and automation, they must pay a social dividend. New technology will not put our members out of a job or put their livelihoods at risk so that a terminal operator can increase profits.”
The BBC has contacted DP World for comment and the MUA for further information.
DP World, based in Dubai, is increasingly testing AI tools to manage staff and work schedules across its operations, according to a study by the Center for International Corporate Tax Accountability and Research, which was commissioned by the MUA.
The study said the automation program is part of a pattern of pushing AI into operations “without real consultation” and threatens a thousand jobs, or more than 60% of the dock and maintenance workforce.
The company has also proposed the use of AI-assisted remote-control cranes and driverless vehicles.
The union called for a 28-hour work week in a statement on July 3, saying, “Technology should be used to improve workers’ lives, not destroy them.”
DP World Dock workers are believed to currently work about 32 to 35 hours a week, depending on their location, according to the Australian Financial Review, which first reported the negotiations.
State-owned DP World is one of the world’s largest port operators and is ultimately controlled by Dubai’s ruler Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum.
In Australia, it moves millions of shipping containers every year through its ports in Sydney, Melbourne and other parts of the country.
With operations in 84 countries and more than 126,000 employees worldwide, the firm handles approximately one-tenth of global container traffic.