36 Ports All Stop...Logistics Crisis Feared Due to US Port Union Strike

US 45,000 Port Workers Strike
Wage Increase and Automation Conflicts
Logistics Crisis Feared as 36 Ports Come to a Halt

The U.S. dockworkers' union has launched a full-scale strike at ports in the southeastern region, raising concerns about a logistics crisis.

A stock photo of a port with stacked containers, unrelated to the article content.

According to the Associated Press on the 1st (local time), the International Longshoremen's Association (ILA), which represents 45,000 U.S. dockworkers, began striking at ports from Maine to Texas early that morning. The strike centers on wage and automation issues, and AP analyzed that if it continues for several weeks or more, it could reignite inflation and cause product shortages. The contract between the ILA and the ports expired at midnight. This is the first time since 1977 that all 36 ports have come to a complete stop. It is reported that there are as many as 100,000 containers waiting to be unloaded at ports near New York.

Union members participating in the strike began picketing at the Philadelphia port shortly after midnight, marching in circles at railroad crossings outside the port while chanting, "No work without a fair contract." The union operated trucks bearing the message, "Automation hurts families: ILA supports job protection." Boyce Butler, the regional president of the ILA union, stated that workers want a fair contract that does not allow automation to threaten their jobs. Butler criticized shipping companies for making huge profits by charging high freight rates during the pandemic and said, "Now they must compensate for that. The union will continue striking as long as necessary to secure a fair deal."

The union initially demanded a 77% wage increase over a six-year contract period, but the opposing party, the U.S. Maritime Alliance (USMX), proposed a 50% increase over six years. Currently, ILA union members earn an annual salary of $81,000, but some can make over $200,000 per year through overtime.

AP quoted supply chain experts saying, "Consumers will not feel immediate effects, but if the strike lasts several weeks or more, it will cause severe congestion in the nation's supply chain." JP Morgan estimated that the U.S. economy could lose up to $5 billion per day. This strike is also expected to become an issue in the presidential election.