Breaking news! General strike of dock workers and truckers in the country, disruption of all port operations! Trade is paralyzed.

Workers and truckers at Finland's main ports are reported to have gone on strike at 6 a.m. local time on Feb. 15 due to a breakdown in contract negotiations. The strike, which affects all ports and terminals in the country, is expected to paralyze Finland's foreign trade and add further pressure to the Finnish economy, which is already affected by the Russian-Ukrainian conflict.

"The strike will continue indefinitely until an agreement is reached," said Juha Anttila, who is in charge of the stevedoring industry at the Finnish Transport Workers' Union (AKT). More than 95 percent of Finnish dockworkers are members of the union.

In addition, hours before the dockworkers began their strike, truck drivers responsible for transporting cargo and petroleum products also began a strike that will last until Feb. 21.

It is understood that the ports affected by the strike include Helsinki, Hamina-Kotka, Hanko, Rauma, Turku, Kokkola, Naantali, Pori, Oulu and Uusupunji. New Kaupunki (Uusikaupunki).

According to the AKT union, contract negotiations have focused on wages and some issues related to working conditions. Stevedores in Finland are demanding wage increases on the grounds of increased cost of living and inflation. Last December, Finland's inflation rate was 9.1 percent.

Mediators from the European Labor Office have intervened in the negotiations in the hope of finding suitable terms for a collective bargaining agreement, and AKT union president Ismo Kokko said after withdrawing from the negotiations that the latest offer was not sufficient in terms of wage increases and other employment conditions. Efforts to resolve the dispute will continue in the coming days, according to mediators. The negotiating parties will restart talks later this week.

With unions representing almost all dock workers and truck drivers beginning to strike, a virtual halt to Finland's foreign trade is predicted.

The employers' side, the Finnish Port Operators Association, reported that the strike is expected to cause "significant losses. In a statement, it said, "The strike will stop operations at all Finnish ports, which are responsible for 90 percent of Finland's foreign trade, and each day of the strike will affect more than $300 million worth of foreign trade."

The strike affects a total of about 9,000 workers and has come under heavy fire from trade associations. Mika Aalto, general director of the Finnish Chemical Industry Federation, said in a statement, "When major disruptions like the strike occur, the loss of confidence, orders and customer loyalty is irreparable for a long time."

Maersk also issued a notice yesterday reminding customers that all ship operations in Finnish ports, as well as gate openings and container handling in the terminals, are now suspended until further notice. Maersk will inform all customers of the status of each of their shipments.

Finnish postal and logistics company Posti has issued a notice stating that the Finnish transport workers' union AKT has announced a strike in the transport sector from February 15 to 21. In addition, the Postal and Logistics Union (PAU) has announced that it will support AKT's strike and take strike action regarding truck and trailer loading and unloading from Feb. 16 to Feb. 21.

Posti said the strike will have an impact on its transport and terminal operations as well as domestic and international deliveries. Deliveries of parcels, letters and magazines, as well as international deliveries to and from Finland, are estimated to be delayed by several days to more than a week. The same estimates apply to freight.

If deliveries are not possible due to the strike, these shipments will be handled and stored properly. Health and safety-related deliveries have been excluded from the strike and support measures, such as healthcare-related deliveries (blood and laboratory deliveries) and meal deliveries (schools, kindergartens, institutions and home delivery services for the elderly).