Major ports suffer Rs 1 bn loss due to strike

Major ports in the country have reportedly lost Rs 100 crore owing to the two-day nationwide strike by labour unions recently.

The port workers participated in the strike called by various central trade unions to protest the “anti-people” policies of the government.

Transport & Dock Workers Union, Mumbai informed that the strike hit the revenue earnings to the tune of Rs 50 crore at both the ports and about Rs 100 crore across major ports in the country.

The port workers union demanded that the government speed up the ongoing wage negotiations for the port and dock workers.

The wage negotiation demand for the working class is in the series of different wage negotiations demand by different stakeholders in the public and private sector over the past several months.

RM Murthy, spokesperson of the union said the union had said in December that it would go on a strike in February. It subsequently served a notice of the strike to Shipping Ministry on February 4 (at least 14 days before the strike), as is the normal practice.

Murthy informed that the meeting of the union called by the assistant labour commissioner of the Mumbai division did not yield any result. He informed that about 17,000 workers at the Mumbai port and 1,500 workers at the Jawaharlal Nehru port stayed away from work.

Though, vessels handling oil and coal cargo continued with operations. Handling of cargo is mechanized at the New Mangalore Port.