The strike at Dover looks like continuing this week as a further three-day walk-out is planned for Thursday. Hundreds of Unite members working at Dover Harbour went on strike last week after a dispute hinging on the outsourcing of harbour jobs to private contractors was not resolved.
Port of Dover is going into its second week of strikes. Photo: Wikimedia
This stems from a recent decision by the harbour authority to transfer almost 200 mooring, trailer handling and security jobs to third parties, starting in January.
Workers at Dover are justifiably concerned about jobs and pensions, as well as other implications linked to roles within the organisation. A port employee said that 'a lot of the workers with the Dover Harbour Board have been employed for a very long time at the port, and want to see it out'.
Despite the strike action, Dover Harbour Board said they expect the port to continue a near-normal schedule. 'We kept running last time, and we'll see how we go this time, but our expectations are that it will be business as usual' said a port spokesman.
Port of Dover is going into its second week of strikes. Photo: Wikimedia
This stems from a recent decision by the harbour authority to transfer almost 200 mooring, trailer handling and security jobs to third parties, starting in January.
Workers at Dover are justifiably concerned about jobs and pensions, as well as other implications linked to roles within the organisation. A port employee said that 'a lot of the workers with the Dover Harbour Board have been employed for a very long time at the port, and want to see it out'.
Despite the strike action, Dover Harbour Board said they expect the port to continue a near-normal schedule. 'We kept running last time, and we'll see how we go this time, but our expectations are that it will be business as usual' said a port spokesman.