Strikes Could Soon Affect East Coast, Gulf Coast Ports

According to the National Association of Manufacturers, the likelihood of an Oct. 1, 2024 strike at U.S. East Coast and Gulf Coast ports is growing as the expiration date of a labor contract nears. In fact, International Longshoremen’s Association (ILA) President Harold Daggett recently said that the maritime employers represented by United States Maritime Alliance (USMX) “are running out of time’ to negotiate a new master contract agreement and avoid a coastwide work stoppage across 36 ports from Maine to Texas.”

The current work contract between the ILA and USMX expires Sept. 30, 2024. Negotiations were scheduled for June, but the ILA canceled them, announcing it would not meet with the USMX until the latter had resolved the issue of automatic gates in use at several U.S. ports, which the ILA says replace workers affiliated with the ILA.

Although West Coast dockworkers reached a labor agreement with the Pacific Maritime Association last September with the help of the Biden administration, Daggett said the ILA “will not entertain any discussions about extending the current contract, nor are we interested in any help from outside agencies to interfere in our negotiations with USMX. This includes the Biden administration and the Department of Labor.”