Thousands of U.S. East and Gulf Coast Port Workers Officially On Strike

Early this morning, the International Longshoremen Association (ILA) dockworkers officially went on strike and began walking picket lines at U.S. East and Gulf ports. Today’s developments follow months of stalled negotiations between nearly 45,000 ILA members and the United States Maritime Alliance (USMX) over the now-expired master contract, marking the first time ILA workers have been on strike since the 1970s. As we previously reported, the union refused an extension of the contract or any potential mediation by the federal government, with reports indicating that they are steadfast in seeking up to an 80% increase in wages. 
 
Though some importers have been rerouting shipments for the last two weeks, a significant cargo volume is still at stake across 36 affected U.S. ports. A prolonged strike is predicted to disrupt supply chains severely and lead to economic damage on both a national and global scale. White House officials maintain that they are working “around the clock” to help negotiations progress and are in direct contact with USMX and ILA. The administration indicated they were also closely monitoring potential supply chain impacts and enlisting support from task forces. However, at this time, President Biden has yet to take action to enact the Taft-Hartley Act, which would pause the work stoppage for 80 days.
 
ASTA and nearly 200 other trade organizations have signed another follow-up letter from the National Retail Federation (NRF) urging the White House to step in and prevent critical damage to supply chains, a continuation of earlier calls for action from NRF, ASTA, and other industry advocates.