OFFICIALS at 14 ports along the US East and Gulf coasts were making last-minute preparations on Monday for a likely labor strike that could drag on the US economy just ahead of a presidential election.
With contract talks stalled between the International Longshoremen’s Association (ILA) and the business group United States Maritime Alliance (USMX), tens of thousands of dockworkers are poised to walk off the job after midnight at the expiration of a six-year contract.
“While we have encouraged both sides to reach an amicable agreement at the bargaining table, all signs are that there will be a strike,” Port Authority Executive Director Rick Cotton said on Monday at a news conference where New York officials sought to reassure consumers that they would not lose access to food and other essential goods.
A walkout would be the ILA’s first since 1977. The contract directly affects some 25,000 ILA members at 14 large US ports, including New York/New Jersey, Boston, Philadelphia, Savannah, New Orleans and Houston.
New York Governor Kathy Hochul said port officials were scrambling to clear out as many items from the port as possible before the impending stoppage. Other ports such as New Orleans and Savannah have offered extended hours in recent days ahead of the deadline.
The union is pressing for protections against automation-related job loss and for hefty wage hikes after dockworkers kept providing essential services throughout the pandemic.
