ZIM Workers' Union Escalates Measures: "Management is Not Serious"

The sale agreement of ZIM to the shipping giant Hapag-Lloyd is igniting a frontal confrontation within the company. The workers' union announced today a significant escalation in organizational measures, citing what they define as a lack of progress in negotiations with management following the planned transaction.

As part of the new measures, the union ordered an immediate 50% reduction in the scope of non-routine activities within the company, ensuring that only tasks critical to ongoing operations are handled. Simultaneously, the union took an unusual and controversial step: the immediate revocation of the entry permit for the Chairman of the Board, Yair Seroussi, to all company premises.

The workers' union emphasizes that the struggle is not only over employment terms but also over Israel's strategic future. In recent weeks, union representatives held meetings with Members of Knesset, presenting the importance of ZIM as a vital supply route for ammunition, food, and medicine during emergencies. According to them, transferring ownership to a foreign company could leave Israel without the ability to act independently at sea during a crisis.

The struggle is expected to ramp up this coming Sunday, when a special discussion is scheduled to take place in the Knesset Economic Affairs Committee regarding the sale. Former senior officials from the shipping industry and the security establishment have been invited to the discussion and are expected to present the national implications of transferring the company into foreign hands.

Chairman of the Workers' Union, Oren Kaspi: "We are acting in a measured and responsible, yet clear, manner. As long as the management does not show real seriousness, we will continue to escalate. This is a prolonged struggle, and we are ready for it. We are not just fighting for our jobs, but also for the security of every Israeli citizen."