Strikes hit European ports
Over 1,900 workers at the port of Felixstowe began an eight-day strike over pay on 21 August 2022. The major UK port handles over four million teu a year. In response, container lines have omitted scheduled vessel calls at the port and re-routed containers via alternative ports in northern Europe and UK.
The strike action is set to add to the logistics challenges the port of Felixstowe and the UK economy as a whole are already facing. Felixstowe has suffered from congestion and an excess of containers for the last two years.
Christian Roeloffs, CEO & co-founder of Container x Change said: “Strikes at European ports this year have already been highly damaging to logistics operations, manufacturers, and industry at large. We expect further industrial action to be just as harmful.”
Strike action threats loom over northern Europe. Dockworkers at the port of Liverpool have also voted to strike for better pay. German ports including Hamburg, Bremerhaven, and Wilhelmshaven have been facing the same situation since early summer. (sh)