Gisborne harbour pilot sacked

[ex Elly 258]

A harbour pilot in Gisborne was sacked after his boss discovered he was not on board large ships he was supposed to be on.

 

Things came to a head when a large fishing boat he was supposed to be on, but wasn't, smashed into a building at the port and sent people running for their lives, in March 2017.

 

But Hines claimed he was unjustifiably dismissed and sought reinstatement. He took the matter to the Employment Relations Authority.

 

https://www.stuff.co.nz/business/100754633/harbour-pilot-sacked-after-boat-he-was-supposed-to-be-on-smashes-into-building

 

[Fish 0]

That was / is an outstanding story. When I first saw the headline I thought it would be in some fair flung half arsed tin pot country somewhere, a long long way from the rules, regulation and layers of bureaucracy of NZ.

I know Gisborne is the most isolated city in NZ, but it wasn't entirely what I had in mind.

[wheels 544]

When I read the article when it was first published, I was gobsmacked and was going to post it here and get Rigger to comment on it.
He has also made this comment. " Ships come in and out of the anchorage in Auckland four or five times a day without a pilot on board,"
Really? I find that hard to believe.

We met him when we entered Gisborne. He seemed a nice guy, although we got a shock that the very first thing he asked us was, Please provide proof of your insurance and I had this horrible thought that if we could not provide such, would that mean that he would force us back out into ruff weather we were seeking shelter from. Thankfully we had enough proof on board. I also assume that is not his own Policy, but the Port Company's and he just has to ask.