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Worrying about shipping to Chittagong Port recently? The good news is that the trailer workers’ strike ended after a successful negotiation
A must-know news for your shipping to Chittagong Port if you have a related shipping plan. The trailer workers strike started on 21 October and ended on 22 October.
The negotiations is between the Chittagong Port Authority (CPA) and the worker’s union.
Let’s review the strike. In these two days, local partners in Bangladesh related to shipping to Chittagong Port passed us a lot of information
Chittagong, Bangladesh, is facing a 48-hour strike starting from October 21. Import and export transport workers have stopped working, causing containers to be stranded and halting trade. Companies planning shipments to Bangladesh should be aware of potential delays.
The strike, initiated by the Chittagong Prime Mover Workers’ Union, protests the failure of two major transport operators, Mohammadia Enterprise and Asif International, to comply with an agreement made in April. Union leader Selim Khan accuses these companies of not providing appointment letters and IDs, and failing to meet minimum wage requirements set by the government. Despite an agreement to implement these within 45 days, nothing has been done, leading to the strike, which will continue until productive discussions occur.
Chittagong, the largest port and second-largest city in Bangladesh, handles 80% of the country’s international trade and 40% of its domestic economy. The strike has caused significant disruption, impacting businesses that rely on the port for import and export activities.
Previously, Chittagong faced congestion due to internal conflicts and customs system failures. According to Ruhul Amin Sikder, Secretary General of the Bangladesh Inland Container Depots Association (BICDA), continued strikes will prevent timely container shipments, with many missing scheduled departures. Normally, about 2,000 TEU of export containers move to the port daily, and about 800 TEU of imports are transported to warehouses, but this has stopped due to the strike. Shipping to Chittagong Port is the main sea shipping route in Bangladeshi.
Additionally, Chowdhury Zafar Ahmed, Secretary General of the Bangladesh Truck Owners Association, questioned the strike’s legality, arguing that the 2018 Road Transport Act does not mention appointment letters for transport drivers, making the strike illegal.
