What’s going on with the port strike?

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A sea of ​​disputes

Thousands of dock workers on the East Coast and Gulf Coast officially walked out on strike Tuesday morning after negotiations between their union and an alliance of employers broke down.

The International Longshoremen’s Association (ILA) represents more than 85,000 workers and has been negotiating since last May with companies, terminal operators and port associations represented by the United States Maritime Alliance (USMX). Without a contract between the groups, up to 45,000 members walked off the job at more than a dozen major ports.

Steers – people who load and unload goods at ports – are in it for the long haul. “We are prepared to fight as long as necessary, to stay out of strike for however long it takes, to get the wages and protection against automation that our ILA members deserve,” said ILA President Harold Daggett.

What’s all at stake? I navigated the choppy waters below.

By the numbers

14: Major ports on the East Coast affected by the strike

45,000: ILA members who walked off the job Tuesday at 12:01 PM ET

3 trillion dollars: International trade handled by affected ports

5 billion dollars: Estimated daily cost to the US economy attributable to the strike

75%: Share of bananas entering the US through affected ports

572: Full-time equivalent jobs eliminated by robots at the Port of Long Beach and the Port of Los Angeles in California in 2020 and 2021

Explain it to me like I’m five years old!

What is the fight about?

ILA says workers demand higher wages which would compensate them for their contributions to the “enrichment of employers and industry” and a wage to address rising inflation that is “eating away” at their current wage levels.

Workers are also pushing for protections against automation and new technological devices in terminals. According to one statement from the USMX, negotiations with the ILA began in the last week of May.

But these talks did not lead to much progress.

The strike is likely to have major consequences for the broader US economy. Almost every industry relies on major East Coast and Gulf Coast ports to deliver shipments of equipment, food and supplies every day. Ports and facilities handling about 51% of the nation’s total port capacity are affected by the layoffs, according to Miter Corporation.

Mapped

Quotable

“I will cripple you and you have no idea what that means. No one does.” —Harold Daggett, ILA President and Chief Negotiator, talking about what the strike would do to the US economy in a video released by the union in September

Brief history

1500s: The term “tankers” is coined when ships arrive in colonial America with the cry, “Men ashore!”

1864: The first Longshoremen’s Union is established in New York Harbor.

1977: Work stoppages are taking effect at East Coast and Gulf ports, the last time dockworkers went on strike of this magnitude before the ongoing action.

2002: President George W. Bush passes the Taft-Hartley Act to open 29 ports along the West Coast after an 11-day shutdown by the Marines.

2024: The ILA initiates a strike along the East and Gulf Coasts, with up to 45,000 workers walking off the job.

Pop quiz

Which US port is the busiest?

A. Port of Los Angeles
B. Port of Savannah
C. Port of New York and New Jersey
D. Port Houston

I have sent the reply directly at the bottom of this email.

soap box

What the leaders say about the strike

Vice President and Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris on Wednesday expressed her support for the tens of thousands of dock workers on strike for better wages and job security.

“This strike is about fairness,” Harris said in a statement. “Liquidators, who play a vital role in moving essential goods across America, deserve a fair share of these record profits.”

Although he stopped short of endorsing the ILA, former President and Republican candidate Donald Trump claimed that the strikes were “only happening” because of inflation.

Besides Harris, the peasants were endorsed by President Joe Biden and Labor Secretary Julie Su, who called on the parties to return to the bargaining table and give workers “the benefits they deserve.” More unions — from the Teamsters to the United Auto Workers to the Association of Flight Attendants — also supported the ILA strike.

Fun fact

In the top three US ports, 75% of shipping containers return to their countries of origin completely empty.

sounding

If I could stop the global economy with one action, it would be by…

• Streaming so much Great British Bake Off that shuts down the entire world wide web
• Generating so many AI images of my pet with DALL-E that it consumes the planet’s energy
• I’m getting so much of a thumb that my plants are starting to block trade routes

Look, it’s all absurd… but dream with us!

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Today’s email was compiled with reporting from Will Gavin, Bruce Gill, Deena Zaidi, Rachel Dalloo, and edited and published by Morgan Haefner (which signs her latest obsession!)

The answer to the pop quiz is A., Port of Los Angeles.