THE GREAT DOCK AND DOLE SWINDLE - ACCOUNTING FOR THE COSTS AND BENEFITS OF PORT TRANSPORT DEREGULATION AND THE DOCK LABOR COMPENSATION SCHEME

Deregulation of the port transport industry was predicted to bring muc h needed jobs and investment to Britain's ailing dockland areas, fewer prices for port users and consumers, and improved international compe titiveness. These benefits were anticipated to far exceed any attendan t costs. But the benefits have failed to materialize, largely because the government failed to appreciate the non-competitive structure of t he industry or the effects of the National Dock Labour Scheme on the e conomic performance of the ports, while the costs were substantially u nderestimated. Consequently, the costs of deregulation have exceeded t he benefits, As in the past, current industrial policy has been dictat ed by the apparent labour problems' of the docks, but the new system o f deregulation, founded on the mass redundancy of ex-registered docker s and a re-assertion of managerial prerogative, has exacerbated rather than resolved the underlying structural weaknesses of the industry. I n particular, deregulation has ushered in a new era of casual employme nt on the docks. Unless, or until, public policy addresses these probl ems the costs of deregulation will continue to accumulate.