'Worried port users' monitor Durban port in strike aftermath

A strike in the Port of Durban, which threatened to jam up its container terminal berths with ships that couldn’t be moved and would fill the outer anchorage with waiting vessels, fortunately petered out before getting to that critical stage. But Transnet National Ports Authority (TNPA) and some pretty worried port users, continued to monitor the situation, because these sudden strikes in Durban have had a habit of being of an on-again, off-again nature. Said TNPA: “With the return of the striking employees, performance will be monitored to avoid any further shipping delays and a recovery plan will be implemented.” In a memo to stakeholders early on Friday last week, TNPA said it was experiencing delays in marine operations due to a labour disruption at the Port of Durban. Although nothing official was initially added, FTW sources revealed that it was caused by a go-slow/strike by tug crews and skippers. At the root of this was a mixture of rumours, including dissatisfaction with wages, complaints about shift times and incentives. The problem with this is that, without tugs, ships anchored outside stay outside, and ships berthed inside the harbour stay inside. However, Glenn Delve, marketing director of MSC, said he had not heard reports of vessels delayed during Friday morning. And, later in the day, TNPA confirmed that marine operations had resumed after “a brief labour disruption involving employees from the berthing and fleet departments”, which had “affected the availability and operation of the marine fleet”. The port management added that they had immediately activated what they termed their “business continuity plan” – which involved “the acquisition of alternative human resources from the market”.