05/07/2025
Dock Workers' Union Leader Slams Minister’s Remarks on Port Workers’ Wages
Banjul, The Gambia, July 5, 2025
Dock Workers Executive Omar Fatty has strongly criticized recent remarks made by Transport Minister Ebrima Sillah concerning the salaries of dock workers at Gambian ports, calling the comments "uninformed" and "insensitive" to the dangerous nature of the work.
Earlier this week, Minister Sillah revealed during an interview on West Coast Radio’s Coffee Time with Peter Gomez that dock workers earn between D20,000 and D60,000 per month, with some reportedly reaching the lower end of that range in just three to four days of vessel work. He joked that the earnings were so attractive he might consider switching careers.
However, Omar Fatty fired back at the minister’s lighthearted tone, stressing the immense risk dock workers take on a daily basis. “Dockworkers their work is riskier than any other job in The Gambia,” Fatty said in a strongly worded statement. “See the RISK they are taking for the country. If you don’t know, you don’t know. You cannot sit at a radio station and say they are paid twenty thousand dalasis within four days without knowing the dangers involved in their work.”
Fatty emphasized that the work conditions at the ports involve climbing towering containers, operating heavy machinery, and handling hazardous materials all too often without adequate safety gear or training. “You can lose your life at any time during operation,” he said, citing multiple incidents where workers had suffered serious injuries or even fatalities.
The minister’s comments came in the context of a recently resolved labor dispute between port workers and Albarak, a port operator. The issue was settled via a Service Level Agreement after negotiations with union leaders and the Gambia Ports Authority.
While Sillah clarified that wage decisions fall outside his ministry’s jurisdiction, he noted that the ministry intervened to prevent a strike and emphasized the need for improved safety standards at ports moving forward.
But for Fatty and many dock workers, the focus must remain not only on compensation but also on safety and respect for the high-risk labor that underpins Gambia’s maritime trade.
“The country must recognize what these workers sacrifice,” Fatty said. “We’re not just lifting containers, we’re carrying the weight of the nation’s economy on our backs.”
