AN attempt by Patrick stevedoring to elbow the wharfies union out of a workplace deal backfired recently, with 98 per cent of its Fremantle workforce rejecting the overture.

Patrick, which has a poisonous relationship with the maritime union going back decades, had offered workers a nine per cent pay rise over four years.

Waterside workers generally earn around $100,000 a year, but with allowances and overtime this can reach $180,000 according to the company.

The rejected offer follows five months of waterfront disruption and eight days of stoppages, involving 827 workers nationwide, including 186 in Fremantle.

MUA deputy national secretary Will Tracey says safety, job security and certainty about hours are the focus of the dispute, not pay. Patrick owner Asciano is set to be taken over by an international consortium, and that has workers and the union worried about job security.

by TRILOKESH CHANMUGAM