In order to have your customer’s supply chain as unaffected as possible, now that second round of strikes takes place, please ask your customers to coordinate with their Greek importers/exporters, so that they schedule the shipment either after the strikes or via our contingency schemes.    Have in mind that chances of having the trucker's strike escalate to indefinitely this time are less compared to July actions, as there is a possibility even for some positive developments within the week 37 to lead to the termination of strike before affecting total of week 38.    Week 37 must be regarded as lost for normal supply chain operations.

At this strike, our recommendation is for a "lighter-softer" approach on contingencies.    For further contingency schedules even during the strikes, you can contact our dedicated team that will provide the best solution for your shipments, as we have done during 2008-09 Port Union Strikes with zero containers trapped, similar trucker strikes even during last month's - July 2010 strikes, etc., so that you can always provide the best for you and your customers, ahead of others! 

Clara / Stathis / Sotiris (airops@seair.gr) and John / Chryssa / Effie (seaops@seair.gr) are at your disposal, providing contingencies & solutions for air & sea freight shipments!!

Proactive Solutions 4 U !!

Best regards,

International Partner Team of

George Charalambidis Lymberpa S.A.

Intl Freight Forwarder & Logistics Co Greece

Website:            www.seair.gr & www.forwarder.gr

E-Mail :               OPERATIONS@seair.gr & operations@forwarder.gr

LOG - Lymberpa Offices Greece:

Q 1859-2010:  150+1 years Applied Experience

This message / newsletter is sent bi-weekly to freight and trade related companies registered via website and complies with EU legislation regarding advertizing and informative messages (e very message must bear full details of shipper in readable form and must give the recipient the right to un-subscribe (DIRECTIVA 2002/58/CE of the European Parliament). Please accept our apologies in case we caused you inconvenience. To pause / stop receiving our newsletter please press here.

Athens, 28^th of August 2010

Update I - Greek National Truckers Strike Possible Resumption

Don’t let it affect your supply chain!

Good Morning-Good Afternoon-Good Evening,

The possibility of Greek National Truckers Union to possibly announce yet another strike remains in the following weeks!   Strikes, initially were expected to affect weeks 35 & 36.    Based on developments on week that has just passed (34), the government decided to proceed to discussions with the unions and not bring the bill to parliament before end of September 2010.    On September 11th, there is the opening of Thessaloniki Intl Exhibition, where every year the opening speech is made by the Prime Minister who sets on the speech the trends and politics for the coming business year!     No Prime Minister wants during his opening speech to have strikes or other kind of actions, so it is possible one of the reasons of postponing the trucker's bill is this.   Based on this fact, dangerous weeks for start of strikes & actions that may bring interruptions to trade become the weeks 37 & 38.

As in the previous recent strikes last month that we had given an advance warning also, and had normal supply chain flow via our alternatives solutions, have in mind that in case of strike and during the strike, Union blockades will exist in national roads, port entrances, and airports, while all truckers will be participating in the strike (including container trucks, logistics delivery & pick up trucks, international transport trucks etc.), protesting in this way for the “opening” of their profession by the Greek State, as per EU regulations.