LOS ANGELES, CA - Amid ongoing transportation challenges, a recent update regarding West Coast port labor negotiations has come across our desks. The Pacific Maritime Association has announced that operations at some marine terminals at the Ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach were effectively shut down following the staged concerted and disruptive work actions from the union representing dockworkers.

According to reports from ABC 7, the Pacific Maritime Association and International Longshore and Warehouse Union (ILWU) have been negotiating a new collective bargaining agreement—which would cover more than 22,000 longshore workers at 29 United States West Coast ports. Their previous agreement expired on July 1, 2022.

“PMA member carriers and terminal operators made historic profits of $510 billion during the pandemic,” ILWU said in a statement. “In some cases, profits jumped nearly 1,000 percent. As shipping volumes return to normal in 2023, PMA members have continued to post revenues that far exceed pre-pandemic times by billions of dollars.”

The Pacific Maritime Association also claimed that ILWU staged similar work actions that “shut down or severely impacted terminal actions at the ports of Oakland, Tacoma, Seattle, and Hueneme.”

“The United States ports, particularly those on the West Coast, play a critical role in the vitality of the American economy. Thousands of retailers and other businesses depend on smooth and efficient operations at the ports to deliver goods to consumers every day,” said National Retail Federation’s Senior Vice President of Government Relations David French. “As we enter the peak shipping season for the holidays, these additional disruptions will force retailers and other important shipping partners to continue to shift cargo away from the West Coast ports until a new labor contract is established. It is imperative that the parties return to the negotiating table. We urge the administration to mediate to ensure the parties quickly finalize a new contract without additional disruptions.”

Keep reading AndNowUKnow as we continue to track these critical conversations in the transportation sector.