The loading and unloading of cargo freighters has been suspended in any respect 29 U.S. West Coast ports this weekend due to chronic slowdowns on the docks that shippers and terminal operators have blamed on the dockworkers’ union, the businesses said Friday.
Bob Riha, Jr. | Reuters
WASHINGTON — President Joe Biden celebrated the recent West Coast dockworker contract in a ceremony on the White House on Wednesday.
“I would like to thank either side for working through this and getting it done,” Biden said. “It’s a very good deal for employees, it’s a very good deal for firms and it’s a very good deal for the USA of America.”
Leaders from each the International Longshore and Warehouse Union, which represents the employees, and the Pacific Maritime Association, which operates the port terminals, joined Biden on the White House.
Last week, the ILWU and the PMA ratified a contract after greater than a yr of negotiations that prompted the Biden administration to get entangled. The contract is about to last for six years and was approved by 75% of union members who voted. It included increased pay and advantages for 22,000 employees across 29 ports on the West Coast.
“The contract finalized last week represented a major example of Bidenomics at work, reflecting employees empowered and bargaining together for the wages, advantages, and quality of life they deserve, and company owners recognizing those unions’ right to arrange,” a White House official said in an announcement.
Chronic employee slowdowns plagued the ports as negotiations lagged on, in some cases diverting shipments and resulting in temporary port closures.
The White House’s embrace of the dockworkers’ contract comes as one other major union fights over its deal. The United Auto Staff may strike when their contract expires on Sept. 14 if a deal cannot be reached. The UAW, which represents 146,000 employees, is asking for a 46% increase in pay, a 32-hour workweek with 40 hours of pay and the return to a conventional pension system.
“The president, vp are very strong supporters of the collective bargaining process,” National Economic Council Director Lael Brainard told MSNBC on Sunday. “They need to see the collective bargaining process work its way through and you already know, we’re celebrating two successful collective bargaining agreements that were each ratified with overwhelming majority, each UPS Teamsters and likewise ILWU and the West Coast ports.”
Biden ceaselessly touts his labor chops and his administration has helped mediate several union disputes, including averting the rail employees strike last yr.
“When the last guy was here, he checked out the world from Park Avenue,” Biden said Monday at a Labor Day event in Philadelphia. “I have a look at it from Scranton, Pa. I have a look at it from Claymont, Del.”
