Dock Workers Go On Strike, Billions Of Dollars In Trade Screeches To A Halt

 Tens of thousands of dock workers at ports along the East and Gulf coasts walked off the job at midnight on Tuesday, a massive strike that brings billions of dollars in trade to a screeching halt.

The International Longshoremen’s Association launched the strike after port ownership failed to meet its demands for higher wages and address the union’s objections to port automation. Negotiations broke down over the summer and the two sides are still at an impasse.

About 45,000 workers will refuse to work during the strike, which will snarl supply chains and choke off nearly 50% of U.S. imports. A total of 14 ports are affected including the Port Authority in New Jersey and the ports in Boston, Philadelphia, Wilmington, North Carolina, Baltimore, Norfolk, Charleston, Savannah, Jacksonville, Tampa, Miami, New Orleans, Mobile, and Houston.

Overnight workers quickly began to picket, and pictures of the striking workers popped up on social media almost immediately.

On Monday, the union rejected a last-minute offer from port ownership, represented by the United States Maritime Alliance, which offered the union a nearly 50% wage raise. The alliance also said it offered to triple employer contributions to employee retirement plans, better health care options, and to keep the current language around automation and semi-automation.

The union reaffirmed its plans to strike earlier in the day, saying in a statement that port ownership continues to “block” a “fair and decent contract and seems intent on causing a strike at all ports from Maine to Texas.”

“The Ocean Carriers represented by USMX want to enjoy rich billion-dollar profits that they are making in 2024, while they offer ILA Longshore Workers an unacceptable wage package that we reject,” the union said Monday. “ILA longshore workers deserve to be compensated for the important work they do keeping American commerce moving and growing.”

Depending on how long the strike lasts, Americans could see shortages and delays past the election and into the holiday season.

 

Bananas, coffee, cocoa, pharmaceuticals, clothing, furniture, vehicles, and even Christmas decorations are among the products that will be affected. As far as American exports, beef, poultry, pork, eggs, and cotton will be impacted as well.

The union’s president Harold Daggett took an aggressive negotiating stance as the strike approached.

“I’ll cripple you, and you have no idea what that means,” Daggett warned in a video message a few weeks ago.

The Biden-Harris administration had the ability to stop the strike, but has opted not to invoke the Taft-Hartley Act, which gives the president the power to keep workers on the job.

Critics say the administration didn’t do enough to bring the two sides together. Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo was asked on Monday about the strike, and admitted that she has “not been very focused” on it.