CUSTOMER ADVISORY

Dear Customer,

Please find latest received from Port of Liverpool:

“As you are aware, industrial action is due to come to an end this Monday 3 October, following two weeks of strikes by Unite the Union members.

Disappointingly, without a further ballot of its members, the union has now confirmed an extended period of strike action will take place between 06:00 hours from Tuesday 11 October to 06:00 hours Monday 17 October.”

We continue to monitor the situation and will advise further as new information is received.

Sincerely,

HENSALL GLOBAL LOGISTICS

Dear Customer,

In an article from The Loadstar, the Unite union has confirmed a second wave of strikes are to take place at the Port of Felixstowe. The industrial action is set to run for eight days, from September 27 to October 5, and will overlap with strikes taking place at the Port of Liverpool running from September 19 to October 3.

CNBC further reported that dockworkers at the Port of Felixstowe had an eight-day strike in August in protest over wages. Since then, the port’s owner, Hutchison Port Holdings, increased the dockworkers salaries by 7% and issued back pay. But Robert Morton, national officer for the Unite union, tells CNBC the workers are still not satisfied.

“We will strike again and again and again until our wages match inflation,” said Morton.

We continue to monitor the situation and will provide further updates as new information is made available.

Sincerely,

HENSALL GLOBAL LOGISTICS

Dear Customer,

Further to our advisory issued Sept. 09, please find to follow the latest regarding potential US rail strike:

Railroads and unions representing tens of thousands of workers reached a tentative deal Thursday morning to avoid a freight shutdown that threatened to disrupt U.S. supply chains just as shippers enter their busiest season.

The agreement, which represents approximately 60,000 railroad employees, will now head to union members for a vote during which period they will not strike.

We continue to monitor the situation and will provide further updates as they are received.

Sincerely,

HENSALL GLOBAL LOGISTICS

Dear Customer,

Please note that this advisory is excerpted from an article published by Freightwaves on September 8, 2022.

Rail stakeholders in the USA are concerned that a possible strike by some union members due to stalled contract negotiations could result in multibillion dollar economic impacts. The Association of American Railroads estimates that a nationwide shutdown of rail operations could cost $2 billion in lost economic output each day.

A new labor deal for union members has been in the works since January 2020, but negotiations between the unions and the railroads had failed to progress. A federal mediation board took up the negotiations but released the parties from those efforts earlier this summer.

The Presidential Emergency Board (PEB) — a three-person board appointed by President Joe Biden that convened in July and August to come up with ways that the unions and railroads could resolve their negotiations impasse — issued recommendations last month that sought to resolve the impasse in negotiations. The recommendations were meant to serve as a jumping off point for a new contract. As of Thursday, more than a half-dozen unions still need to reach an agreement with U.S. freight railroads over a new contract. While five unions have reached an agreement and have sent that agreement to their members for ratification, some of the larger unions, such as the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen and the International Association of Sheet Metal, Air, Rail and Transportation Workers – Transportation Division, also known as SMART-TD, have yet to reach an agreement with the railroads.

Per the Railway Labor Act, both sides have until midnight on Sept. 16 to come to a consensus; after that, the “cooling-off” period ends, and union members could decide to go on strike.

We continue to monitor the situation and will provide further updates as they are received.

Sincerely,

HENSALL GLOBAL LOGISTICS

Dear Customer,

Further to our advisory issued Aug. 16 regarding Liverpool dock workers vote for strike action, BBC News has announced Unite the Union has confirmed that strike action will take place at the UK port of Liverpool from September 19 to October 3.

The looming industrial action comes as a similar dispute rolls on in the UK’s largest container port Felixstowe, which saw strikes in late August.

Both sides continue to be divided on the issue of pay.

We continue to monitor the situation and will provide further updates as new information is announced.

Please reach out to your Hensall Global representatives should you have any questions or concerns.

Sincerely,

HENSALL GLOBAL LOGISTICS

Dear Customer,

Please find below an excerpt from an article published to the industry by Business Live UK:

More than 500 port workers have voted to strike over a 7 per cent pay offer.

Union Unite said it amounts to a real terms pay cut. In a ballot with an 88 per cent turnout, 99 per cent voted for strike action.

Unite states that the strikes, the dates of which have not yet been set, will bring Liverpool container port, one of the largest in the country, ‘grinding to a halt’.

The workers are employed at MDHC Container Services, which is part of the Peel Group.

Maintenance engineers at MDHC could also go on strike over the same pay offer.

Unite said that the strikes by either group of workers will have a severe impact on both shipping and road transport in Liverpool and the surrounding areas.

Unite national coordinator Steven Gerrard said: “The responsibility for Liverpool container docks grinding to a halt will lie firmly with MDHC. Our members are struggling with rising living costs, yet MDHC, which is awash with cash, puts forward a completely inadequate offer. It needs to come back with a deal that meets our members expectations.”

Richard Mitchell, Port Director Liverpool Containers at Peel Ports Group, said the offer of 7 per cent is on top of a rise of 4.5 per cent last year and includes other improvements to shifts, sick pay and pensions, which further complements a decade of industry leading pay awards.

“We urge Unite the Union to keep talking with us so together we can find a resolution to avoid action that will be bad news for the sector, businesses and families, with the effects being felt for many months to come, at a time when container volume demand has started to reduce.

More than 1,900 Port of Felixstowe workers, who are members of Unite, are also taking strike action later this month over pay.

We continue to monitor the situation and will provide further updates as new information is announced. Please reach out to your Hensall Global representatives should you have any questions or concerns.

Sincerely,

HENSALL GLOBAL LOGISTICS
 

Dear Customer,

Please find below an excerpt from an article published to the industry by City AM UK News:

The strike at the port of Felixstowe is set to go ahead after no deal was reached yesterday between dock workers and port authorities. 

The union announced that around 1,900 staff members will walk out for eight days, from 21 to 29 August, over salaries. 

Felixstowe said it was disappointed by the union’s decision to strike after it turned down the port’s latest offer. 

On Monday night, Felixstowe authorities increased the 7 per cent pay rise made on Friday with an additional £500 lump sum. 

“There will be no winners from a strike which will only result in their members losing money they would otherwise have earned,” a port spokesperson said this morning.

“Our focus has been to find a solution that works for our employees and protects the future success of the port.  

“The union has rejected the company’s offer to meet again.”

For its part, the union justified its decision saying the “massively profitable” Felixstowe could present “a reasonable pay offer to our members but once again has chosen not to.”

“Unite’s door remains open for further talks, but strike action will go ahead unless the company tables an offer that our members can accept,” Unite’s national officer Robert Morton said. 

We continue to monitor the situation and will provide further updates as new information is announced.

Please reach out to your Hensall Global representatives should you have any questions or concerns.

Sincerely,

HENSALL GLOBAL LOGISTICS

Dear Customer,

We are advised that the seasonal measures for the 2022–23 Brown Marmorated Stink Bug (BMSB) risk season have been released.

The insect Halyomorpha halys (BMSB) is exotic to Australia and is an identified seasonal hitchhiker pest that has the potential to severely impact Australian and New Zealand agricultural industries.

BMSB is ranked number 9 in the National Priority Plant Pests list. It is known to feed on around 300 different plant species. Both juveniles and adults feed on, and severely damage fruit and vegetable crops. Australia and New Zealand remain free of BMSB, but their environment and climate are suitable to support their entry and establishment of BMSB.

The BMSB webpage has been updated to reflect the upcoming season’s measures. You can find the respective links below:

Seasonal measures for Brown marmorated stink bug (BMSB) - DAFF (agriculture.gov.au)

Brown marmorated stink bug: requirements for importers | Import | NZ Government (mpi.govt.nz)

BMSB seasonal measures will apply to targeted goods manufactured in or shipped from target risk countries, that have been shipped between 1 September and 30 April (inclusive), and to vessels that berth, load, or tranship from target risk countries within the same period.

Note: The shipped-on board date, as indicated on the Ocean Bill of lading, is the date used to determine when goods have been shipped. “Gate in” dates and times will not be accepted to determine when goods are shipped.

Changes to measures for the 2022-23 BMSB risk season

• Emerging risk countries will apply to China and UK only.

• Chapters 94 and 95 will be subject to random inspections (emerging risk countries only).

• 120 hours policy been amended to allow onshore re-treatment in certain situations where goods have been rolled (with evidence)

• Inspect (unpack) Inspections will now apply instead of Secure Seals intact inspections at Approved Arrangements.

We encourage all customers to review the information available and to work directly with their consignee’s and local agents to ensure that all requirements for import have been met in advance of shipping.

This may include but not be limited to the fumigation of cargo at origin.

Sincerely,

HENSALL GLOBAL LOGISTICS

Dear Customer,

Please find the following excerpt from a press release issued by CN:

In light of recent labor developments in both the United States and Canada, we would like to provide you an update.

United States

The U.S. Class I freight railroads, including CN, are currently in multi-employer “national bargaining” with 13 labor unions that collectively represent over 115,000 employees, including the vast majority of CN’s U.S. union-represented employees. This national bargaining process has been ongoing since January of 2020.

With the parties unable to reach a voluntary agreement, the negotiations are now entering the final dispute resolution process steps provided by the U.S. labor law that governs contract negotiations in the railroad industry - the Railway Labor Act or “RLA”. The latest change in the status of negotiations and the RLA dispute resolution process occurred on Friday, July 15, when U.S. President Joe Biden authorized the formation of a Presidential Emergency Board (PEB).

The PEB is charged with providing the President with a recommendation of contract terms that the Board believes would lead to a contract settlement between the negotiating parties. With the establishment of the PEB, the current contract terms remain in effect and neither the railroads nor the unions can exercise any self-help measures (such as strike, lockout or unilateral implementation of contract terms) during the 30 day PEB process and for at least 30 days after the PEB process concludes. If the parties are unable to reach an agreement after considering the PEB report, either negotiating party would then be able to exercise self-help.

Rail strikes in the U.S. are very rare given the extensive RLA dispute resolution processes and the role U.S. Congress can play in halting a work stoppage.

The U.S. national carriers have a website that provides extensive information regarding the status of the U.S. national bargaining. Please take full advantage of the website for any questions you may have: https://raillaborfacts.org/.

Canada

The collective agreements with the Teamsters Rail Conference of Canada (TCRC) for Conductors expire on July 22, 2022 and the current terms remain in force until the agreements are renewed in accordance with Part I of the Canada Labour Code. Collective bargaining for the renewal of the Conductors agreements has not commenced and as such, there can be no labour disruptions.

 

Hensall Global will continue to do our best to keep you informed of new developments as they are communicated to the industry.

Sincerely,

HENSALL GLOBAL LOGISTICS

Dear Customer,

Please find an article published by Loadstar updating status of the labour negotiations at German ports.

“Dockers walked out of German ports at six o’clock this morning at the start of a 48-hour strike that will paralyse the import and export trade of Europe’s largest economy. Last minute talks between the employers, the Central Association of German Seaport Companies (ZDS) and the trade union ver.di, representing 12,000 port workers, were suspended yesterday evening with no agreement in sight. The third ‘warning strike’ is the longest so far and will further aggravate port congestion at Hamburg’s container terminals where yard density already stands at an unproductive level of 90%. Moreover, ships idled in the German bight are stacking up with berthing delays, even before the stoppage, extending to up to 14 days. ZDS’s chief negotiator Ulrike Riedel called the latest stoppage “irresponsible” arguing that a two-day strike “can no longer be called a warning strike”. Ms Riedel warned that the industrial action “damaged the international reputation and competitiveness of our ports” and “endangers the existence of many companies”. “Today’s attempt to reach a solution at the negotiating table has also failed despite various proposals from our side due to the uncompromising attitude of ver.di,” she claimed. “In view of the great importance that seaports have for the supply of consumers and the economy, I urge ver.di to finally agree to a conciliation so that we can come to a solution,” said Ms Riedel. In response, ver.di’s chief negotiator, Maya Schwiegershausen-Güth, emphasised the demands for “a real wage increase” for its members, however she maintained that it was “still ready to find a negotiated settlement”. She said that “against the background of the uncertain economic development” the current offer was “still insufficient”. “It distributes the risk of price developments unilaterally on the shoulders of the employees, especially in the second year,” she said. Meanwhile, ocean carriers are looking at their options and depending on the stowage of their ships are amending the rotations of their fleets in order to defer calls at Hamburg, Bremerhaven and Wilhelmshaven. Where they can, carriers may overland some German cargo at Gdansk, Zeebrugge or Felixstowe (where congestion has eased significantly) for a later relay operation, but Rotterdam and Antwerp terminals are already heavily congested and would likely refuse to allow discharge of German import containers for transhipment. A carrier contact The Loadstar spoke to yesterday said his line and alliance were adopting a “wait and see” strategy on the strike admitting, “we don’t have too many other options”. And Maersk seems to be of the same opinion, saying that it had “decided to observe a full stoppage for rail, road and ocean freight for both import and export across our German terminals for the duration of the planned strike”. “We have evaluated all impacted vessels and have no plans to omit ports or stop operations,” said the Maersk advisory. Nevertheless, increased berthing delays and slow-ship working on severely congested quays, will result in carriers announcing a high number of blanked sailings from Asia in August and September with shippers suffering serious delays to their supply chains.”

Please note that it is likely that cargo moving through the pipeline in to / out of Germany may be subject to delays and additional costs.

Unfortunately, under the circumstances, these additional costs are out of our control and regrettably will be assessed to the account of the cargo where incurred.

Please feel free to reach out to your Hensall Global representative should you wish to discuss further or should you have any specific questions or concerns.

We will continue to monitor and share updates as they are provided to the industry by the parties involved.

Sincerely,

HENSALL GLOBAL LOGISTICS