For most of us in logistics, ports like Rotterdam and Antwerp are not just dots on the map — they’re the beating heart of Europe’s trade network. Every container that passes through their terminals connects producers and consumers across continents. But in October 2025, that heartbeat faltered.
A wave of strikes swept across these key gateways, halting cargo movements, delaying ships, and exposing just how fragile even the most advanced global supply chains can be.
A week that shook Northern Europe’s ports
It began in early October, when lashing workers in Port of Rotterdam walked off the job after wage negotiations collapsed. The FNV Havens union demanded a 7 percent pay rise and automatic inflation adjustment, arguing that “less than one euro per container would be enough to solve the conflict.”
What sounded like a manageable dispute quickly escalated. Within days, container handling at the Maasvlakte II, ECT Delta, RWG, and Euromax terminals came to a standstill. More than twenty ships waited at anchorage, and operators warned that each additional idle day risked pushing congestion into the hinterland.
A court ruling on October 13 forced a partial return to work during weekdays, buying time for further talks. Finally, by October 17, an agreement was reached — including a 4 percent annual pay increase — and the strike officially ended. Yet even as cranes started moving again, the port authority cautioned that it would take weeks to clear the backlog.
Meanwhile, just a few hundred kilometers south, Belgium’s maritime pilots were protesting proposed pension reforms, paralysing traffic on the Scheldt and clogging Antwerp’s terminals. At the same time, pilots in Amsterdam joined similar industrial action, leaving vessels queuing along the Dutch coast. By mid-October, operations had largely resumed, but the damage was already done: Europe’s main cargo arteries had seized up.
The ripple effects across supply chains
When ports like Rotterdam and Antwerp slow down, the impact doesn’t stop at the quay.
Carriers face cascading schedule disruptions — vessels idling offshore, increased bunker consumption, and delayed rotations that ripple across trade lanes. The knock-on effect for freight forwarders and logistics providers is equally severe: missed transshipments, shifting ETAs, and a spike in demurrage and detention charges as containers sit trapped in congested yards.
For shippers, these operational shocks translate directly into uncertainty. A delayed vessel doesn’t just mean late cargo — it means production interruptions, empty shelves, and dissatisfied customers. On top of that, the financial burden often falls back on them: additional detention fees for the late return of empty containers, demurrage costs for extended storage times, and extra haulage or re-routing expenses once operations resume. Some also face premium surcharges for expedited transport to make up for lost time.
In today’s lean supply chains, where inventory buffers have been squeezed to the minimum, these disruptions can quickly escalate from logistical inconvenience to significant cost exposure. Even a few days of delay can unravel months of planning and directly impact margins.
A lesson in resilience
The October strikes have underscored a truth that every logistics professional knows but sometimes underestimates: even the most advanced networks are only as strong as their ability to adapt. For carriers, and shippers alike, the issue isn’t just about labour relations or isolated port disputes — it’s about how quickly your supply chain can pivot when the unexpected happens.
In this case, the bottlenecks served as a real-world stress test for operational agility. Companies with strong visibility tools, proactive communication, and flexible routing options were able to mitigate most of the impact. Those relying solely on static schedules or single-port dependencies, on the other hand, faced a chain reaction of delays and cost escalation.
The lesson is clear: resilience doesn’t come from avoiding disruption — it comes from building systems and partnerships that can absorb it. That means scenario planning for port closures, maintaining alternative routings, and keeping close contact with service providers to anticipate rather than react to disruptions. For shippers, collaboration and transparency with carriers and customers become the key levers to maintain control when external factors spiral.
Visibility and collaboration are at the core of that adaptability — and technology now makes both possible on an entirely new level. By connecting data, partners, and processes, digital solutions are transforming how logistics networks anticipate and respond to disruption.
How technology strengthens global supply chains
When every container, port call, and customs process is part of a connected data environment, logistics teams gain the visibility to make informed, timely decisions. Instead of reacting to disruption once it reaches the customer, they can identify pressure points earlier — redirecting cargo, reallocating capacity, or communicating delays before they turn into bottlenecks.
No-Code platforms such as Logward enable that shift from reactive firefighting to proactive decision-making. By centralizing shipment data, customs documentation, and communication across all stakeholders involved, everyone gains the transparency needed to reroute freight, adjust allocations, and communicate with customers in real time. Automated alerts help users stay ahead of potential disruptions — whether it’s a delay at a congested port, a customs clearance issue, or a deviation from planned routes. Instead of discovering problems after cargo has already been affected, teams are empowered to respond instantly and collaboratively.
The result is not the elimination of disruption, but the ability to absorb it faster and with less cost. Because in a world where strikes, storms, and shifting trade policies are part of the new normal, resilience isn’t about avoiding the unexpected – it’s about being ready when it arrives.
Moving forward
As of End of October 2025, operations in Rotterdam and Antwerp are slowly returning to normal. But the bottlenecks will take weeks to clear, and the aftershocks — in schedules, costs, and reliability metrics — will linger much longer.
The real test for the global supply chain community lies not in how quickly ships are unloaded, but in how effectively the lessons are absorbed. The strikes may have ended, but they’ve left behind a clear message: supply chains are only as strong as their weakest link, and those links often lie at the water’s edge.
Acting instead of reacting — that’s what will distinguish resilient logistics networks from vulnerable ones in the months and years ahead.