Dockworkers at ports from Maine to Texas began walking picket lines early Tuesday in a strike over wages and automation that could reignite inflation and cause shortages of goods if it goes on more than a few weeks.
The union strike, including at PortMiami and Port Everglades, began after negotiations on a new six-year contract stalled.
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But what do the longshoremen want, and how could the strike impact South Florida? We break it down.
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Who’s on strike?
The International Longshoremen’s Association (ILA), North America’s largest union representing workers who load and unload ships at a port, is on strike. They have about 85,000 members across the Atlantic and Gulf Coasts, Great Lakes, major U.S. rivers, Puerto Rico and Eastern Canada, and the Bahamas, according to their website.
About 45,000 workers across at least 14 ports are on strike currently.
Why are the dockworkers on strike?
The longshoremen are striking for an increase in wages and a promise to protect their jobs from automation. Negotiations with the United States Maritime Alliance, which represents the ports, have stalled.
In a statement early Tuesday, the union said it rejected the alliance’s latest proposal because it “fell far short of what ILA rank-and-file members are demanding in wages and protections against automation.”
The two sides had not held formal negotiations since June.
Wages
Leading to the strike, the union’s opening offer in the talks was for a 77% pay raise over the six-year life of the contract, with President Harold Daggett saying it’s necessary to make up for inflation and years of small raises.
ILA members make a base salary of about $81,000 per year, but some can pull in over $200,000 annually with large amounts of overtime.
Monday evening, the alliance said it had increased its offer to 50% raises over six years.
The alliance also said its offer tripled employer contributions to retirement plans and strengthened health care options.
Automation
The alliance pledged to keep limits on automation in place from the old contract. The union wants a complete ban on automation.
It wasn’t clear just how far apart both sides are.
Impacts to South Florida
PortMiami is responsible for moving a large amount of fresh produce, seafood and distilled spirits.
All of these categories will see price increases if a deal isn’t reached between the ILA and U.S. Maritime Alliance soon.
“When we think about the consumer, the first thing that will be impacted is our fresh produce and fresh seafood," Danny Munch, of the American Farm Bureau Federation said. "About $17-billion worth of fresh seafood comes through these ports... on the East and Gulf Coast ports. That’s about 80 percent of our seafood exports."
The strike will likely also have an almost immediate impact on supplies of perishable imports like bananas, for example. The ports affected by the strike handle 3.8 million metric tons of bananas each year, or 75% of the nation’s supply, according to the American Farm Bureau Federation.
It also could snarl exports from East Coast ports and create traffic jams at ports on the West Coast, where workers are represented by a different union. Railroads say they can ramp up to carry more freight from the West Coast, but analysts say they can’t move enough to make up for the closed Eastern ports.
J.P. Morgan estimated that a strike that shuts down East and Gulf coast ports could cost the economy $3.8 billion to $4.5 billion per day, with some of that recovered over time after normal operations resume.
For every day the strike is on, it takes three to five days to recover. And it only compounds from there.
"If you have a weeklong strike, that could take four to six weeks for recovery," Jonathan Gold, of the National Retail Federation, said. "If you go two weeks, you’re looking at several months before full recovery happens.”
When will consumers feel the effects?
Supply chain experts say consumers won’t see an immediate impact from the strike because most retailers stocked up on goods, moving ahead shipments of holiday gift items.
But if it goes more than a few weeks, a work stoppage could lead to higher prices and delays in goods reaching households and businesses.
If drawn out, the strike will force businesses to pay shippers for delays and cause some goods to arrive late for peak holiday shopping season — potentially impacting delivery of anything from toys and artificial Christmas trees to cars, coffee and fruit.
