Union flies to Hong Kong to get dockers reinstated

In May, the Unite union sent experts to Hong Kong in an attempt to get four unfairly sacked dockers from Felixstowe port reinstated. As part of a leverage campaign, which includes tactics that go beyond traditional industrial action, the union is sending four officials with expertise in capital strategies and investor relations to engage with the shareholders of Felixstowe’s owner company, CK Hutchinson, at its AGM there.

They will seek meetings with key investors of the CK Hutchison group in order to seek justice for the four sacked union activists. The campaign follows strike action at Felixstowe in 2022, where Unite believes the four workers were unfairly targeted for dismissal because of their trade union activities, despite their long service and exemplary records. Legal action is ongoing.

Gail Cartmail, head of executive operations for the union, said: “Felixstowe may be 6,000 miles from Hong Kong, but that isn’t far enough for CK Hutchison to escape responsibility for its unwarranted attack on our members.”