After a 19-month standoff, stevedores Patrick has come to an agreement with the Maritime Union of Australia over waterfront workers’ pay and conditions until 2015.

They reached the deal after a series of stop-start strikes on the waterfront, beginning in late 2010.

The resolution came only after the intervention of Workplace Relations Minister Bill Shorten, who stepped in last week when Patrick threatened to lock out its workforce, to trigger arbitration.

More at the Sydney Morning Herald