(The hill) – Tens of thousands of longshoremen in ports along the East Coast and Gulf of Mexico went on strike Shortly after midnight, the dockworkers’ union’s first strike in almost 50 years took place.
As the Associated Press and other media reported, workers walked off the job from Maine to Texas after the United States Maritime Alliance (USMX) and the International Longshoremen’s Association (ILA) failed to reach an agreement by the midnight deadline.
The USMX said Monday night that it had “exchanged counteroffers on wages” with the ILA, the first sign of movement in months.
The union has called for wage increases and a total ban on automation of cranes, gates and container transport vehicles. In June, negotiations between the ILA and the USMX failed automated gate at a port in Mobile, Alabama.
The USMX also said it asked the union to extend the agreement, which expired Oct. 1.
“Both sides have backed away from their previous positions,” the USMX said in a statement. “We are confident that this will allow us to fully resume collective bargaining.”
Many retailers have brought forward deliveries or rerouted shipments across the West Coast in anticipation of the strike, but companies are bracing for a strike whose end is not yet clear.
Estimates of the strike’s economic impact cover a wide range: nonprofit economic research organization The Conference Board estimates the cost at about $540 million per day, while analysts at JP Morgan estimate the cost at up to $5 billion per day .
Teamsters President Sean O’Brien issued a statement of solidarity with the ILA on Monday evening, saying: “The U.S. government should stay the hell out of this fight and allow union workers to do their jobs for the wages and benefits they deserve.” “deserved to withhold.”
“Every worker – on the streets, in the ports, in the air – should be able to fight for a better life without government interference. For far too long, companies have been able to rely on political puppets to lend a hand them deprive working people of their freedom. “Inherent leverage,” O’Brien said.
While Biden dispatched senior officials to urge USMX and ILA officials to “come to a fair agreement fairly and quickly,” the president declined to invoke a legal maneuver that would give the parties more time to negotiate would have.
The Taft-Hartley Act, which allows presidents to ask a court for an 80-day “cooling off period” on strikes that “endanger national health or security,” was last used by President George W. Bush in 2002.
Biden, who used another legal mechanism to avert a railroad strike in 2022, said Sunday that he would not apply Taft-Hartley to stop the longshoremen’s strike, citing “collective bargaining.”
The impending strike angered some business leaders and Republicans.
Rep. David Rouzer (R-N.C.) argued that the “Biden-Harris administration has failed to take action to protect our economy and American consumers.” post on the social platform X Monday morning.
“A week-long strike would result in a backlog at our ports through November,” said Rouzer, who represents Wilmington, home to one of the ports affected by the strike.
U.S. Chamber of Commerce President Suzanne Clark on Monday urged Biden to invoke Taft-Hartley, warning that it would be “unconscionable to allow a contract dispute to cause such a shock to our economy.”
“These ports collectively handle more than 68 [percent] of all container exports and 56 [percent] of imports for the country with a daily trade value of over $2.1 billion,” Clark wrote. “Simply put, they have the power to keep contract negotiations going while keeping the ports open.”
Lawmakers who expressed support for longshoremen also quickly called for an agreement to minimize the economic fallout.
Rep. Troy Carter (D-La.) said that “both parties must work together in good faith to find a solution that respects workers’ rights while minimizing economic disruption.”
“Every employee deserves fair pay for their work. Period. I fully support the International Longshoremen Association’s right to negotiate fair pay, benefits and safe working conditions. “I also recognize the significant impact that a strike of this magnitude could have on the U.S. economy,” said Carter, who represents New Orleans, another strike site.
Rep. Jerry Nadler (D-N.Y.), who represents part of Manhattan, said he was “proud to stand with him [the longshoremen] as they fight for the fair wages, protection and respect they deserve.”
“Dockworkers are the backbone of the U.S. economy, keeping our ports and supply chain running smoothly. During the pandemic, longshoremen have stood with us to keep shelves stocked across the country,” Nadler said.
“I hope that both parties will quickly come to an agreement to prevent a strike with far-reaching effects on port operators, the economy and port workers,” Nadler added.
While a longshoremen’s strike could put pressure on the economy and potentially drive up prices for consumer goods and curb recent inflation, the Conference Board also called invoking the Taft-Hartley Act a “political minefield so close to the election.” .
Most major unions and labor organizations supported Biden before he dropped out of the race in July and quickly pivoted to supporting Vice President Harris in the presidential election.
Alex Hertel-Fernandez, an associate professor of international and public affairs at Columbia University and a former Labor Department official, explained the “political calculations” of intervening in the strike five weeks before Election Day.
“Given that the president and vice president are committed to supporting the labor movement, I think they understand that invoking Taft-Hartley is viewed by the labor movement as a pretty significant threat to their autonomy and their ability to negotiate at the table “Would be viewed as their employers,” Hertel-Fernandez said.
ILA President Harold Daggett said in a Press release this summer that he had a (*50*) with former President Trump and that the two had a “productive meeting” in November 2023.
According to Daggett, “Trump promised to support the ILA in its opposition to automated terminals in the US,” one of the union’s main concerns.
How long the strike will last is unclear. But Hertel-Fernandez delivered a message of “cautious optimist” ahead of Monday’s strike announcement.
“The parties always seem very far apart, until they aren’t,” he said.
