French Port Workers Stage Second Day of Industrial Action
Workers at France’s two biggest ports at Marseille and Le Havre held a second day of strike action out of a planned five in protest at the breakdown of government talks over changes to working conditions.
The Marseille and Fos general cargo terminals were blocked today, according to Claire Battedou, a spokeswoman for the port. Oil installations weren’t affected, she said.
Nineteen container vessels canceled planned stops at the port of Le Havre over the past 24 hours while the docking of five bulk carriers was delayed, the port said in a statement. Oil terminals at the northern port were unaffected.
The CGT, France’s biggest port workers union, called a series of strikes that started yesterday and will run through early Jan. 17 in protest at what it deemed the “unacceptable” position of the government toward port workers. The government’s latest proposals offer less favorable early retirement conditions than previously agreed, the union said in a statement. Nobody at the transport ministry could be reached for comment.
The CGT called on port workers and dockers to strike on alternating days and halt overtime, night and weekend shifts.
The union, government and management of cargo-handling companies are negotiating labor contracts under a 2008 law that was aimed at making French harbors more competitive. Under the plan, workers operating equipment such as cranes were to be moved from state-owned ports to privately run cargo handling companies in a bid to make shifts more flexible and work more efficient.
To contact the reporter on this story: Tara Patel in Paris on tpatel2@bloomberg.net
To contact the editor responsible for this story: Will Kennedy at wkennedy3@bloomberg.net
Rate These Stories
Rate this Page