Zim workers return under partial strike as talks continue
Operations resume but tensions persist over takeover terms.
The Zim workers’ union and representatives of the buyers have reached an agreement under which employees returned to work on Sunday under a partial strike format, 50% working from home and the rest from the office. Business operations and ship movements will not be disrupted. Negotiations between the parties are set to continue.
The latest development follows a strike that began on Thursday afternoon, when approximately 900 Zim employees covered by a collective agreement walked off the job amid disputes over the terms of a new agreement tied to the planned transfer of control of the company.
Talks are currently underway between the union and representatives of Zim’s board and management, alongside representatives of the German shipping company Hapag-Lloyd and the FIMI fund, which are set to acquire ownership of the company. Negotiations are expected to continue this week.
Zim’s workers’ union had already declared a labor dispute at the beginning of the year, even before the signing of the sale agreement, due to its opposition to transferring control to foreign ownership. This declaration allows employees to initiate a strike or shut down operations at any time.
The workers’ action, excluding around 80 employees on personal contracts, effectively amounts to an almost complete shutdown of Zim’s operations in Israel, including ship unloading.
Union chairman Oren Caspi said that Hapag-Lloyd is seeking to push hundreds of employees into early retirement under terms that contradict the existing collective agreement at Zim. The company, for its part, said the strike was declared despite the parties having reached an agreement in principle on the terms of a new collective agreement related to the change in control.
Zim is currently a company without a controlling shareholder. About two months ago, Hapag-Lloyd won a tender to acquire the company and partnered with the FIMI fund, to which it plans to sell the Israeli operations. As part of the deal, the two will acquire 100% of Zim’s shares for $4.2 billion. Zim is expected to be delisted from the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE), where it has been traded since its 2021 IPO at a valuation of $1.5 billion.
