Port Unions from 17 Countries Call for Global Day of Action
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Port worker unions announced an international day of action for October 30, with confirmed support at more than 100 ports in at least 17 countries. According to the organizers, participation extends across four continents and continues to grow, with new unions from various countries joining in the days leading up to the call to action.
Reasons for the protest
The campaign is aimed primarily at opposing arms shipments passing through ports and what the unions describe as the militarization of maritime fronts. The organizers also expressed concern over the impact that automation could have on port jobs.
Scope and estimated impact
The organizers of the action estimated that it could delay around 40,000 containers over the course of a day, though they noted this is a preliminary estimate that has not been independently verified. According to the call to action, the planned strikes would span a coastal stretch of nearly 1,100 nautical miles, from southwestern France to Piraeus, and involve unions that handle 40% of Mediterranean container traffic. Among the ports mentioned are Tangier, Marseille, Piraeus, Gioia Tauro, Genoa and Mersin, along with major terminals in northern Europe, Mexico and India.
New unions joining
Among the latest unions to join are ILWU Local 10, representing workers at the U.S. ports of San Francisco and Oakland, the Unión de Estibadores e Jornaleros de Veracruz in Mexico, and the Hamburg port section of the German union ver.di. The participation of the European Dockworkers Council (EDC) was also reported.
Confirmed actions by country
In Italy, the Ministry of Transport's strike registry includes a nationwide 24-hour port sector strike on October 30, involving cities such as Genoa, Livorno, Trieste, Civitavecchia, Ancona, Ravenna and Gioia Tauro. In Greece, the Piraeus Labor Center has called a 24-hour strike in that area, while the seafarers' union PENEN has declared a strike of the same length covering Piraeus, Rafina, Eleusis, Patras, Lavrio, Rio-Antirrio and Igoumenitsa. The organizers noted that the specific form the protest will take has not yet been confirmed at all ports, so the level of disruption may vary by location.
Campaign organizers
The initiative was driven by CGT Ports and Docks of France, ENEDEP of Greece, LAB of the Basque Country, Liman-İş of Turkey, ODT of Morocco, and USB and Orsa Porti of Italy. USB, the Italian trade union confederation founded in 2010 that brings together public and private sector workers and is affiliated with the World Federation of Trade Unions, was the organization that released the details of the call to action.
