Despite a resumption of negotiations in recent days, a
strike by longshore clerks is still ongoing at the ports of Los Angeles and
Long Beach and most terminals at the ports remain closed.
As of 8 a.m. Tues., Dec. 4, operations are still shut at
seven of the eight terminals at the Port of Los Angeles, and three of the six
container terminals at the Port of Long Beach remained closed: Long Beach
Container Terminal at Pier F, International Transportation Service at Pier G
and Total Terminals International at Pier T.
Three other Long Beach terminals, however -- SSAT at Pier A,
SSAT/Matson at Pier C and Pacific Container Terminal at Pier J – are still
operational.
The negotiating parties are the Harbor Employers
Association, which negotiates for shippers and terminal operators, and
International Longshore and Warehouse Union Local 63, which represents about
800 clerical workers.
The strike began at noon Nov. 27 and is now entering its
second week. Talks aimed at resolving the situation resumed Nov. 29 and remain
ongoing, according to both sides. The union members have been working without a
contract since their three-year pact with management expired June 30, 2010.
The main sticking point in negotiations hasn’t been wages,
but outsourcing. The union contends that management wants to implement new
technology that would lead to fewer human workers being necessary. The ILWU
specifically opposes technology that would allow customers to directly access booking
information, saying it could lead to the outsourcing of jobs.
But the employers’ group, which is comprised of 14 shippers
and terminal operators in and around the port complex, maintains that
implementation of new technology is needed to improve efficiency.
On Dec. 2, the employers’ association announced that the
union had rejected its latest contract offer, which includes wage and pension
increases, guarantees against layoffs, and a requirement that employers call in
temporary workers and hire new employees even if there is no work for those
individuals to perform.
The union however, maintains that job security is paramount
and that the employers have refused to include language in the contract
specifying that workers will not be laid off.
The strike is estimated to cost the port complex about $1
billion a day. Over the course of the first week of the strike, at least 18
ships were turned away and diverted to other West Coast ports, including ports
in Oakland and Mexico.
Although Local 63 only has 800 members, the strike is being
honored by its much larger sister, Local 13, which has about 7,000 registered
members and represents almost 20,000 part- and full-time longshore workers who
discharge cargo at the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach.
