Strike in US Atlantic and Gulf ports becomes “more likely”

The president of the International Longshoremen’s Association (ILA) says the threat of a strike at all U.S. ports on the Atlantic and Gulf coasts is becoming increasingly likely as time runs out before the current collective bargaining agreement expires on September 30.

Harold J. Daggett, ILA president and the union’s chief negotiator, said employers represented by the United States Maritime Alliance (USMX) are running out of time to negotiate a new master agreement and avoid a coast-wide strike on Oct. 1.

“With only 80 days left until the end of our current contract, we are waiting on USMX,” Daggett said. “Violations by some of their members of our current master agreement have caused us to cancel the negotiations planned with USMX in early June.”

The ILA stopped negotiations on the master agreement with USMX after discovering that APM Terminals and Maersk Line were using an automated gate system that autonomously handles trucks without ILA workers. This system, first discovered at the Port of Mobile, Alabama, is reportedly being used at other ports as well. The ILA said on June 10 that it would not meet with USMX until the automated gate issue was resolved.

In addition, the union is still awaiting the results of an audit of jobs created by new technologies, a report it has been waiting for for nearly two contract periods. The ILA has observed a growing number of IT workers at marine terminals and fears that APM and Maersk’s IT departments in Charlotte, North Carolina, are encroaching on its jurisdiction.

Daggett said rank-and-file ILA members are 100 percent behind him and are ready to “take to the streets” on October 1 if the union’s wage demands are not met.

“We will not be entering into discussions about extending the current contract, nor are we interested in seeking assistance from outside entities that interfere in our negotiations with USMX,” Daggett said. “This includes the Biden administration and the Department of Labor.”