Ports of Auckland Ltd management must have realised the reaction they would receive when, on Wednesday, they decided to sack nearly 300 Maritime Union of New Zealand members and introduce competitive stevedoring into container terminal operations.
It is an understatement to describe the dispute between POAL and the union as simmering. It has been building up to the latest explosive point quite quickly this year.
Court appeals and defences are already being prepared on the port dispute which now seems set to drag on for weeks.
Right-wing bloggers had attacked online the Munz president, Gary Parsloe, and his fellow union leaders, as being dinosaurs. Auckland Mayor Len Brown, a recipient of Munz funds for his mayoral campaign, is seen as selling out to port management at the expense of union jobs.
Until now, Labour leader David Shearer has kept well away from the dispute but two of his Auckland MPs, Jacinda Adern and Darien Fenton (both list MPs), have been seen on the picket lines.
Mr Parsloe reacted to the news of the layoffs in a predictable way, saying workers were devastated.
"There is no basis for this proposal. We're already providing flexibility and have offered even more in negotiations with Ports of Auckland."
He called on Mr Brown not to let this happen on his watch, saying Mr Brown's legacy could not be that he stood by while port workers were treated in such a bad way.
Port chief executive Tony Gibson was brought in to sort out the unions on the Auckland wharves and it seems he has won. Whether that will open doors for other port employers to disable the once strong and dominant union will be now open to speculation.
In the late 1980s and early 1990s, the former Harbour Workers Union of New Zealand was driven out of business, mainly from activities undertaken from Dunedin as port reform first took shape.
Wider disputes have been running at Affco-branded freezing works where, also on Wednesday, another 200 workers were locked out of the Te Puke works.
The lock-out came after more than 1000 workers began picketing outside another five of Affco's eight plants last week.
Affco operations manager Rowan Ogg said the lockout would continue indefinitely and a return to the negotiation table with the Meat Workers Union was unlikely unless the union had a "significant change in philosophy".
All plants were in operation and Affco had not locked out all members of the union, or members who were party to the collective, he said.
"We have locked out some and we have a reasonable number of people who have signed independent employment agreements and they're all working, as well."
The south of the South Island has escaped most of the industrial unrest, being labelled by unionists as the worst since National introduced the Employment Contracts Act in 1990.
Strikes have been held nationwide involving up to 1500 members of the New Zealand Nurses Organisation and the Service and Food Workers affecting about 20 rest homes, including an Oceania-owned one in Dunedin.
Staff were being told Oceania was offering a 3% pay rise over 15 months but union organisers said the reality was staff being offered about 1.5% over two years.
Union organisers said Oceania had chosen to use public money to pay off its property costs rather than invest in care for the elderly.
First Union general secretary Robert Reid is a long-time participant in New Zealand's industrial scene, having joined his first union in 1973. First Union is not involved in the current disputes.
He believed employers were being emboldened by not-so-subtle hints from the "John Key Mark II Government" by reacting to what they thought they could get away with.
"In the first term of the Key Government, they passed a few labour laws we didn't like but it was clear going into the election that employers didn't think the Government was going far enough.
"During the election, National made it clear it was not going to be `labour light'. That has given the employers courage, in my view, to unleash a class struggle on their workers."
Mr Reid admitted that "struggle" was a strong word to use in the current industrial climate but said other union officials concurred with his thoughts.
"Most employers would probably wish unions didn't exist, even though unions are the basis of legal rights of congregation today."
BusinessNZ chief executive Phil O'Reilly predictably rubbished Mr Reid's claims when interviewed by the Otago Daily Times.
"Of course it's not about employers with an agenda to take on unions. About 99.999% of all workers and employers work together extremely well. I don't perceive any big anti-union agenda here."
While the Council of Trade Unions had talked about employers being emboldened by the Government's stance on industrial relations, Mr O'Reilly, an employers' advocate in various forms since the 1980s, said it was impossible to point to one bit of legislation that gave authority to that claim.
The latest industrial action was more noticeable because it was the first time in many months New Zealand had seen high-profile strikes and lock-outs.
Smaller, low-key industrial action happened regularly but did not capture the attention of the public, he said.
In his opinion, there was no particular thread to the three major disputes in New Zealand.
However, there was a general theme of tough economic times and employers trying to find a way to save jobs, as well as make a profit.
When times were tough, employers had to become more competitive and they had less choice about how they could do that, Mr O'Reilly said.
Workers could feel the brunt of those hard times by finding overtime being cut, their partner had lost their job and their families were finding it harder to make ends meet.
"But if you asked me whether that suggested a major uplift in industrial relations, the answer is no."
Mr O'Reilly claimed the Government had said it would not interfere with collective bargain.
Council of Trade Unions secretary Peter Conway tends to agree with Mr O'Reilly regarding the majority of employers and their workers getting on with things without too much dispute.
To put it into context, Mr Conway said 390,000 people were in unions and covered by 2500 collective agreements.
"There has been a lot of publicity about three of them but that is only three out of 2500. A lot of union members are going to work today who are not at war with their employers."
What concerned the CTU, however, was other employers looking at the current disputes and thinking about wanting to take on the same sort of agenda of casualisation.
More employer action would follow this year, affecting other workers, he said.
"When John Key talks about a brighter future, he is not talking about workers. Is it a crime now to have a decent job in New Zealand?"
No-one would disagree with the need for flexibility and there was nothing wrong with workplaces having that sort of agreement to get the job done.
But it seemed as though employers were wanting the flexibility without agreement, loading the risk on to workers, Mr Conway said.
In tough times, it was essential for employers and workers to co-operate and work together and not pass on the risks to the most vulnerable.
The global financial crisis was caused by the business and banking community but everybody - businesses and workers alike - were paying the price for the "stuff-up", Mr Conway said.
Mr Reid said once anti-union companies like Talleys, the owner of the Affco plants, managed to change the wages and conditions at their meat plants, other meat processors would be forced to follow suit.
Other lock-outs would follow, with the most obvious example being the airline industry.
Budget airlines had forced major airlines to drop the wages and lower the conditions of their staff in an effort to remain competitive.
Australian carrier Qantas locked out its staff and grounded its planes as it forced workers to take lower pay, he said.
Ports of Auckland was using the current dispute to lower its costs at the expense of workers' wages and conditions.
"The port company definitely feels much much stronger by the silence of the Government."
Labour Minister Kate Wilkinson is going to let the disputes play out.
All Mr Key would say was that the Government had not been asked to intervene and it would be an "enormous call" for it to do so.
"We're not actually a party to those issues at the moment. The only thing I would say is it's very important that all parties act lawfully and legally and clearly try and resolve the issue as soon as they can."
The ports were important to New Zealand's reputation and economy, Mr Key said.
