UNIONS are urging the Australian Government to deliver genuine fuel security to the nation by taking advantage of a unique opportunity to create a domestic fuel stockpile at a fraction of the normal cost, as the COVID-19 pandemic causes a collapse in global oil prices.

The Maritime Union of Australia and Australian Workers Union said the current crisis was not only a wake-up call — demonstrating how quickly global supply chains can break down in a crisis — but also an unprecedented opportunity to develop a strategic fuel reserve on Australian soil.

Oil prices in the United States have gone negative for the first time in history as producers run out of space to store excess supplies, while international benchmark Brent crude has dropped to its lowest price in nearly two decades.

MUA assistant national secretary Ian Bray said the COVID-19 crisis was both a warning and an unprecedented opportunity to improve Australia’s resilience.

“This pandemic has exposed how vulnerable Australia’s supply chains are, how quickly an unforeseen crisis can develop that drastically impacts global trade, and how important it is to have stockpiles of essential products on Australian soil,” Mr Bray said.

“More than 90 percent of our liquid fuel comes from overseas, we have less than three weeks worth of supplies in the country at any point in time, yet without fuel our economy would grind to a halt.

“Instead of tapping into the United States’ Strategic Petroleum Reserve — with no plan to transport that fuel to Australia if needed in a crisis — the Morrison Government should take advantage of the unprecedented collapse in oil prices to build our own domestic fuel stockpile.

“The government should also commence the process of developing a strategic fleet that includes Australian-owned oil tankers, ensuring supplies can keep flowing during times of crisis.

“Instead of viewing the International Energy Agency’s 90-day fuel stockholding obligation as a technicality that needs to be ticked off, Energy Minister Angus Taylor should take steps to deliver genuine fuel security with a readily-accessible government-owned stockpile on Australian soil.

“As an island nation reliant on sea-borne trade, we are highly susceptible to disruptions caused by pandemics, military conflict, economic crisis, and natural disasters, which is why a strategic shipping fleet and domestic fuel stockpile are vital for delivering genuine fuel security to the nation.”

AWU national secretary Daniel Walton said the Australian Government must learn from the current crisis to ensure the country was ready for future global emergencies.

“For Australia to meaningfully address our fuel security problem we need to approach the challenge from two angles simultaneously: boosting our internal liquid fuel stockpile and ramping up our domestic fuel refining capacity,” Mr Walton said.

“If we take advantage of this current crisis to achieve both of these things then we will not be so vulnerable if the next global emergency threatens our fuel imports.”

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MORE THAN 1200 people have registered to be part of ATEC’s free online weekly tutorial series, Road to Recovery.

The tutorials, part of ATEC’s ‘Build Back Better’ strategy, offer a 12-week program of valuable, learning opportunities designed to give individuals and businesses tools to be stronger than ever once the industry gets back on track. 

“ATEC is rolling out the ‘Road to Recovery’ tourism tutorial series as a way of supporting our industry members and helping them use this time to work on their business,” ATEC managing director Peter Shelley said.

“This is undoubtedly an unprecedented challenge for our industry and many people have lost their jobs or their entire business, but the tourism industry is full of passionate and committed people who will be there at the other end of this pandemic, looking to re-engage and find new opportunities.

“We are offering our Road to Recovery tutorials free to the tourism industry in order to help individuals use this time as an investment in their future, learning and building on their strengths and finding new paths."

Over the past month ATEC has successfully delivered industry webinars to an audience of 3000 plus registrants through its Build Back Better Leadership Webinars where members gain insights from panellists discussing a range of industry-relevant topics and challenges.

The Road to Recovery Tutorials are just 45 mins and are hosted every Thursday at 2pm (AEST).  

Upcoming Tutorials:

Week 1: Resilience- self-care, team care and how to work from home healthily    
Week 2: Build your Road to Recovery checklist    
Week 3: The virtual world - There's never been a better time
Week 4: How to adapt and Innovate in this new world
Week 5: Leading remote & virtual teams
Week 6: Facebook, Instagram and Linked-In stay connected and grow your customer base.

For a full program and to register click here.  https://www.atec.net.au/build-back-better/road-to-recovery-series/

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WOOLWORTHS will open up tens of thousands of extra weekly home delivery windows for its online customers from this week.

The extra capacity will be fulfilled out of hundreds of Woolworths Supermarkets across Australia and a new “Pop-Up” Delivery Hub in Notting Hill, Melbourne opening at the end of the week.

In supermarkets, Woolworths team members will hand pick online orders for customers before passing onto Sherpa and Drive Yello couriers to fulfil the last-mile delivery. These orders are capped at 40 items and will be delivered next day. 

Sherpa and Drive Yello have signed up more than 5,000 new delivery drivers onto their on-demand platforms to help meet the soaring demand for online groceries.

Together with recent increases out of the existing home delivery network, Woolworths has now doubled its online capacity over the past month.

WooliesX managing director Amanda Bardwell said, “We’re seeing a big increase in demand for home delivery as more and more customers seek to limit their outings in the community.

“While our first priority remains the most vulnerable in the community, we can now serve many more of our regular online customers, including Delivery Unlimited subscribers, as well.

“We’ve worked hard behind the scenes to find innovative ways to provide much-needed additional delivery capacity across Australia.

"In partnership with Sherpa and Drive Yello, we now have a highly flexible and scalable way to meet the needs of many more of our online customers in the weeks and months ahead.”

Woolworths’ Melbourne Pop-Up Delivery Hub has been setup at a 7,000 sqm warehouse in Notting Hill and is expected to service more than 5,000 orders each week. The Hub - which won’t open to walk-up shoppers - will hold a curated range of popular online products and provide employment to more than 400 Melburnians.

Ms Bardwell said, “Our Pop-Up Delivery Hub in Notting Hill is designed to complement the incredible work our online teams have been doing for our Priority Assistance customers in Victoria.

"We’ll keep a close eye on customer feedback to see if there is value in standing up more sites like this across Australia.”

Woolworths continues to offer Community Pick Up from more than 850 supermarkets across Australia. This allows customers to place a Pick Up order online for themselves or on behalf of another member of the community.

Earlier this month, Woolworths announced a partnership with leading Australian food services supplier PFD to support the temporary fulfillment of orders to its B2B customers. It provides business customers with access to PFD’s current product range and stock, and its order fulfilment and last-mile solutions through Woolworths’ website.

In March, Woolworths introduced an $80 Basics Box of meals, snacks and essential items to simplify online ordering for customers in need. These boxes - which can be ordered by customers directly or on behalf of someone in need - are packed by DHL and delivered by Australia Post within two to five business days.

About Priority Assistance

Woolworths first introduced its Priority Assistance service in March to help the elderly, people with disability and those in mandatory isolation access online grocery services. It has since delivered to more than 300,000 customers in need. To apply for Priority Assistance delivery, customers are asked to complete the form at woolworths.com.au/priorityassistance or call 1800 000 610 to find out more.

THE Queensland Minerals and Energy Academy (QMEA) is switching to virtual teaching to assist students, teachers and parents, with children learning from home due to the COVID-19 outbreak said the Queensland Resources Council (QRC).

QRC chief executive Ian Macfarlane said the Academy had been working with the Queensland Department of Education and teachers to deliver the educational content remotely, with direct links to the Australian curriculum, when term two starts today, Monday, April 20, for the majority of schools.

“Technology is the great connector during these challenging times and the QMEA will continue to deliver its services to students in the south east and the regions through virtual classrooms,” Mr Macfarlane said.

“QMEA will deliver the educational content using the capability of the QRC led national minerals and energy education portal www.oresomeresources.com as well as through interactive webinars and online videos to teach students science, technology, engineering and maths (STEM) subjects and tips to enter the essential trades in our industry. ”

The QMEA will offer additional access to more educational resources and online experiences to assist teachers in understanding the skills needed in our sector and the teaching and learning of minerals and energy.

QMEA is the education arm of the QRC and partners with 75 schools across the State with the help of industry professionals and is Australia’s largest industry and government educational partnership.

“The latest data provided by the Queensland Government shows that almost 22 percent of QMEA students who finished school in 2018 and went to university began studies in engineering and related technologies last year, compared with 15 percent of students in non-QMEA schools,” Mr Macfarlane said.

“And, 5.2 percent of QMEA students entered a mining field compared with 0.2 percent of non-QMEA students.

“Most pleasingly, 4 percent of Indigenous students in QMEA schools entered mining careers, compared with just 1 percent of non-QMEA Indigenous students.

“And, 13 percent of QMEA female students in apprenticeships went into the mining sector compared with 2 percent of non-QMEA females."

www.qrc.org.au

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