All six checkpoints on Ukraine’s Polish border have been brought to a standstill following a walkout by Polish border guards locked in a pay dispute with their government. The Polish border guard strike, which dates back to October 2007, has escalated recently, with the majority of workers now officially on sick leave or vacation. This protest has left the borders critically undermanned and produced delays of up to four days, with thousands of freight companies prevented from ferrying their cargoes along eastern Europe’s great Polish-Ukrainian transit route.
“The problem is with the Polish customs service and the Polish government. Poland is a transit country and it cannot stop movement through its territory. We are being held hostage by a thousand people who want their salaries raised,” commented Andriy Yepishov of Ukrainian freight transporter Orlan Trans Group.
Polish custom workers are demanding a USD 600 increase, while the government has offered just USD 200. Negotiations between the government and the Polish customs workers’ trade union broke down on January 31. Since January 29 a skeleton customs service has been letting a trickle of trucks pass through the border, but the coast to Ukraine’s transit trade is thought to be considerable and mounting daily.
The cost of border blues
Ukraine transports most of its freight to Europe through the Polish border, making the six blocked checkpoints vitally important for the country. Delays of several days can cause million dollar losses for the state. “In terms of bilateral trade between Ukraine and the EU, 80% of all freight flows through Poland, so we can speak realistically talk about an economic blockade of our country today,” commented Valeriy Chernenko, a representative of the Transporters’ Association on January 28. The Ukrainian government estimated that its daily losses may currently be as high as USD 8-10 million a day.
Freight professionals cannot give precise figures for the losses incurred as a result of the border blockages, but Olena Medvedeva of the Ukrainian Road Transport Association estimated that it could be costing the industry USD 3-4 million a day.
As well as the financial losses there has also been a human cost to the Polish border strike. On January 23 a 50-year old Polish driver died in Dorohusk on the Ukrainian side of the border as a result of exposure and two days later a Ukrainian driver died in cabin fire at Krakovets checkpoint while apparently trying to keep warm.
All roads lead to Poland
Ukrainian customs officials and the Transport Union are currently advising drivers to avoid the Polish-Ukrainian border if at all possible, but this is often easier said than done. Medvedeva explained that existing paperwork often obliged truck drivers to stick to their established routes, while others remain keen to try their luck. “We warn them but drivers come anyway, hoping that they will be lucky,” she said.
Ukraine has just two major non-Polish border crossings on the western frontier, at Uzhgorod on the border with Slovakia and in Chop on the border with Hungary, meaning that drivers often have little choice but to join the endless queues at the Polish border and hope for a return to normal service.
