NSW Maritime has apologised to boat owners after striking workers shut down its workplaces on Friday following months of frustration over flawed licensing software.

About 24 of the NSW Maritime's 33 offices across the state were closed in protest at midday, with customer service officers claiming management had refused to acknowledge the failure of the new software.

The Australian Services Union (ASU) has reserved the right to take further action if the glitches are not resolved, but the union and NSW Maritime agreed on Friday afternoon to work on the problems next week.

NSW Maritime is due to report back to the Industrial Relations Commission by September 23.

The faulty software means NSW boat owners may unknowingly be out on the water in unlicensed boats because reminder letters haven't been sent out since the software was adopted in July, the union says.

As well, incorrect letters had been sent to boat owners telling them their licences had expired, it added.

NSW Maritime said on Friday it was aware of staff concerns, which surfaced during the implementation of the Government Licensing Service database (the GLS).

"(We) are working with the developer, the Department of Services Technology and Administration, to resolve them as quickly as possible," a spokesperson said in a statement.

"NSW Maritime apologises for any inconvenience that may be caused to customers as a result of this industrial action, and will work to keep services operational, wherever possible."

ASU NSW Secretary Sally McManus says the system is a nightmare, with each registration now taking 30 minutes on average instead of five minutes.

"Incorrect payment information is being sent out to boat owners and the new software is completely incapable of processing new commercial boat licences, meaning this part of the system has effectively ground to a halt," she said in a statement.

"Introducing such a fatally flawed new licensing system isn't fair to the public, and it certainly isn't fair to staff."

She said staff had to deal with customers' anger and frustration.

"They are being regularly abused at work ... six people went home in tears last week," Ms McManus said.

source http://news.smh.com.au