Argentina Grain Ports Normalizing After Strike Suspension

By Maximilian Heath

BUENOS AIRES, Aug 12 (Reuters) – Grains shipments out of Argentine ports are normalizing after the government ordered workers to suspend a nearly week-long strike earlier on Monday, the head of the nation’s ports chamber said.

The government sent an order to two oilseed workers unions to suspend a strike for 15 days. So far, one union has said it will comply with the order.

The strike kicked off last Tuesday and had paralyzed exports from the nation’s topgrain ports as workers demanded their salaries stay ahead of high inflation.

“Once conciliation has been ordered, the terminals call in their employees and they get back to work according to their scheduled shifts,” ports chamber director Guillermo Wade told Reuters.

The San Lorenzo Department Oilseed Workers and Employees Union earlier said that it had received the government order and would comply with calls for mandatory talks. 

“We abide by the reconciliation (talks). Little by little and in an orderly manner we will lift the measure,” said Martin Morales, secretary for the union, referring to the strike.

The Federation of Oilseed Industry Workers, the other union on strike, did not immediately reply to a request for comment. 

Unions previously said that they had failed to hear from grains producers to negotiate. Morales added that an initial meeting between the parties was scheduled for Wednesday at 11 a.m. local time (1400 GMT).

The oilseed industry chamber said in a statement that it had requested government intervention, citing the economic impact of the strike and stalled talks with the unions.

The strike mainly affected terminals located north of Rosario along the Parana River, where more than 80% of Argentina’s agricultural and agro-industrial exports are shipped.

More than 40 ships were delayed by the strike, according to the Rosario grains exchange.

Argentina is a major grains producer and is a top exporter of soybean oil and soybean meal.

The farming economy heavily relies on the foreign-exchange funds brought in bygrains exports, as the government works to shore up scarce central bank reserves.

(Reporting by Maximilian Heath and Hernan Nessi; Writing by Kylie Madry; Editing by Sarah Morland, Alexander Villegas and Aurora Ellis)

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