Workers at UK’s Biggest Container Port Felixstowe Due to Begin Eight-Day Strike Action

Around 1,900 members of Unite at Felixstowe will walk out in a dispute over pay. It is the latest outbreak of industrial action to hit a growing number of sectors of the economy.

Workers including crane drivers, machine operators and stevedores are taking action after voting by more than 9-1 in favor of strikes. The union said the stoppage will have a big impact on the port, which handles around four million containers a year from 2,000 ships.

But one port source said the strikes will be an “inconvenience not a catastrophe”, claiming that the supply chain was now used to disruption following the pandemic.

“Disruption is the new normal. The supply chain has moved from ‘just in time to just in case’,” he added.

He also suggested that some suppliers of white goods such as fridge freezers might actually welcome a break because of slower sales due to the cost-of-living crisis.

Unite general secretary Sharon Graham said: “Felixstowe docks is enormously profitable. The latest figures show that in 2020 it made 61 million in profits, The Guardian reported.

“Its parent company, CK Hutchison Holding Ltd, is so wealthy that, in the same year, it handed out 99 million to its shareholders.

Felixstowe, Suffolk, is Britain's biggest container port and the strike will affect the UK’s supply chains.

“So they can give Felixstowe workers a decent pay raise. It’s clear both companies have prioritized delivering multimillion-pound profits and dividends rather than paying their workers a decent wage.”

The Port of Felixstowe said in a statement: “The Company is disappointed that Unite has not taken up our offer to call off the strike and come to the table for constructive discussions to find a resolution.

“We recognize these are difficult times but, in a slowing economy, we believe that the company’s offer, worth over 8% on average in the current year and closer to 10% for lower paid workers, is fair.”

Felixstowe handles nearly half of the containerized freight entering the country and the action could mean vessels have to be diverted to ports elsewhere in the UK or Europe.

It comes amid widespread disruption to rail and bus services over the weekend due to ongoing industrial action by transport workers seeking better pay and conditions.

Network Rail, several train companies, and bus services in London and parts of Surrey were hit by industrial action by the Rail, Maritime and Transport (RMT), TSSA and Unite unions which was also due to affect Sunday morning train services.