An eight-day strike by port workers in Costa Rica could soon come to an end according to local sources. According to a report in the Costa Rican Times, dock workers union Japdeva insists that it does not back the strike and declared it illegal from the outset.
Japdeva has put pressure on workers to end the stoppage and has urged managers to establish schedules to allow them to return to work. There are signs that stevedores are preparing to declare their intention to go back to work and that management offices will open gradually with the backing of the police force.
The strike began last Wednesday when stevedores' union, Sintrajap, launched an indefinite walkout after the Supreme Court found in favour of APM Terminals in a case brought by the union to block the US$1bn expansion of the Moín terminal. Sintrajap argues that the concession, which was first agreed in 2011, threatens public sector jobs.
It has caused major disruption to banana exports and jeopardised the jobs of 40,000 banana workers, who are losing up to US$800,000 a day in lost wages as they are unable to harvest.
