The 40-day protracted industrial strike has finally come to an end with the dock workers' acceptance of the 9.8 percent pay rise offered by the contractors. Unfortunately, more than 130 crane operators left jobless when Global Stevedoring Service ceased operation still face the cruel reality that they need to go job hunting or change their careers, both of which are challenging. Their jobless situation once again proves that the radical strike triggered by the Confederation of Trade Unions (CTU) has caused immeasurable damage to the workers.

In fact, some contractors hired and trained quite a number of new hands who had already been put on duty during the protracted strike so as to minimize the impact on their daily operations. The settlement of the strike might further exert pressure on them to promote the development of mechanized operations, which will cloud prospects for the workers' job opportunities. The worst case is that the workers who seemingly have gained a pay rise might face a similar dilemma to former Global workers in the near future. After all, the strikers remain the biggest victims of the strike, forsaken by the CTU, which manipulated them as pawns in pursuit of its own interest.

The protest and camp provoked by the CTU at Cheung Kong Center continues even after the workers voted to accept the pay deal. It is obvious that the protracted camp cannot guarantee the jobless dockers any positions back in Global. Shamefully, Lee Cheuk-yan, mastermind of the this organization, has from the very beginning set to turn labor disputes into a political confrontation, regardless of the suffering he has caused to innocent workers.

Were it not for the unrealistic demands and inflammatory tricks by the CTU, the dispute could have been resolved earlier. However difficult, the labor dispute was settled peacefully, and efforts by the Labour Department to mediate the strike should be recognized.

This is an excerpted translation of a Wen Wei Po editorial published on May 8.

(HK Edition 05/09/2013 page1)