(Adds comments from the ports)
By Laila Kearney
April 7 (Reuters) – A shortage of West Coast port
workers has forced the busiest U.S. ocean trade gateway to shut
on Friday, after months of strained labor negotiations between
the dock workers union and their employers.
Workers at the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach on
Thursday began withholding labor, which was needed to load and
unload cargo, as part of a coordinated action by the
International Longshore and Warehouse Union (ILWU), according to
the Pacific Maritime Association (PMA), which represents
employers.
“The action by the union has effectively shut down the ports
of Los Angeles and Long Beach,” the PMA said in a statement.
Operators at the Port of Long Beach decided to temporarily
close four of the seaport’s six terminals when workers failed to
show up on Friday morning, port spokesman Lee Peterson said,
adding that regular operations at the seaport were expected to
resume on Saturday.
Port of Los Angeles officials were communicating with
the ILWU and PMA, along with federal, state and local officials,
to “support a return to normal operations,” said the group,
which is managed by a unit of the City of Los Angeles.
A representative of the ILWU Local 13, which represents
workers at both the Los Angeles and Long Beach ports, declined
to comment.
Union workers at the ports have been on the job without an
employment contract since the previous agreement expired on July
1, 2022, and the labor dispute has forced major retailers to
shift cargo to East and Gulf Coast ports to avoid disruptions.
The ILWU and PMA have recently said they reached a tentative
agreement on key negotiation sticking points and were committed
to resolving the contract matter expeditiously as the
administration of President Joe Biden continued to meet with the
groups to help facilitate a deal.
(Reporting by Laila Kearney in New York; editing by Diane
Craft)
((Laila.kearney@thomsonreuters.com; (917) 809-0054))
Keywords: USA PORTS/ (UPDATE 1, PIX)
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