Container handling in the Port of Hamburg severely disrupted by warning strike | MarketScreener
Cautionary protest and shutdown will occur on Monday as well.
The Port of Hamburg, Germany's most important center for handling goods, will continue to be closed to big ships until Monday, as well as this Friday. Even though the warning strike at the Hamburg Port Authority (HPA) has been going on since Wednesday evening, the trade union Verdi announced in Berlin on Thursday that container shipping will be stopped again on Monday. Christine Behle, the deputy Verdi national chairwoman, stated that "in certain areas, it will not go on." This means that large ships won't be able to enter the Port of Hamburg, and there will be shipping delays for loading and unloading ships.
Earlier on Wednesday morning, the HPA made a decision to shut down access to the Port of Hamburg for ships that require pilotage. This was due to the fact that ships needed up to eight hours to make their way from the mouth of the Elbe to the port. If ships had entered the federal waterway later, they wouldn't have enough time to reach the port by 5:30 p.m. The HPA explained that this was the official start time of the strike. A spokesperson from the HPA gave this explanation for their decision.
Verdi trade union members are currently on strike and will remain so until 6 a.m. on Friday. This impacts the pilot transfer boats, which are now inaccessible to pilots. Unfortunately, this poses a significant problem for ships that are at least 90 meters long or 13 meters wide. Out of approximately 18 ships heading towards Hamburg, all of them have been affected. This includes numerous large container ships that are around 400 meters in length, namely the "Cosco Shipping Nebula," "Tihama," and "Eugen Maersk," among others.
The biggest terminal operator in Hamburg, Hamburger Hafen und Logistik AG (HHLA), is upset about the warning strike that happened recently. CEO Angela Titzrath said that they were surprised by what happened. HHLA Chief Operating Officer Jens Hansen added that four container ships couldn't leave the ports due to the strike, causing delays of 16 to 36 hours. He also mentioned that five more container ships were expected to arrive soon. Hansen thinks that a similar incident should not happen again, and HHLA could learn from other ports that have organized pilotage differently. Titzrath urged the HPA to work with Verdi to come up with an emergency arrangement to ensure the safe navigability of the Elbe at all times.
The Hamburg Freight Forwarders Association has expressed strong disapproval of the warning strike in the port. Although they understand that there are disagreements over wages, they believe that this type of strike harms people who are not involved in the dispute. Axel Plaß, the head of the association, is concerned that this will further damage Germany's reputation as a good place to do business. He has warned that if they do not come to an agreement quickly, the Port of Hamburg could become irrelevant. It is important for the bargaining parties to find a solution without resorting to strikes.
The biggest shipping hub in Germany is none other than the Port of Hamburg. This bustling port sees an annual traffic of roughly 130 million tons of goods that are transported through over 50 handling facilities. With around 290 docks, the port has the capacity to handle a variety of vessels, from mammoth container and bulk carriers to compact feeder and inland boats, as well as oil and chemical tankers.
The unions are staging a warning strike to make sure their demands are heard loud and clear as the third round of negotiations approaches. Verdi is insisting on a pay raise of 10.5%, or a minimum of 500 euros more monthly, for the roughly 2.5 million federal and local government workers employed in the public sector. The employers have only offered a total of 5% more pay in two installments, along with one-time payments that add up to 2,500 euros.
