Port of Liverpool dock workers to strike over pay

Workers are set to walk out at the Port of Liverpool later this month

Dock workers at the Port of Liverpool are to strike after being offered a "pay cut dressed up as rise", a union has said.

Unite said more than 560 port operatives and engineers at the port would take industrial action from 19 September to 3 October.

It said Peel Ports, which runs operator MDHC, needed to make "a reasonable offer" and keep its previous promises.

Peel Ports said its pay offer was "well above the national average".

Unite said the company had only offered a 7% pay rise, despite making £30m in profits in 2021.

'Sustainable position'

General secretary Sharon Graham said workers across the country were "sick to death of being told to take a hit on their wages and living standards while employer after employer is guilty of rampant profiteering".

"MDHC needs to think again, table a reasonable offer and fulfil its previous pay promises," he added.

More than 1,900 Unite members at the Port of Felixstowe have also walked out over pay.

David Huck, chief operating officer at Peel Ports Group, said the firm was disappointed by the decision after offering a 8.3% pay package, which includes the 7% pay rise.

"Our pay offer is well above the national average and represents a sustainable position for the business, taking into account stagnation in the container market, worldwide economic pressures, the conflict in Ukraine and global shipping disruption," he added.