strike

The International Transport Workers' Federation (ITF) is deeply saddened to mark the passing of Erwin De Deyn, former President of BBTK-SETCa. Erwin was a committed internationalist who devoted his life to the labour movement. Erwin died at home in Antwerp, surrounded by his family, on 20 September 2026. He was 73. He was a defining figure for BBTK-SETCa and, through it, for the ABVV-FGTB confederation, to which he gave almost his entire working life.

A week of strike action by 700 FNV dockworkers brought major Dutch port to standstill –strike action set to resume on Friday without progress. The biggest ever strike of lashers in the Netherlands is on hold for a week after concerted industrial action by the FNV Havens dockworkers brought the largest and busiest port in Europe to a standstill.

Over 130 truck drivers, who come from countries including Georgia, Uzbekistan, Ukraine, Kazakhstan, the Philippines, and Tajikistan, are gathered at the rest area in Grafenhausen, Germany to demand pay owed them by the Polish trucking consortium Mazur Group or Agmaz-Lukmas-Imperia. It is the second wildcat strike by truck drivers in Germany and has brought renewed attention to the urgent need for intervention by government and industry stakeholders to protect the rights of third-country nationals.

After weeks of striking, around 60 truck drivers at the Gräfenhausen rest area in Germany have won their battle against Polish consortium Lukmaz, Agmaz and Imperia.

ETF welcomes the messages conveyed by MEPs, the Council and the Commission during the plenary session of the European Parliament today on the topic Safeguarding labour mobility and social rights of striking lorry drivers from third countries.

Major multinationals and the European Commission can no longer ignore the widespread rights violations and profiteering from cheap subcontracted labour exposed by the wildcat truckers’ strike currently underway in Gräfenhausen, Germany.

Transport workers across Europe and around the world have been inspired by the courage and willingness to fight of the Georgian and Uzbekistani truck drivers who have been striking for the past two weeks against inhumane conditions and the failure of Polish transport consortium Lukmaz, Agmaz and Imperia to pay their wages.

ETF expresses solidarity with ver.di and EVG, as well as all workers across Germany taking strike action for fair wages.

ETF, EPSU and ETUCE, representing millions of public service, transport and education workers across Europe, strongly condemn the UK government’s plans to legislate on minimum service levels.