The dockworkers union along the East and Gulf Coasts is
threatening to strike on October 1, should there be no agreement
with transportation providers by the end of September.
Such a work stoppage will adversely affect U.S. export and
import shipments of most products – and likely result in
collateral effects at West Coast ports, too – all a month
before the presidential election.
The coast-wide master contract between the International
Longshoremen's Association (ILA) and the United States Maritime
Alliance (USMX) is set to expire at midnight on September
30. The two parties have been negotiating since March
but have not been able to reach an agreement for a new
contract. In late August, negotiations collapsed and the ILA
threatened to strike, but last week Federal mediators announced
that the parties will return to the table on September
17th. The parties remain far apart and the prospect of a work
slowdown or stoppage – whether by strike or lockout
– is both
