Longshoremen Union Slowdown Drastically Cuts Port Production

International Longshoremen Workers Union (ILWU) bosses have instituted a work slowdown over a contract dispute.  The slowdown has cut production at the Tacoma and Seattle Ports by as much as 60%.  John Gillie reports on the slowdown in the News Tribune.

Trucks awaiting new cargo were forming long lines Monday and ships were missing their sailing schedules as longshore union workers slowed the pace of work on the waterfront in Tacoma and Seattle this week in an apparent attempt to win contract concessions from maritime employers.

The Pacific Maritime Association claimed the slowdown began Friday, continued over the weekend and into this week. The association, which represents marine terminal operators and shipping lines on the West Coast, said production at some terminals has been reduced by up to 60 percent.
The slowdown began, according to Wade Gates, a PMA spokesman, within hours of the conclusion of a negotiating session for a new multi-year coastwide contract between the employers group and the International Longshore Workers Union. The two groups have been negotiating for six months without reaching a new deal for a long-term contract.

The previous contract between the PMA and the ILWU expired July 1. The two had informally agreed to continue their working relationship under the old contract terms while negotiations continued. The two, however, didn’t agree to a formal contract extension.

“Now, the ILWU has reneged on that agreement,†said a PMA spokesman.

The union denied there was ever such an agreement, but the PMA pointed out a mid-summer joint press release that spoke of such an arrangement.