Focus of West Coast ports’ labor feud shifts to northwest

The focus of the enduring labor dispute over the crews who run the flow of cargo through West Coast ports shifted to the northwest on Saturday, June 10.

The Port of Seattle shut its cargo operations on Saturday, Bloomberg News reported, adding to sporadic disruptions that have plagued West Coast ports for more than a week, including at hubs in Los Angeles and Long Beach. But union officials contested that report.

The Pacific Maritime Association, which represents ocean carriers and port of , blamed “coordinated and disruptive work actions” for the halt, saying in a statement Saturday that the International Longshore and Warehouse Union refused to dispatch any longshore workers to container terminals during the first shift of the day.

The ILWU, which represents 22,000 dockworkers up and down the coast in contract negotiations that began in May 2022, denied that report, saying that all West Coast ports continued to operate.

“(The union) remains committed to bargaining a contract that is fair and equitable and represents the hard work and contributions of its members toward the ongoing success of the multi-billion-dollar shipping industry,” a statement issued Saturday afternoon said. “The Pacific Maritime Association (PMA) continues using the media to leverage one-sided information in attempt to influence the process.”

“Despite what you are hearing from PMA, West Coast ports are open as we continue to work under our expired collective bargaining agreement,” said ILWU President Willie Adams.

The collective bargaining agreement that the ILWU and PMA are negotiating covers more than 22,000 longshore workers at 29 West Coast ports, including the mammoth twin hubs of Los Angeles and Long Beach.  The previous agreement expired in July 2022. Talks began in May 2022.

Operations at Los Angeles and Long Beach ports returned to normal by the end of last week after a series of labor actions from June 2 to June 7. Delays to container ships scheduled for those ports have resolved as a result.

A temporary ship backlog earlier this week caused by a lack of longshore workers has been resolved, a port source said on Friday.

“Port of L.A. container terminals are all open and operating with appropriate levels of staffing,” said Port of Los Angeles spokesperson Phillip Sanfield. “The Marine Exchange has advised that delays from earlier in the week have been cleared up.”

Talks cut off on June 1 but resumed June 6 in San Francisco as the 13-month-long negotiations crawl toward a contract resolution for some 22,000 West Coast dockworkers at 29 ports. Issues under negotiation include health and other benefits, wages, and the anticipated ramifications of terminal automation.

In a statement released Friday, the PMA said operations “have generally improved at the Ports of Los Angeles, Long Beach, and Oakland. However, the Ports of Seattle and Tacoma continue to suffer significant slowdowns as a result of targeted ILWU work actions.”

The U.S. Chamber of Commerce has called on President Joe Biden to intervene in the dispute.

“We urge you to appoint an independent mediator to help the parties reach a voluntary agreement,” Chamber President and Chief Executive Officer Suzanne Clark wrote in a letter to the president Friday.

“This step is necessary to avoid potentially billions of dollars in economic damage to the American economy before it occurs,” Clark added. “We urge your  Administration to continue engaging directly with both parties and to consider additional steps that may be necessary in the event of a widespread work stoppage.”

There were concerns the delays can have broader fallout as ships that are off schedule can cause disruptions at other ports on their routes.

Clark warned of a crippling effect on the U.S. economy.

“A serious work stoppage at the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach would likely cost the U.S. economy nearly half a billion dollars a day – and a more widespread strike along the West Coast could cost approximately $1 billion per day,” Clark said in the letter.

The White House said this week that Biden respects the collective bargaining process and wants negotiations between port employers and workers to continue.

Bloomberg News and Staff Writer Donna Littlejohn contributed to this report.