Hong Kong: HPH Trust, which oversees strike-afflicted Hongkong International Terminals (HIT) has provided an update on the ongoing dispute, claiming that despite a recent court order permitting not more than 80 union members to conduct peaceful picketing in a designated staff car park within HIT’s premises, “terminal operations are not expected to be affected”.
“While industrial actions are continuing, the terminal operations are gradually returning to normal,” HPH Trust said in a release, as protests continued for a 12th straight day.
The company concluded that “the current events do not have a material adverse impact on the performance of HPH Trust”.
Meanwhile, the local dockers’ union has offered each striking worker HK$1500 as a subsidy yesterday for the second time from the total HK$2.5m strike fund it has raised so far. The union said more subsidies will be offered to the workers step by step.
Local reports claimed HIT and its subcontractors are also trying to offer HK$5000 reward to anyone who is willing to go back to work but this lure has been turned down by most of the workers.
Analyst Johnson Leung from Jefferies speculated in a report out today on what the long term consequences of this industrial action might be.
“We are more concerned on the potential long term cost inflation if unionization persists as unionized ports overseas show that industry action could still take place when the port workers are being paid substantially above average income in those countries,” Leung wrote.
Before the labour dispute broke out, terminal operators in Hong Kong already faced an environment with little growth prospects but increasing capex pressure to service larger ships, Jefferies reported, adding that the Pearl River Delta’s growth potential “may have been exhausted in recent years”. [08/04/13]
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