ILA UNION ON STRIKE IN 36 US PORTS - Teamsters Warn Biden To 'Stay the F*ck

[Kennebec_Captain]

ILA UNION ON STRIKE IN 36 US PORTS - Teamsters Warn Biden To 'Stay the F*ck...

[ombugge]

It is also international news:

Strike commences across US eastern seaboard - Splash247

If this becomes a long lasting strike it will affect a lot of seafarers onboard ships stuck at anchor off US ports, maybe for weeks.

Danish liner consultancy eeSea currently counts 260 boxships with a forecasted arrival into strike affected ports in the next seven days. Tails on the inset map above represent the last 24 hours movement while a dot represents a vessel not moving.

PS> Just out of curiosity; why does US unions like to put “International” in their name? Are there anything International with “The International Longshoremen’s Association (ILA)” or any of the many other unions listed here: List of labor unions in the United States - Wikipedia

[Tankerchief1]

This sounds like a rehash of the argument about containers in the 1970’s. The Boston local actually complained that the difficulty pilfering from containers was going to hurt their pay. Hence, containers did not move into Boston for years after development elsewhere. From the sound of things they are worried about automation. This will require new skill sets that are not typically found in their labor pool.

[ShooterMcGavin]

@ombugge

why does US unions like to put “International” in their name?

We don’t “like” doing it — as far as MMP is concerned we have affiliates outside CONUS (Canada and Panama) and they changed the name to reflect this. It has been IOMMP since 1954.

[Bayrunner]

“We will cripple you” says the ILA don.

I think he makes an excellent example of why we need to bring manufacturing back to this country instead of offshoring all of it.

[Slick_cam1]

I find it fascinating that the Teamsters,ILA, and others unions have pressed their advantage the past couple years for higher pay and better working conditions and benefits, but nary a peep from the maritime unions, other than vague solidarity statements. Doesn’t seem like there could be a better time to press for higher pay.

[BeerCaptain]

@Slick_cam1

but nary a peep from the maritime unions, other than vague solidarity statements. Doesn’t seem like there could be a better time to press for higher pay.

I wish I was surprised by this, but to me it’s just par for the course. Our Union(s) are job boards with health insurance and upgrade classes. All the brotherhood and union strong shit ends when it comes time to sit down and negotiate new contracts. We can’t keep up inflation let alone actual wage increases.

[ombugge]

Looks like Panama has dropped out at some time:

The International Longshoremen’s Association (ILA ) is a North American labor union representing longshore workers along the East Coast of the United States and Canada, the Gulf Coast, the Great Lakes, Puerto Rico, and inland waterways; on the West Coast, the dominant union is the International Longshore and Warehouse Union. The ILA has approximately 200 local affiliates in port cities in these areas.

Source: International Longshoremen's Association - Wikipedia
“East coast of Canada and Puerto Rico” will have to do as “International” then.

[ShooterMcGavin]

@ombugge

“East coast of Canada and Puerto Rico” will have to do as “International” then.

Not my pig, not my farm.

[ChemicalTanker]

That attitude from the Teamsters isn’t mafia at all.

[ombugge]

Wapo has an Opinion piece about the strike: https://wapo.st/3zw6PEt
No paywall. (Free gift from me)

The difficult issue at the heart of this strike is whether machines will displace workers earning up to $39 an hour at the ports.
Today, the shipping industry is at the forefront of a second revolution. It is now possible to run a dockyard with almost no humans present.

There’s a wider context here. Only 63 ports in the world had this advanced automation by 2022. That’s a tiny fraction of the roughly 1,300 container terminals in the world. Port operators make it sound inevitable that machines will come — though it’s a hefty upfront expense and the equipment usually comes from China, which the Biden administration now sees as a security threat. (Efforts are underway to build cranes in the United States.)
In this country, three terminals (in Los Angeles and Long Beach) are considered fully automated. Another three (one in New Jersey/New York and two in Virginia) are classified as semi-automated, meaning that machines do some of the sorting. A 2022 study by the Economic Roundtable of Los Angeles found that 572 jobs a year were lost (about 5 percent of the workforce) after automation in California. The study was funded by the West Coast dockworkers union.

And they know President Joe Biden is unlikely to force them back.
(The union has been clear that it will continue unloading any military cargo, and the strike doesn’t affect cruise ships.) For now, the workers feel emboldened.

Disputes like this can set a precedent for what happens when machines come for all kinds of jobs.

PS> Autonomous ship is coming. Are you ready?

[Sextantium]

If it was named " American Organization of Masters, Mates & Pilots" bug man would be asking why it puts “American” in their name instead of international lol.

[powerabout]

all part of the plan to bring manufacturing home.

[Kennebec_Captain]

I’ve seen claims as to how much longshoreman make all over the map.

This is from here:

Pay for longshoremen is based on their years of experience. Under the ILA’s former contract with USMX, which expired on Monday, starting pay for dockworkers was $20 per hour. That rose to $24.75 per hour after two years on the job and to $31.90 after three years, topping out at $39 for workers with at least six years of service.

That top-tier hourly wage of $39 amounts to just over $81,000 annually, but dockworkers can make significantly more by taking on extra shifts. For example, according to a 2019-20 annual report from the Waterfront Commission of New York Harbor, about one-third of local longshoremen made $200,000 or more a year.

Making $20 an hour for casual labor, does that seem like a good deal? And no guarantee of work starting out. Isn’t that the dreaded ‘sitting at the hall’ scenario?

EDIT The old ILA contract is here.

[McGourthyClone]

A group that can’t figure out how much a deckhand on a tug makes shouldn’t even attempt to figure longshore pay.

It varies so much by start date, job, day of the week, time of day, and port that there is no right answer.

On top of that add royalties, lineups, guarantees and probably some other things I’ve forgotten and it gets even harder.

[Chippin]

@Kennebec_Captain

Making $20 an hour for casual labor, does that seem like a good deal? And no guarantee of work starting out. Isn’t that the dreaded ‘sitting at the hall’ scenario?

I worked with a guy who joined the longshoreman’s union while also working on the boat, I suppose he would do a little work here and there when he was off.
He eventually quit and went full time as a longshoreman making double what he was as an AB.
I guess unskilled labor tossing lines once or twice per month is enough “experience” to max out at $40/hr (or the proposed $70/hr), this particular persons entire family was in the union too.

[txh2oman]

It’s worth noting that there are hundreds of thousands of non-union workers potentially negatively impacted by this strike. The pols and media love to talk about labor and working families, but those workers account for only about 11% of wage earners in the US.

I am onboard with profits being re-invested into the workforce (and capital improvements) vs all going to shareholders and executive compensation. My former union delegate self should love to stand in solidarity with the ILA, and I do believe that unions indirectly benefit even non-union workers.

But.

The ILA president presents as a greedy, self-aggrandizing tool of the first order, with his gold chain and his million-dollar pay package and his verbal thuggery.

And ILA walked away from negotiations back in June and has refused to negotiate in good faith. Seems like it was with this in view – apply maximum pressure just before the election. It was a lucky coincidence that they also get to screw-over victims of Helene at the same time, I guess.

Not a fan of ILA, and quickly souring on the Maritime and other unions who are cheering this on.

[ombugge]

@Sextantium

Organization of Masters, Mates & Pilots

No I would not, since it is an American trade union, not International.
But I do wonder why IOMMP is still an affiliate of ILA (since 1971)
What is the connection here?

[Sand_Pebble]

@ombugge

PS> Autonomous ship is coming. Are you ready?

Some interesting discussion on the thread about pay with guessing $20 hr up to $80 hr & beyond but you have a good point about big part of the labor dispute being about automation. I don’t think ILA higher ups are articulate enough to express their goals about automation to the public & their members without making fools of themselves & losing public support. The Port Operators know the high pay of some longshoremen will piss off the public so they rather harp on that & the corruption of ILA instead of automation too. As for me, I think having everything fully automated, especially something as important as offloading cargo to a nation is a security threat. But so is depending on affiliates of organized crime syndicates to offload 100% of a nations imports. Concerning automation, I hope they come up with a mix. Maybe have 1/4 or 1/3 of the ports fully automated & let the longshoremen do the rest.

Concerning your parting comment about fully automated ships coming & asking if we’re ready. I’ll start worrying about fully automated ships when newish, 5 yr old ships quit hitting bridges due to loose wires, the US government builds an ice breaker & the 15 yr old technical steering problem on the USS John McCain gets fixed.

[ombugge]

@txh2oman

Seems like it was with this in view – apply maximum pressure just before the election.

Is this as much a political ploy as a strike over pay and conditions (+ automation)?:

Presidential election obscures port resolution on US east coast - Splash247

Another question; what has export of oil and gas got to do with ILA?:

Looking beyond containers, Gulf Coast ports, especially Houston and New Orleans, handle 60-70% of the US exports of crude oil, refined petroleum products, and natural gas, according to Project44, an American supply chain platform.

Are those handling hoses and lines at oil facilities ILA members as well?