There was glad handing all around late last week, as the International Longshoremen’s Association (ILA) union and the US Maritime Alliance (USMX), which represents East and Gulf Coast port operators, reached an agreement Thursday to end a two-day strike.
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| Shippers and importers have dodged a bullet for three months, but it could be a showdown at the automation coral as we approach January 15.. |
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The ILA announced Thursday night that the USMX had agreed to major wage hike for port workers and that union members would return to work immediately.
The ILA said that the raise for dockworkers would total 62% over the life of the six-year contract.
To facilitate the return of the stevedores to the docks, the two sides agreed to extend the current master contract until January 15, 2025. In parallel, the two sides will return to the bargaining table to negotiate all other outstanding issues, the union said in a statement.
And therein lies the rub, as one of these outstanding issues involves the use of port automation, which ILA leaders have vowed to fight, while port interests say automation is essential to their global competitiveness.
What does port automation really mean? An example would be replacing manually operated diesel cranes with electric, remotely controlled systems.
The Hill website reported this week that the ILA’s current contract includes a provision requiring the union’s permission for ports to add any automation, but the union is seeking “airtight language that there will be no automation or semi-automation,” ILA President Harold Daggett said last week.
That doesn’t sound like there is a lot of room for compromise.
“The ILA is steadfastly against any form of automation — full or semi — that replaces jobs or historical work functions. We will not accept the loss of work and livelihood for our members due to automation,” the union added in a statement last Wednesday.
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“What they mean is they don’t want any technological advances that would make loading and unloading ships faster, safer and more efficient—e.g., smarter cranes, gates, and container-moving trucks that require fewer workers to operate,” opined the Wall Street Journal, which added that “In other words, they want higher pay with no productivity gains, which is unsustainable in a competitive global economy.”
 In support of its view, the Journal cites the World Bank global Container Port Performance Index 2023, which ranks ports by the amount of time a ship spends in port. Not a single American port cracked the top 50, the Journal notes, with top-ranked Charleston, SC, coming in at 53. Yangshan in China is No. 1, and China is investing in ports throughout Latin America.
The Hill also reported that as of last March, all 10 of the US’s largest container ports use some automation technologies to process and handle some cargo, according to a report from the Government Accountability Office. But in general the US is behind in port automation versus large ports globally.
Shippers and importers have dodged a bullet for three months, but it could be a showdown at the automation coral as we approach January 15.
What are your thoughts on port automation? Let us know your thoughts at the Feedback section below.
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