Port Operators Threaten to Halt Talks Over Automation Issue
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Container lines and operators of U.S. East and Gulf Coast port terminals said they won’t continue bargaining with union dockworkers on a new six-year contract if it means giving up their right to invest in semi-automated cargo handling equipment.
“Modernization and investment in new technology are core priorities required to successfully bargain a new master contract,” said the U.S. Maritime Alliance, the group known as USMX that represents employers in a stalled negotiation with the International Longshoremen’s Association.
With six weeks to go before the extension expires, the two sides have no formal talks scheduled, a USMX spokesperson told Bloomberg News on Dec. 4.
Union members have been moving cargo under a temporary contract extension since early October, after suspending a three-day strike that halted container operations at every major port from Houston to Boston.
East Coast Longshore Contract Talks Break Down Over Automation https://t.co/1wpn8ik77S — The ILA App (@TheILAmobileApp) December 4, 2024
Under pressure from the Biden administration, the two sides managed to agree on a 61.5% pay increase over six years, which would only kick in once they reach a deal on a new long-term contract.
Yet the extension, until Jan. 15, left an issue even thornier than pay on the table to be hashed out during President Joe Biden’s final days in office. And with a deadline just five days before President-elect Donald Trump’s inauguration, it’s unclear who would or could step in to help avoid another strike.
It’s looking more and more likely the USMX and ILA will need help. The union broke off talks last month almost as soon as they began, citing concerns over technology that would eliminate jobs on the docks.
On Dec. 2, the ILA blamed the impasse on a push by employers to expand the use of semi-automated rail-mounted gantry cranes, which the union sees as an existential threat to its workforce.
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USMX said these cranes have been in use at some ILA-staffed ports for more than a decade and have delivered big efficiency gains in cramped terminals without jeopardizing jobs.
“USMX is not, nor has it ever been, seeking to eliminate jobs, but to simply implement and maintain the use of equipment and technology already allowed under the current contract agreements and already widely in use,” the USMX said in a statement Dec. 3.
The union’s statement a day earlier said the semi-automated cranes did not improve productivity and would cause job losses. The statement did not provide numbers.
“This isn’t about meeting operational needs — it’s about replacing workers under the guise of progress while maximizing corporate profits,” the ILA said.
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