West coast waterfront labor talks advance

NITL (The National Industrial Transportation League) -- Logistics Management, 4/9/2008

The International Longshore and Warehouse Union (ILWU) and the Pacific Maritime Association (PMA) issued a statement April 3 stating that talks are progressing in their effort to achieve a new labor pact before the current agreement expires.

The ILWU and PMA said: “Over the past three weeks, the Pacific Maritime Association and the International Longshore Warehouse Union have exchanged documents, asked clarifying questions about them and continued formal discussions aimed at reaching a fair and reasonable agreement before the current six-year contract expires on July 1, 2008."

The current waterfront contract covers 25,000 ILWU-represented longshore workers at 29 west coast ports in California, Oregon and Washington. The PMA represents cargo carriers, terminal operators and stevedores operating on the west coast.