Port strike continues as talks remain inconclusive

News was prepared under the information support of Online Daily Newspaper on Hellenic and international Shipping "Hellenic Shipping News".

30 Nov 2007

The Joint Forum of Trade Unions have decided to continue the strike at the Cochin Port, as the talks with the Port Management and terminal operators remained inconclusive this evening. Forum General Convenor P M Mohammed Haneef said the management failed to meet their demands like honouring the 1984 agreement to handle ICD containers and the reinstatement of an employee, who was suspended for striking work. ''The operations of the Rajiv Gandhi Container Terminal (RGCT) will remain paralysed indefinitely,'' he said. The talks were convened by the Regional Labour Commissioner after the employees launched a strike yesterday as the India Gateway Terminals Private Ltd (DP World), the operators of RGCT, refused to book labourers for handling ICD conatiners that reached the port.Mr Haneef said as per the 1984 agreement, the port labourers were entitled to handle these containers but the employees were denied work on the contention that the handling operations were automated.He said the trade unions were not taken into confidence before the mechanisation of the handling operations.