Ports impacted by International Longshoremen’s Association strike manage between 35 and 49 percent of all U.S. imports and exports.
Thousands of union dock and maritime workers are officially on strike—a work stoppage that could significantly disrupt the U.S. economy.
The International Longshoremen’s Association (ILA), the largest North American union representing 85,000 maritime employees, rejected a counteroffer from the U.S. Maritime Alliance (USMX).
According to USMX officials, the organization representing East and Gulf Coast longshore industry employers, proposed several wage-related offers.
“Our offer would increase wages by nearly 50 percent, triple employer contributions to employee retirement plans, strengthen our health care options, and retain the current language around automation and semi-automation,” the USMX said in a statement hours before the midnight deadline.
The port ownership group noted that it was hopeful that the counteroffers would resume collective bargaining on other outstanding issues to reach an agreement.
Though the submitted proposal matched some of the ILA leadership’s demands, the union rejected the offer.
In a Sept. 30 statement to the press, the union claimed that USMX “continues to block the path toward a settlement on a new Master Contract by refusing ILA’s demands for a fair and decent contract and seems intent on causing a strike