Almost 2,000 workers at the United Kingdom’s busiest container port will go on strike for eight days beginning Sunday over a salary dispute, the latest industrial action to affect a growing number of sectors of the British economy.
Workers at the Felixstowe port on England’s east coast, which handles roughly 4 million containers a year from 2,000 ships, will go on strike, including crane drivers and machine operators.
The strike comes as travelers throughout the United Kingdom experienced travel difficulties for the third day in a row on Saturday as thousands of train employees resumed a summer of strikes to demand greater compensation and job security in the face of rising food and energy prices.
On Saturday, just about one in every five trains in the United Kingdom were anticipated to run, with some places experiencing total service disruption. Tourists and soccer and cricket enthusiasts attending sporting events were among those impacted.
Due to a separate strike, most of London’s subterranean metro lines were closed on Friday.
The Unite union alleges that Felixstowe port’s parent company, CK Hutchison Holding Ltd., prioritized profits instead of paying workers a decent wage.
Port authorities, for their part, said they were “disappointed” that Unite did not “come to the table for constructive discussions to find a resolution.”
Felixstowe handles almost half of the container freight entering the country. The strike could mean vessels have to be diverted to ports elsewhere in the U.K. or Europe.
Rail workers began a series of large-scale strikes that grounded national train travel in June, demanding better pay and working conditions as authorities try to reform the rail system, which has lost large chunks of its income due to the coronavirus pandemic and shifting commuting patterns.
As Britain faces its greatest cost-of-living crisis in decades, more public and private sector unions are contemplating strikes. Postal workers, attorneys, British Telecom employees, and rubbish collectors have all declared upcoming walkouts.
About Author
