As the International Longshore and Warehouse Union (ILWU) and the Pacific Maritime Association continued negotiations toward a new coastwide contract yesterday, a handful of “informational protests” were staged at the Ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach by independent truckers.
Terminal operations and normal cargo activity were minimally disturbed said spokesmen for both ports.
Teamsters Local 848, threatened to stage an aggressive campaign against Southern California’s leading short-haul trucking companies, and many shippers feared that ILWU workers would not cross picket lines out of labor “solidarity.”
Lee Peterson of the Port of Long Beach told LM that dockworkers were taking a long holiday in any case since they were unable to celebrate “Bloody Thursday” last week due to Independence Day time off.
Phillip Sanfield of the Port of Los Angeles shared a similar observation, noting that tomorrow will be a better indicator of planned disruptions in service.
Drivers from three local drayage firms may continue to call an “unfair labor practice strike” at truck yards and marine terminals at ports this week, but it’s too early to judge what impact they will have on daily dockside activity.