Movement of freight through the port of Dover may be delayed today and tomorrow due to strike action by hundreds of port workers. Members of the ‘Unite’ Trade Union are staging a 48-hour strike to protest at Dover Harbour Board’s decision to transfer port services to private licensees. The Board’s reason for this, is that it is currently a monopoly supplier of port services to ferry operators, and believes that this is not ‘best practice’ for a service industry. Union members are worried that if they are transferred to outside companies, this will have an unfavourable effect on conditions of employment and pensions. The Board has a full contingency plan which includes using non-union staff, and hopes to keep service disruption to a minimum.