The International Transport Workers Federation is currently investigating the role of upcoming ‘flying dockers’: small groups of port workers who are supposed to travel to ports where Maersk ships are to be loaded or unloaded.
“Use of this kind of mobile workers would be against all kind of rules in nearly every port of the world. It’s not according general working conditions nor according to safety requirements”, said Kees Marges, Dockers Section secretary of the ITF in London.
He has just made contacts with ITF-members in ports around the world. They still do not have concrete information about the use of flying dockers, but they will not accept it.
ITF stated: “Recently we received information on what seems to be a new policy of one of the global terminal operators, Maersk. As you know since Maersk took over most of the terminals of Sea-Land this huge shipping line has also become one of the biggest terminal operators in the world.
In addition to - or even replacing - the local port workers the small group of so-called ‘Flying Dockers’ take over some of the work which should normally be carried out by the local port workers.
As you may notice the information we have obtained is still very vague. However if it is true that Maersk has set up, or is planning to set up a group of ‘Flying Dockers’ this would be very serious matter. This development would be a serious violation of local or national port employment policies.”
