dockers' rights

Dockworkers from FNV Havens win improved pay and conditions after bringing Port of Rotterdam to standstill with biggest ever strike. Concerted strike action by lashers from International Transport Workers’ Federation (ITF) affiliate, FNV Havens, has won a new agreement which will guarantee the safety, health and pay of lashers now and in the future. The lashers’ organising and action, the biggest ever seen in the Port of Rotterdam – Europe’s busiest and largest port – brought the port to a standstill last week.

Today, the Dutch Court of Appeal ruled that preliminary questions will be brought before the European Union (EU) Court of Justice on the Non-Seafarers’ Work Clause (NSWC). The EU Court of Justice will be requested to shed light on whether the NSWC forms a breach on the freedom of free competition and, if so, whether the NSWC is justified considering the fundamental freedom of collective bargaining. As a result, at this moment, the initial positive ruling of the Rotterdam Court confirming the validity of the NSWC still stands.