Labour disruptions at world’s ports quadruple as discontent grows

WASHINGTON - Labour unrest took an unusually heavy toll on ports around the world last year, and the outlook for continued economic instability could bring even more upheaval to global supply chains in 2023.

There were at least 38 instances of protests or strikes affecting port operations last year, more than four times as many as in 2021 when the pandemic upended global trade, according to Crisis24, a maritime security consultancy. There were nine incidents in 2020, according to data beginning in July. Crisis24 changed its tracking system at that time and comparisons with previous years are unavailable.

Workers are feeling the impact of higher fuel and food prices in the wake of

Russia’s invasion of Ukraine

while wages have remained stagnant, said union experts, freight forwarders and shippers. That emboldens workers to demand more from bosses.

With inflation still a threat, supply chains fragile and job markets tight, workers will continue to be a volatile force in the new year.

“Labour unrest is unlikely to decrease going into 2023 and may, in fact, worsen in the likely event that global economic conditions do not improve,” a spokesman for Crisis24 said in an e-mail.

Meanwhile, new Covid-19 variants are still creating bottlenecks in supply chains, and giving workers more influence over contract negotiations, said Professor John Ahlquist from the school of global policy and strategy at University of California San Diego. 

Protests and strikes took place at major shipping hubs across the globe in 2022.

South Korean truckers staged work stoppages twice in a six-month period,

disrupting container operations in Busan. Congestion at some of Europe’s ports reached critical levels after German and British dock workers walked out.

South Africa’s port operator declared force majeure in October as a strike by employees held up exports of fruit, wine and metals. Haiti was paralysed by violence last autumn, with gangs taking control of a critical oil terminal and port. BLOOMBERG