WA stevedore accident being investigated

Stevedoring company Patrick has disputed union claims workers walked off the job in Fremantle after an accident because of safety concerns.

A man in his 50s was struck and injured by a container on Friday morning, and was taken to Fremantle Hospital, where he is in a stable condition.

The Maritime Union of Australia (MUA) later said other workers at the terminal had stopped work and would only return once their safety concerns had been met.

MUA state secretary Christy Cain claimed the accident followed a Fair Work Commission decision that ordered workers at the terminal to increase their work rate.

"We have serious concerns about this industry putting profits before safety," he said.

But Patrick's owner Asciano said it suspended work at the site while initial investigations into the accident took place.

On December 19, the Fair Work Commission ordered the Fremantle employees not to engage in industrial action until May 1.

It upheld the company's claim that the workers were deliberately slowing productivity by limiting the number of container lifts per shift to 200.

Also on Friday, the MUA said it had notified marine contractor Tidewater, which recently started work on Chevron's Wheatstone gas project in WA's north, that it intended to take 48 hours of protected industrial action.

The dispute is over a new enterprise bargaining agreement.