So something hasn’t existed for decades: the operations of the ports in northern Germany were supposed to stand still for 48 hours because Verdi wanted it that way. Although the warning strike started at 6 a.m. on Thursday morning, several labor courts were already dealing with applications for an injunction by the afternoon. Result: First of all, the strike may continue until Saturday at 6 a.m. Especially in Hamburg, the largest seaport in Germany, the labor court did not take the decision lightly. A comparison was made here in the evening, after which the parties to the collective bargaining agreement must continue to negotiate. Three more appointments must be made by August 26th. Several applications were rejected by the labor courts in Bremen, Oldenburg and Wilhelmshaven, and the warning strike was judged to be legal.
This was preceded by two shorter warning strikes and seven rounds of negotiations, in which the union and the employers could not agree on how the income of around 12,000 port workers should increase in the future. While the bargaining parties had made a final attempt at agreement on Wednesday afternoon, customers were already being warned by the shipping companies that handling in German ports would be severely restricted from Thursday and that there would probably be some chaos around the ports.
Because the supply chains have been extremely tense since the beginning of the corona pandemic, any further disruption to processes has major consequences. The port operators HHLA and Eurogate have long since rented additional space to stack containers, the storage duration of which is now often counted in weeks. The judges had also judged this tense situation. The court did not determine a “endangerment of the common good”, for example by the fact that supply chains could be further disrupted by the warning strike, but said a court spokeswoman in Wilhelmshaven.
Association calls for arbitration, Verdi insists on negotiation
A 48-hour strike is “irresponsible,” commented chief negotiator Ulrike Riedel from the Central Association of German Seaport Companies (ZDS), pointing out that employers had already offered a 12.5 percent increase in income. “With this offer, a two-day strike can no longer be spoken of as a warning strike,” she emphasized. The ZDS “final offer” of 12.5 percent plus for a period of 24 months refers to container shipping, in other companies (e.g. for bulk goods or car transport) the proposed increases are lower. According to the association, the permanent improvement in income is eight percent. This goes “noticeably beyond the limits of the companies,” warned Riedel.
“In view of the great importance of the seaports for supplying consumers and the economy, I urge Verdi to finally agree to arbitration,” said Riedel.
Verdi, on the other hand, insisted on clarifying the collective bargaining conflict through negotiations. The union is demanding a wage increase of EUR 1.20 an hour for the 12,000 employees at the seaports and an “actual inflation adjustment of 7.4 percent” over a period of twelve months. “The employer’s offer unilaterally distributes the risk of price developments, especially in the second year, on the shoulders of the employees,” says Verdi negotiator Maya Schwiegershausen-Güth. The offer offers “no protection for all employees against a loss of real wages”.
While around 1,000 dockworkers protested for better pay in Bremerhaven on Thursday, a large rally was planned for Friday in Hamburg, followed by a demonstration train from the train station to the city center of Hamburg and stopping at Ballindamm, among other places, where the Hapag-Lloyd shipping company has its headquarters.
