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May 28, 2015
A new five-year agreement authorized on May 22 will help get port traffic moving again at a normal rate.
The members of the International Longshore and Warehouse Union (ILWU) voted 82 percent in favor of ratifying the agreement reached earlier this year with the Pacific Maritime Administration (PMA) after a lengthy and disruptive negotiation.
The new contract will run through July 1, 2019. The agreement, which covers 29 West Coast ports, was already approved by the PMA member companies and the vote by the ILWU members was the last step in the process.
The American Soybean Association (ASA) and many other industry organizations impacted by the slowdown that occurred at the ports during the negotiation, are relieved the new agreement was ratified and hope that the ILWU and the PMA will work to ensure that there are no further disruption of port operations.
