The CGT Ports and Docks union federation have called off a 72-hour strike at French ports due to start on 18 March, along with four-hour stoppages planned for next week. Since the start of the year, it has staged sporadic nationwide industrial action, including walkouts at Le Havre and Marseille, which are also major hubs for rail freight services, in protest to state pension reform.
It is not known what has triggered the calling off of action and what concessions, if any, are now on the table. The union federation simply stated that it had taken note of “the government’s willingness to continue negotiations”, which it hoped would be “conclusive as soon as possible”. It had met last Friday with representatives of government ministries and employer associations to discuss the dispute.
‘300 hours of strikes since the start of 2025’
Nevertheless, the union federation has warned that if the government did not honour its commitments, it was ready to initiate new forms of action in April. The suspension, if not a guaranteed end to the strikes and walkouts, will come as a huge relief to shippers, road hauliers and the ocean shipping community who said they have been causing serious disruption to the country’s supply chains and that a resolution was urgent.
The MEDEF, which represents more than 200,000 businesses, estimated that the strike led its members’ transport costs to increase by 23 per cent and a loss of around 25 per cent in sales was expected in February. More recently, various industry players in France claimed that, since the start of the year, ‘more than 300 hours of strike action have already been recorded, compared with 166 hours in 2024. This has caused delays, stock shortages and a loss of confidence among international customers, while increasing management costs, they underlined.
Going to other ports
According to port stakeholders, the industrial action has led to French exports being transferred to neighbouring ports in Belgium, the Netherlands or Italy in order to avoid the disruption. They note that the strikes have jeopardised the health of the French port and logistics ecosystem, a sector that includes more than 2,000 companies and 180,000 jobs and that the repercussions on the French economy have been dramatic.