With Approval Of Contract, U.S. Avoids Costly Port Strike

On Feb. 25, the International Longshoremen’s Association (ILA) voted overwhelmingly to ratify a new six-year master labor contract with the United States Maritime Alliance (USMA). Nearly 99 percent of the unions members voted for the agreement, which covers 24,000 workers in container handling at 14 ports from Massachusetts to Texas.

The extension to the master contract is retroactive to Oct. 1, 2024 and will run through Sept. 30, 2030.

As Connecting the Dots reported last month, the ILA and the USMA reached a tentative agreement in January following a three-day work stoppage at East and Gulf Coast ports in October.

The dockworkers and their employers will formally sign the deal on March 11, 2025. The ratified contract gives ILA members a 62 percent pay increase over six years, resulting in an increase in hourly wages at the top of the union pay scale from $39 an hour to $63 an hour.

The agreement also allows terminal operators and ocean carriers to introduce limited automation equipment in container handling linked to guarantees that protect union jobs. Automation had been the main point of contention in negotiations. “The pending contract opens the door a little more for advanced technology and automation,” Brian Lynch, leader of the transportation sector at the consulting firm EY Americas, told The Associated Press.