Longshore labor

The Port of Los Angeles’ executive director acknowledged that stalled West Coast longshore labor talks are taking a toll on the port, but says the cost of shipping through California is also a big factor.

The rare joint statement comes amid growing frustration among US importers and West Coast ports that more than nine months of talks have yet to produce a new labor deal, causing a shift of cargo to ports along the East and Gulf ports.

The Port of Charleston’s request to overturn a ruling involving container calls to the Hugh K. Leatherman Terminal drew support from the US Maritime Alliance, but opposition from the International Longshoremen’s Association.

The resumption of negotiations between the ILWU and terminal employers can be viewed as a case of both sides feeling external pressure to get a deal done, especially with stakeholders growing increasingly displeased at the cargo bleed from West Coast ports.

West Coast stakeholders are speaking up against the ILWU, saying contract-related job actions taken by longshoremen are impeding their ability to take delivery of containers at key ports.

The narrowing spread between East and West coast spot rates in the eastbound trans-Pacific comes as spot rates to the East Coast have fallen by 18 percent over the past six weeks while West Coast rates have ticked slightly higher.

The West Coast’s share of US imports from Asia will continue to deteriorate in the first quarter and beyond until terminal operators and the International Longshore and Warehouse Union agree on a new contract, sources say.

Some factors, such as the sharper attention both multinationals and smaller mom-and-pop sellers are paying to their supply chains, seem to be charting a new trajectory and are poised to help shape the freight sector this year.

The International Longshoremen’s Association won a victory related to a dispute at the Port of Charleston as federal labor regulators say a lawsuit aimed at preserving their work on container ships was legal.

The head of the union representing East and Gulf coast dockworkers says relations with port employers are strong heading into talks over a new master contract that would begin next year.

OICT is operated by SSA Marine, the same operator that runs Terminal 5 at the Port of Seattle, which has been the site of a inter-union work jurisdictional dispute that has forced the broader West Coast contract talks to be put on hold.

A work stoppage in Oakland only served to further stoke the fears of US cargo interests who have been routing discretionary cargo away from West Coast ports to avoid disruptions linked to ongoing longshore labor talks.

While retailers normally divert some discretionary cargo to ports on the East and Gulf coasts in years when the ILWU and PMA negotiate a new contract, the shift away from the West Coast has been particularly dramatic this year.

A jurisdictional dispute between the ILWU and the machinists union over jobs at Terminal 5 in Seattle has become a major snag in West Coast contract talks between the ILWU and waterfront employers.

The ILA is planning to work on local contract talks as it seeks to avoid any disruptions on the East and Gulf coasts that could derail negotiations over extending the master contract ahead of the current deal’s 2024 expiry.

Slowdown tactics employed by the ILWU last week reduced cargo handling productivity in Oakland and Seattle-Tacoma and come as the union and waterfront employers continue to negotiate for a new contract.

A tentative contract agreement between security guards represented by the International Longshore and Warehouse Union and employers in Los Angeles-Long Beach eliminates one possible source of cargo-handling disruption.

Although West Coast longshore labor and management in July announced progress in the form of an interim agreement on health benefits, headway in recent weeks has been minimal on what are considered far more difficult issues.

Just days after dockworkers at the UK’s largest container port ended a strike, laborers at the Port of Liverpool set the dates for their own walkout, the latest industrial action hitting Europe amid a deepening cost-of-living crisis.

The fact the ILWU and PMA issued an update showing progress in labor talks while the negotiations are ongoing should be welcomed by trade groups that have expressed concern about possible port disruptions on the West Coast.

Carriers have told JOC.com they do not want to base the economics of a long-term agreement with the ILA on the relatively short-term — and highly profitable — economic conditions of the past two years.

Cargo handling and gate operations in Oakland effectively ground to a halt as trucker protests over California’s AB5 law continued for a fourth day.

Wage negotiations between a German union and port employers have again failed to reach a settlement, with a two-day strike set to start Thursday as vessel congestion persists.

The ILA wants the White House to stay out of the labor dispute involving Charleston’s Leatherman terminal, after an FMC member sought intervention from President Joe Biden.

A series of European port strikes show the rising risk of industrial actions, as global inflation squeezes workers throughout containerized supply chains, writes JOC Executive Editor Mark Szakonyi.

A Federal Maritime Commissioner is calling on the White House to step in and help end the labor dispute that has kept Charleston’s Hugh K. Leatherman Terminal significantly underutilized since its opening last year.

West Coast employers and the International Longshore and Warehouse Union, in a rare joint statement while contract negotiations are under way, pledged to continue negotiations beyond July 1.

West Coast terminal operators and the ILWU are weighing a proposal that would allow terminals to open their gates at 6 a.m., a move that has the support of truckers.

Three importer groups have sent a joint letter to the Biden administration calling on the White House to intervene in West Coast labor talks in order to avoid further stressing the US supply chain.

Contract negotiations between the ILWU and West Coast marine terminal employers started up again on Wednesday after an unexpected halt in late May.

Coastwide contract negotiations between the ILWU and West Coast waterfront employers have been put on hold, although individual committee meetings on specific issues such as worker safety will continue.

The ILWU wants to temporarily suspend contract talks with West Coast waterfront employers, according to sources, with one saying little progress has been made since negotiations began May 10.

ILA leadership is expressing solidarity with the ILWU as it begins contract talks with West Coast terminal employers, while warning against further automation at US ports.

A study commissioned by the Pacific Maritime Association says the automation of cargo-handling equipment at two marine terminals in Los Angeles-Long Beach resulted in more jobs for longshoremen. The ILWU disagrees.

That West Coast longshore labor leadership is speaking publicly — and tinged with optimism — about upcoming negotiations with employers is boosting hopes a new contract agreement will be reached without further disrupting the US supply chain.

Exactly one month before the start of contract talks between West Coast employers and the ILWU, the union is claiming that a 2008 deal between the two sides has been violated at Terminal 5 in Seattle, a foreboding sign for those hoping this year’s negotiations would go smoothly.

Longshore union representatives have told the Federal Maritime Commission that better data sharing would create more labor efficiency and provide the ability to better handle unexpected situations on the docks.

Potential automation of cargo handling is most likely the major topic of discussion as International Longshore & Warehouse Union delegates gather this week to develop their strategy for upcoming contract negotiations with West Coast employers.

Officials from the International Longshoremen's Association and the United States Maritime Alliance have had “discussions about discussions” in recent months about a contract extension that would focus primarily on wage levels.

An investigation into Australia’s shipping sector follows months of disruption to supply chains due to port congestion, stevedore industrial action, and curtailed carrier services.