Spain's port strikes begin to see light at the end of the tunnel

Dive Brief:

After a series of events undermining the negotiating leverage of ANESCO, Spain's port employer association, stevedores and their employers are set to meet this week to potentially chart a new court of action for negotiations, Spain's El Diario reported.
After continued work stoppages hampering the nation's port productivity, several terminal operators and other port employers — including A.P, Moller-Maersk's APM Terminals and Hyundai Merchant Marine's TTI Algeciras — reached separate labor deals despite ANESCO's opposition, according to El Pais.
The move created tension among ANESCO's membership, leaving the more "radical group" (as opposed to negotiating with the dockworkers) to leave the association altogether. Upon this event, ANESCO's president wrote to the dockworkers, who agreed to preemptively end the strike two days early in advance of a new meeting.

Dive Insight:

This week may mark the beginning of the end to Spain's port crisis, which has put the nation's economy on crutches after multiple days of work stoppages or full strikes over the past weeks.

The news of a meeting between dockworkers and employers could help chart a course for the issue's full resolution by September 30. The hope for a full resolution would halt the protests, and if agreed upon this week, could halt further protests altogether. Currently, six more days of work stoppages are scheduled, including the threat of a continent-wide port strike by the International Dockworkers' Council.

Maersk Line had been among the most affected by the strikes, transporting more than 4,000 TEUs of materials through the country each year, so its terminals' deal to avert future labor action may have been a saving grace. As it stands, dockworkers are no longer protesting at ports whose employers individually agreed to a labor deal.

In other words, even if the employers' association and dockworkers cannot agree on a timeline or negotiating terms, shippers and carriers may begin to see operations return to normal. The main concern, upon the meeting's failure, would be if the IDC's Europe-wide port strike materializes Friday, June 29. Even then, it is unclear just how high a turnout the IDC would command — the last such strike in support of Spain's workers was cancelled three days before it would have taken place.

Regardless, one point remains clear: This week's meeting between dockworkers and port employers, which could occur as early as Wednesday, will be extremely important in determining the scale of present and future disruptions.