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HUNDREDS of dock workers, members of Unite at the Port of Liverpool, are set to launch a two-week strike tonight in a dispute over pay.
The Peel Ports Group, which operates the port, said workers had rejected an offer of an 8.3 per cent pay rise, enhanced with a one-off payment of £750.
Unite say it is a real-terms pay cut because of the soaring rate of inflation and argue that the port’s owners can afford a higher increase.
General secretary Sharon Graham said: “Workers across the country are sick to death of being told to take a hit on their wages and living standards while employer after employer is guilty of rampant profiteering.”
She said the port’s owners needed to table a “reasonable offer and fulfil its previous pay promises.”
The firm said it has also made a commitment to a shift pattern change that will result in a 25 per cent reduction in night shift working.
The port’s chief operating officer David Huck said: “I am deeply disappointed Unite has rejected our significant pay package after many months of negotiation.
“This is bad news for our employees, families and other local employers.
“We fully recognise our colleagues’ concerns on the cost-of-living crisis, and that’s why we have responded with a pay package that represents a 10 per cent average increase in annual pay.”
The Port of Liverpool operates two container terminals: the Royal Seaforth container terminal and Liverpool 2.
Seaforth has connections to a range of countries including Canada, Spain, Italy, Portugal, Cyprus and Turkey as well as feeder services connecting Liverpool to India, Africa, South America and the Far East.
Liverpool 2 is one of the most operationally efficient and modern terminals in Northern Europe, capable of accommodating some of the world’s largest container vessels.
A total of 845 people work in the port’s containers division, which handled about 525,000 containers in 2021.
The goods inside the containers were distributed all over the world and included imports and exports such as retail and industrial products.
