Back
Aug 18, 2016
Delegates of the International Longshore and Warehouse Union (ILWU) working at West Coast ports voted last week to enter into discussions with representatives of the Pacific Maritime Administration (PMA) regarding a contract extension.
The American Soybean Association was one of 128 organizations that signed a letter to the ILWU and PMA urging them to begin early negotiations on a new labor contract in hopes of avoiding trade disruptions that occurred during previous negotiations. The existing contract expires on July 1, 2019.
The 2015 dispute during negotiations threatened supply chain continuity for countless U.S. agricultural commodities, causing extreme congestion, delays and uncertainty, in addition to costing the agriculture industry millions of dollars for every week that the negotiations lasted.
The ILWU and PMA normally begin contract negotiations just a couple of months before the existing contract expires. The ILWU’s West Coast Longshore Division represents approximately 20,000 longshore workers at ports from southern California to Washington State.
