Liverpool opens redundancy consultations

The port states this move is due to a “sustained and significant deterioration” in container volumes.

In an official statement, the port’s owner, Peel Ports, state that estimates for the first half of 2023 point to a drop in UK container volumes of around 12 per cent, following a decrease of seven per cent in 2022.

Moreover, the company contends that “economic and industry forecasts show that no meaningful improvement is expected in the near future” and adds that these declines are “due to a combination of factors, including weaker consumer demand for manufactured goods as a direct result of inflation, recession concerns fueled by rising interest rates and wider geopolitical issues.”

As a result of commencing this process, the Port of Liverpool container terminal, which employs around 850 people, expects to see up to 125 redundancies announced. Voluntary redundancies are being accepted.

In conjunction with its statement on redundancies, Peel Ports also points out that it has “restored Liverpool’s position as a global gateway between the UK and the rest of the world” and that the “£400 million Liverpool2 project, the port’s deep-sea container terminal, has created hundreds of additional, direct jobs and thousands more in the wider logistics and maritime sectors.”

Liverpool2 can receive ships up to 13,500TEU in size with the port more favorably placed geographically over Felixstowe, London Gateway, and Southampton to serve transatlantic trades rather than the East-West trade routes to/from Asia, where even larger ships are in service.

In November 2022, a new pay deal was agreed between the port operator and workers, following strikes the previous month over cost-of-living wage increases.