Suspension | Labor negotiations affect US West Coast ports, causing interruption in cargo operations at the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach

Labor negotiations affect ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach, causing cargo operation interruption

According to reports from multiple foreign media outlets, due to the current dispute between the Pacific Maritime Association and the International Longshore and Warehouse Union, there continues to be a shortage of personnel and “unmanned” conditions at ports on the US West Coast.

The Pacific Maritime Association, representing the shipper industry organization, stated on its official social media account that the International Longshore and Warehouse Union has also taken similar work actions.

TTI, the largest port in Long Beach, canceled all import and export truck transport orders on Monday

Due to labor unrest, Total Terminals International (TTI), a subsidiary of MSC and the largest port in Long Beach, notified its truck drivers that the company would cancel appointments for its two ships in Long Beach and Seattle and cease operations on Monday (June 5th) morning local time.

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Source: TTI Email

According to a statement released by the Pacific Maritime Association, members of the International Longshore and Warehouse Union have actually shut down the operations of several shipping ports in Los Angeles, Long Beach, Oakland, Seattle, and Tacoma, Washington.

Source: Pacific Maritime Twitter

Since Thursday (June 1st) local time, no port workers have reported to work at the Port of Oakland. There were no worker records for work on Sunday in the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach. Due to the lower amount of container shipments over the weekend compared to this week, some truck drivers were able to take containers instead of dropping them off.

Source: CNBC

Increasingly, there are allegations that members of the International Longshore and Warehouse Union are using “red tag” equipment for safety checks and ceasing its use.

The West Coast ports, due to their proximity to Asia, have traditionally had a geographical advantage. With the delay of labor negotiations and strike actions by union members, some nervous retailers and manufacturers have changed their cargo routes, resulting in a decline in imports and exports through the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach in recent months.

Due to a port interruption, a truck stopped on the side of the road in Los Angeles Harbor.

One problem at a terminal would affect a whole day and go far beyond a single shift. Even with advance notice of the shutdown, it would still exacerbate congestion. Last November, truck drivers also stopped working for five days due to California’s AB5 legislation, but it took two months to recover.

The resulting chain reaction will directly affect every seller, slowing down container retrieval, incurring additional labor costs, and any additional detention fines will be included in the bills of consumers (shippers/truck drivers).

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