Operations have resumed at Kingston Freeport Terminal Limited (KFTL) after a walkout by workers halted activity at Jamaica’s main container terminal for several hours on Friday, October 9.

Workers withdrew their services at about 11:00 p.m. on Thursday. KFTL said normalcy was restored after a meeting convened by the Ministry of Labour and Social Security, which the company described as fruitful. Labour Minister Pearnel Charles Jr. used the same word for the talks and said the matter was progressing.

The dispute centres on union representation. Workers want a bargaining rights poll so they can move from the Trade Union Congress (TUC) to the Port Supervisors Union, according to industrial relations consultant Andre Duncan. Duncan said the Port Supervisors Union last wrote to the ministry on September 21 asking for a poll date.

Port Supervisors Union representative Ricaado Ennis said KFTL employs about 1,325 people and that more than 800 have signalled interest in changing unions. He said no cranes operated while the action was under way. Workers also accused the TUC of failing to represent them adequately in talks on salaries and benefits.

KFTL, in a statement on Friday, called the walkout “illegal industrial action” and did not say how many employees took part. The figure of more than 1,000 workers comes from the union side and from the Opposition.

The company said it would extend operating hours and take other steps to speed cargo processing and limit the effect on customers. It said it remains committed to good-faith talks with all parties and will keep working with the ministry toward a resolution.

Opposition Spokesperson on Industry, Trade and Global Logistics Anthony Hylton, in a statement issued while the action was under way, called on the Government to commit its full resources to restoring stability at the terminal.

“The Port of Kingston is not just another workplace. It is a critical gateway to the Jamaican economy and central to our prospects for future growth and investment. Every hour of disruption is felt by manufacturers, exporters, importers and, ultimately, consumers,” Hylton said.

He urged the ministry and relevant agencies to bring KFTL management, the workers and their unions into “urgent and good faith dialogue to find a sustainable resolution”.

Hylton said this was not the first recent disruption at the terminal and warned that repeated instability could weaken the confidence of shipping lines, investors and trading partners in Jamaica as a logistics hub.

“The threat of prolonged instability at this time is most concerning. Every disruption, every work stoppage, erodes confidence in our port and undermines our quest to become a global logistics hub,” he said.

He restated the Opposition’s commitment to a National Logistics Council that would bring government, labour and industry together on logistics problems.

The terminal has seen earlier stoppages. A sick-out in January 2025 slowed sections of the port amid a dispute over job evaluation and wage negotiations dating to 2020. Trailer drivers later withdrew service over working conditions and returned after talks with KFTL and the Port Authority of Jamaica.

The underlying question of which union holds bargaining rights remains open.