Biden’s administration sided with the union, putting pressure on the employers in the port to raise their proposal. | Photo: shutterstock
US President Joe Biden said on Thursday that he believes there is progress on the dock workers’ contract issue, as ship workers enter their third day of strike on the East Coast and Gulf Coast.
The strike, the largest in nearly a century, blocked the unloading of container ships from Maine to Texas, threatened shortages of everything from bananas to auto parts, and caused a backlog of ships docked outside major ports.
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There are no scheduled talks between the International Longshoremen’s Association and the employers, but the port owners, under pressure from the White House to increase their bid for an agreement, indicated Wednesday that they are open to new talks.
“I think we’re making progress,” Biden told reporters Thursday, without giving details. “We’ll find out soon enough.” At least 45 container ships unable to unload were docked outside East Coast and Gulf Coast ports hit by the strike Wednesday, up from three before the strike began Sunday, according to Everstream Analytics.
“Many seem to have decided to wait it out, perhaps hoping for a quick resolution to the strike, rather than deciding to divert,” Everstream’s Jena Santoro said in a video presentation seen by Reuters.
He said the ferry backlog could double by the end of the week if the suspension continues, and that the resulting congestion could take weeks, if not months, to clear.
The ILA launched a strike by 45,000 dock workers from Maine to Texas, the first major work stoppage since 1977, on Tuesday after talks broke down over a new six-year contract with the United States Maritime Alliance (USMX) employer group.
The ILA wants a bigger wage increase and commitments to stop port automation projects it fears will kill jobs. USMX had offered a 50 percent wage increase, but the ILA said that was not enough to address its concerns.
“Achieving an agreement will require negotiation,” USMX said late Wednesday.
“We cannot agree on terms to return to negotiations, but we are committed to negotiating in good faith to address the needs of the ILA and the concerns of the USMX,” it said.
The Biden administration has sided with the union, putting pressure on the port’s employers to lift their promise to secure a deal and citing huge gains in the transportation industry since the Covid-19 pandemic.
But it has repeatedly resisted calls from trade groups and Republican lawmakers to use union power to stop the strike — a move that would undermine Democratic support among unions ahead of the Nov. 5 presidential election.
“The president needs to take aggressive action here,” Republican Senator Shelley Moore Capito told CNBC.
The National Retail Federation on Wednesday, along with 272 other trade unions, also called on the Biden administration to use its authority to end the strike, saying a walkout would have “serious consequences.” The strike affects 36 ports – including New York, Baltimore and Houston – that handle the bulk of containerized cargo.
Economists say the closure of the ports will not initially increase consumer prices as companies have accelerated shipments of essential goods in recent months. However, the long-term suspension will eventually be excessive, and food prices may react first, according to economists at Morgan Stanley.
(Only the headline and image for this report may have been reused by Business Standard staff; all content is automatically generated from the commercial feed.)
First published: October 03 2024 | 10:34 PM IST