Sea pilots strike hits Antwerp

The VSOA union, which is one of the unions representing sea pilots at the Port of Antwerp, went on strike for 24 hours from 5pm on Thursday December 17.

Port of Antwerp press officer Annik Dirx told CM that, although some pilots were still at work, even during the night, 15 ships have been affected by the strike.

At around 8pm, the organisation responsible for navigation on the River Schelde which leads to the Port of Antwerp, stopped vessel traffic on the river because it could not guarantee safety of vessels due to the strike. This shutdown continued for around three hours.