Strike action in Belgium and the Netherlands causes significant disruption, with potential knock-on effects for supply chains across northern Europe
Industrial action threatens to disrupt operations at various northern European ports over the coming days.
In Rotterdam, a strike by around 700 lashers – the workers who secure a vessel’s container cargo – brought the port’s container terminal operations to a halt on the afternoon of Wednesday 8 October.
If talks on Friday 10 October with employers Matrans and ILS do not produce a mutually acceptable agreement, the disruption is set to continue over the weekend.
Meanwhile, a slowdown by harbour pilots across Belgium to protest against the government’s planned pension reforms has also led to considerable delays for ships at the ports of Antwerp, Zeebrugge, and Ghent since it started on Sunday, 5 October.
Shipping company Maersk issued an advisory in which it said the action was expected to cause “serious disruption” to the resumption of shipping to and from Antwerp and Zeebrugge, “with severe delays to vessel arrivals and departures in the coming days”.
It added: “Our teams are actively monitoring the situation and are working closely with operational partners to mitigate disruptions where possible. However, please be advised that events of this nature are beyond our reasonable control and may impact your supply chain.”
