Port Kembla Coal Terminal lodge official isn't delaying agreement, says union

Workers at the coal terminal are at loggerheads with PKCT over a new enterprise agreement, which needs to be sorted out out before the March 29 deadline set by the Fair Work Commission.

As part of the negotiations PKCT wants to move what operations manager Kurt Baumgart described in a letter to workers as "white collar staff roles" out of the scope of the agreement.

Mr Baumgart's letter said CFMEU officials "have been clear that these roles must remain within the scope of a replacement enterprise agreement".

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One of the workers in those white collar jobs is an official in the lodge at the coal loader.

The CFMEU district vice president Bob Timbs refuted the suggestion this worker's personal wishes not to become a staff member was delaying an agreement on a deal for the terminal workers.

"Any suggestion that this is all because of a union position at the port is absolutely ridiculous," Mr Timbs said.

He conceded a lodge official was indeed one of the white collar workers that PKCT wanted to move into a staff position but said it wasn't an issue.

"For us it wouldn't matter who it is, whether it's a lodge member or not," Mr Timbs said.

"They want to be covered by the agreement and they’ve been covered by the agreement for many, many years."

Mr Timbs also claimed PKCT had yet to offer a good reason why this employee should be not be covered by any new agreement.