The International Longshoremen’s Association, which went out on strike on Tuesday, and the operators of ports on the East Coast and Gulf Coast agreed to a temporary settlement until January 15, 2024. Port employers offered 62% over six years, according to the Wall Street Journal.
The union had wanted a 77% increase and the port operators had offered 50%. But other issues have to be negotiated and this includes the use of automation on heavy machinery on the docks.
“This is not just about money; this is about future automation replacing a large majority of jobs within the ports and that reality is valid, it will eventually happen,” Tracey Ortiz, director of product management at SPS Commerce, told GlobeSt.com. Right now, there isn’t enough automation to keep the ports running “even for a day or two,” according to Ortiz.
The strike shut down 36 ports that handle about half of the cargo volume that travels by ship in and out of the U.S. Union members wanted more money and also an end to heavy equipment automation that they saw as a threat to their jobs. The White House pushed shipping lines and terminal operators to make a new offer to the union.
The three days of striking could require three weeks to catch up, according to Everstream Analytics data. A longer strike would have affected many retailers who wanted to get products in for the holiday season.
There were also potential impacts on commercial real estate. Lynn McKee, commercial real estate director at Georgia State University’s Robinson College of Business, told GlobeSt.com at the start of the strike that it could hurt CRE. Impacts from stopped shipments would have left logistics operations at risk of significant disruption because they use just-in-time scheduling that leaves little to no slack that can act as a buffer.
According to the Journal, many dockworkers currently make six-figure salaries. Others make far less because actual pay is an issue of skill level, seniority, and the amount of work at a given port. A longshoreman from Suffolk, Virginia told the Journal that he struggled to make $70,000 a year although he must be available to work seven days a week if asked.
