In his letter to DP World’s CEO Mohammed Sharaf, Len McCluskey (above) said: ”As a former dockworker I will not countenance the establishment of a major non-union port in Britain. The management of the London Gateway project is refusing to enter into meaningful negotiations with my union and has made it clear that it will not sign a collective agreement covering workers employed at the site. If this blatant anti-union behaviour continues, then I will be left with no option, other than to authorise the start of a Unite campaign to expose the anti-union practices of your company, to all interested parties including shareholders and customers.”
Unite general secretary Len McCluskey urged the port’s owners, Dubai-based DP World, to deliver “basic labour rights for workers” – otherwise the company faces a Unite campaign to expose anti-union practices.
Unite believes that the refusal to recognise the union will mean a race to the bottom in terms of employment conditions which could threaten the future viability of the container ports at Felixstowe and Southampton, as well as at Thamesport.
Unite is Britain and Ireland’s largest trade union with 1.5 million members working across all sectors of the economy. The general secretary is Len McCluskey.