Potential Port Strike Looms as Dockworkers' Contract Expires, Threatening Holiday Season Shipping

A potential port strike looms as the contract between dockworkers and their employers along the East Coast expires on September 30, threatening to disrupt shipping and jobs ahead of the holiday season. Members of the International Longshoremen's Association (ILA) from Maine to Texas are preparing to strike if they fail to reach an agreement with the U.S. Maritime Alliance, which represents employers such as shipping lines and marine terminal operators.

In Baltimore, which is still recovering from the Francis Scott Key Bridge collapse, three ILA union locals represent about 2,400 workers, most of whom load and unload ships. A national retail trade group has warned that a strike would be the latest blow to the U.S. supply chain and hurt the economy just as inflation is easing.

"This is a critical time as retailers prepare for the all-important holiday season, and we need every port in the country working at full capacity," said Jonathan Gold, vice president for supply chain and customs policy at the National Retail Federation.

A strike would hurt Baltimore's port recovery, said Jonathan Daniels, executive director of the Maryland Port Administration. Officials are closely monitoring the situation and encouraging labor and management to work toward an agreement.

The ILA has indicated that Baltimore's cruise business and military-related shipments would be excluded from any potential work stoppage. Area outside the marine terminals would be made available for striking workers to demonstrate.

ILA represented workers say they are fighting for increased wages and improved health benefits and objecting to increasing automation at marine terminals. In a video posted last week, ILA President Harold Daggett said shippers have made "billions" of dollars in the last few years, especially during the coronavirus pandemic.

"My men went to the docks every day, up and down the coast, to keep those ships going," Daggett said. “Mark my words, we'll shut them down October 1st if we don't get the kind of wages we deserve.”

A strike could affect the availability of autos once inventory dwindles and impact the holiday season at a time of year when holiday-related items account for a big chunk of consumer goods shipped to ports. Consumers are likely to feel the pinch of shut down marine terminals pretty quickly in the event of a large-scale strike.