Longshoremen walk a picket line outside the Dundalk Marine Terminal in Baltimore on Oct. 1, 2024, the first day of an International Longshoremen’s Association strike against East Coast and Gulf Coast ports. (Danielle Brown / Maryland Matters)
After 45,000 dockworkers went on strike Tuesday for the first time in decades at 36 U.S. East and Gulf Coast ports, Utah Inland Port Authority officials said it’s too early to tell how the standoff will impact Utah goods.
However, if the strike lasts weeks, it could snarl some of Utah’s supply chains and result in delays, shortages or higher prices of “critical goods such as grocery items, car parts and holiday products,” according to a Utah Inland Port Authority news release issued Tuesday.
“We are monitoring the situation closely to understand any potential impacts on Utah’s supply chains,” Ben Hart, executive director of the Utah Inland Port Authority, said in a prepared statement. “While it’s too early to gauge the full extent of the disruption, we are staying informed and will provide updates as needed.”
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It all depends on how long the strike lasts — and when dockworkers and port operators may eventually reach an agreement over wages and automation.
“The severity of impact economically really is … directly tied to how long this lasts,” Utah Inland Port Authority Executive Director Ben Hart told Utah News Dispatch. “So if this lasts 24 hours, it’s not going to be a huge disruption. But if it goes on weeks or months, it will be a significant disruption.”
About 20% of Utah’s imports come from East and Gulf Coast ports affected by the strike. However, the good news is most of Utah’s imports (80%) come from West Coast ports, which are operational after their dockworkers struck a more generous contract last year, the Associated Press reported.
But Hart said the strike could increase pressure on those West Coast ports, and if it drags on, “there’s only so much strain and stress the West Coast ports can take before it starts to affect us.” Plus, he said there’s already plenty of demand for shipped goods.
In September, “we saw our highest volume month since August 2021” during the height of the pandemic, Hart said. If the strike is long lasting, all types of goods — from housing construction materials, to oil, to everyday essentials — could face delays, shortages or higher prices.
“Everything that touches our lives to a certain degree comes through these ports,” Hart said. “So it’s not just one type of commodity or good. It really is related to just about anything we purchase that is imported into the U.S., which is most things nowadays.”
Hart said it’s not “a time to panic,” but “the longer this drags on, the more it’s probably good to make sure you’ve got a good stockpile of key goods, key staples” that Utahns rely on day to day.
The far-reaching strike came after the International Longshoremen’s Association (ILA) and the U.S. Maritime Alliance (USMX) failed to reach a new six-year contract by the Monday midnight deadline.
The dockworkers’ union appears positioned to have an upper hand in negotiations, the AP reported, given a number of factors: pressure from Hurricane Helene, peak shipping season for holiday goods, rising public support for organized labor, and backing from President Joe Biden’s pro-union administration. If it begins to affect voters across the country, the strike could also become an important factor in the looming presidential election.
The dockworker’s union, ILA, has argued for increased wages (some reports say they’re seeking as much as a 77% raise over the six-year contract), better health care benefits, and a ban on automation that eliminates dockworker jobs. After months of stalemate, the two sides exchanged offers Monday, according to shippers, but no deal was reached and workers walked out after midnight, Maryland Matters reported.
Earlier Monday, the dockworkers’ union blamed the shippers’ alliance for causing the strike by blocking the “path toward a settlement … by refusing ILA’s demands for a fair and decent contract,” Maryland Matters reported.
The shippers’ alliance turned blame back on the union, saying it has refused to negotiate. The alliance filed an unfair labor practices complaint against the union with the National Labor Relations Board on Thursday, the outlet reported.
The Biden administration has continued to ask the shippers’ alliance to negotiate a fair contract for the dockworkers, emphasizing their importance in the nation’s economy.
“As our nation climbs out of the aftermath of Hurricane Helene, dockworkers will play an essential role in getting communities the resources they need,” Biden said in a prepared statement. “Now is not the time for ocean carriers to refuse to negotiate a fair wage for these essential workers while raking in record profits.”
US dockworkers strike over wages and automation in fight that could lead to shortages
However, Biden said Sunday that he did not plan to intervene, saying it’s an agreement that needs to be hashed out between the union and the shippers’ alliance.
Hart said the Utah Inland Port Authority is not taking an official position regarding the strike, but he said they’re hopeful for a resolution sooner rather than later.
“We just want to see both sides feel like they’re treated fairly and amicably and there’s a solution that’s reached,” Hart said, noting that the disagreement stabs at the heart of “core issues” that are crucial for the nation’s future technology and how it impacts the economy and jobs.
Hart added, however, that “workers rights are important,” and “when you’ve got the power of 45,000 workers, they can almost literally bring an entire national industry to its knees overnight.”
“That’s a pretty significant leverage position,” Hart said, “so we hope it comes to a close quickly.”
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