ASSOCIATED PRESS
Denise Violante, right, and Nick Gonzalez, along with other members of ILWU, picketed yesterday outside the Port of Los Angeles' TraPac terminal. Shippers locked out dockworkers after a frail labor truce collapsed Sunday.
Federal mediator SAN FRANCISCO >> West Coast ports remained locked down today as a labor dispute dragged on, leaving cargo ships brimming with car parts, produce and other goods anchored offshore and trucks lined up outside the gates.
to join dockworker
talks today
Shippers and the ILWU harden their
Auto dealers expect hot sales to fizzle
positions as more cargo piles up
By Justin Pritchard
Associated PressA bargaining session between dock workers and shipping lines yesterday evening showed no major progress, and a federal mediator planned to join the talks today in hopes of resolving the dispute, which could cost the U.S. economy more than $1 billion a day.
President Bush expressed concern today about the shutdown's economic consequences, but gave no hint as to whether he would declare a national emergency and order the docks reopened.
"There's a federal mediator on the ground, I urge both parties to utilize the mediator. But we'll continue to pay attention to it," Bush said. "It's a problem -- something that we're just going to have to get these parties to work through and get back to work, open these ports up. It's important to our economy to do so."
Shipping lines vowed to keep all 29 major West Coast ports closed until the longshoremen agree to extend their expired contract as the talks continue. The 10,500-member dockworkers union has refused to budge until the lockout ends.
The two sides are at odds over pensions and other benefits, as well as the union's demand to control any new jobs that would come with the introduction of modern cargo-handling technology.
As ships backed up, the ripple effects are already evident. Delays are spreading through the trade supply chain, postponing shipping schedules and hurting exporters.
Avocados from Central America sat in containers in the Port of Tacoma, televisions from Korea remained boxed up in Southern California and car parts destined for a General Motors/Toyota plant in Fremont, Calif. sat unloaded in the water off Oakland.
Hawaii and Alaska consumers could feel the pinch first.
"As long as the delays are relatively small and short-lived, the economic impact is relatively small," but problems would compound if the lockout extends beyond four or five days, said Bob Magee, president of Totem Ocean Trailer Express.
Importers bringing in merchandise for the Christmas shopping season are nervous.
Sunny Ho-Lap-kee, executive director of the Hong Kong Shippers Council, told the South China Morning Post that the damage "could be catastrophic if it goes on long enough."
Hong Kong ships 4,300 containers each day to the U.S. West Coast.
"We are hopeful of a quick resolution, but the docks at Kwai Chung are already packed with the peak-season rush. Nobody knows what the U.S. buyers want us to do right now. We are waiting for the U.S. to decide."
Taiwan's largest shipping company, Evergreen Marine Corp., had two of its six weekly shipments stranded off Los Angeles, said Elysia Chen, a company spokesman.
"The biggest concern now is for consignees because the goods haven't been taken off the ships," Chen said. But "this will hurt many parties."
Economists said a protracted work stoppage will disrupt the U.S. economy.
A five-day shutdown would wipe out $4.7 billion in wages and revenue, according to the Pacific Maritime Association, which represents shipping lines and sea terminal operators. If it lasts 10 days, the costs could snowball to $19.4 billion, said economist John Martin, who studied the potential impact for the PMA.
West Coast ports handled more than $300 billion in cargo over the past year.
Dozens of ships are waiting to be unloaded outside ports along the West Coast, including 46 in Southern California.
For other workers who depend on shipping for their livelihoods, time and money is running out. Trucker Salvador Nunez drove to the Port of Los Angeles from a small town near the Mexican border with a load of alfalfa sprouts and hay -- but was turned away. Nunez was out $125 in transportation costs and could not collect his usual $400 for the job.
PMA President Joseph Miniace accused the union of disrupting work by understaffing operations and dispatching workers not skilled for specific jobs. The union said it was strictly following safety codes because employers were bargaining in bad faith.
"The ILWU will not be intimidated," said Jim Spinosa, the union's president and chief negotiator. "We will not extend the contract."
"It's extremely serious," said Robin Lanier, executive director of the West Coast Waterfront Coalition, a group representing retailers and shippers.
Retailers anticipating the labor unrest ordered extra inventory, but that means higher storage costs that will reduce profits. Stores may run out of the most popular products, losing sales.
"The longer this goes," Lanier said, "the more likely you're not going to have important merchandise on your shelves for the sales period."
Pacific Maritime Association
International Longshore and Warehouse Union
