A strike scheduled to last eight days began on Sunday August 21 at the UK’s largest cargo port, the latest in a series of industrial action across many sectors to demand better wages in the face of record inflation .
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After three consecutive days of strikes having disrupted transport, in particular rail, it is the turn of the port of Felixstowe to be affected on Sunday. This is the first strike since 1989 for this port located in the east of England, which handles around four million containers a year.
Some 1,900 members of the Unite union including crane operators, machine operators and dockworkers have stopped work demanding pay hikes amid the UK’s cost of living crisis. Inflation reached 10.1% over one year in July and could exceed 13% in October, the highest level of a G7 country.
No agreement reached with port officials
“Felixstowe Docks is extremely profitable. Latest figures show that in 2020 they made £61m (nearly €72m) in profit,” said Unite General Secretary Sharon Graham.
For their part, Port of Felixstowe officials said “disappointed that Unite did not accept our offer to call off the strike and come to the table for constructive discussions to find a solution”. The company said it offered a pay rise that it feels “just” 8% on average and close to 10% for the lowest paid employees.
The port “regrets the impact this action will have on UK supply chains” and claims to work with its customers to “limit disruption”.