To unsung heroes?
Felicity Landon, one of PS trusty band of freelance contributors, commented the other day that she found ports and shipping by far the most interesting of the industries she writes about. She might have just been saying that to make the editor feel good but we doubt it. Your average Joe Bloggs, if he were a fly on the wall, would have to acknowledge that a day in the life of a ports person is rarely dull.
Whether the workers concerned will achieve their goal remains open to debate. There have been similar problems in Le Havre in conjunction with its new Port 2000 development and the solution arrived at here is a compromise whereby gantry operators will remain on the port authority payroll for three years and then transfer over to become employees of the terminal operating company. The sensitivity of the subject here though, has nevertheless been enough to play a part in slowing the delivery of the second container terminal at Port 2000 until late next year. The first new terminal, for CMA CGM, opened in April.
The traditional scene of a bustling port is as true today as ever. Whether it’s the pilot dashing out to the just arrived ship, the crane driver aloft in his lonely cab, or the stressed-out manager struggling to meet his targets, it is all about a diverse group of people with their various bits of machinery and equipment bustling away to keep the whole operation running smoothly.
To the unsung heroes then: the pilots and tug men, linesmen and lashing gangs, assistant harbour masters and assistant managers, accountants, receptionists, tally clerks, crane and forklift drivers, CFS workers, IT staff, secretaries and security guards. And freelance journalists too of course.
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INSIGHT & OPINION
INSIGHT & OPINION
INSIGHT & OPINION