ILA suspends main contract negotiations over alleged use of automation at Mobile

Negotiations between the International Longshoremen's Association (ILA) and the United States Maritime Alliance (USMX) came to an abrupt halt following ILA concerns about the use of automated technology at some US ports of entry.

The ILA announced the suspension of negotiations today, citing the discovery of an automatic gate system at APM Terminals' Port of Mobile, Alabama, and suggesting it could be used elsewhere.

A union spokesperson said: “Here we go again! This is another example of USMX members unilaterally circumventing our Coast-wide master contract. This is a blatant violation of our agreement with the USMX, and we will no longer tolerate it.

The automatic gates allow the autonomous processing of trucks without requiring labor, which, if true, would constitute a violation of this framework contract which runs until September 30.

This contract sets six-year cycles for approximately 45,000 dockworkers along the U.S. East Coast and in Gulf ports. ILA President Harold Daggett warned that union members would not work under the current contract beyond its expiration date, signaling a strike as early as October.

“There is no point in trying to negotiate a new agreement with the USMX while one of its major companies continues to violate our current agreement,” Mr. Daggett said today.

“(Its) sole objective is to eliminate ILA jobs through automation. Who the hell is a foreign company like Maersk to come to American soil and build fully automated terminals? Maersk is trying to force fully automated terminals on us…to eliminate good-paying American jobs,” he told ILA members at last year’s annual convention.

This latest setback is a continuation of contract negotiations, which began more than a year ago and stagnated for months before resuming in mid-May.

As the clock ticks until the current contract expires, the threat of a work stoppage draws closer and, should this possible future become a reality, the impact would be immediate, with some U.S. retailers expected to consider contingencies .

Paul Brashier, vice president of drayage and intermodal at ITS Logistics, said The Loadstar that “contingency plans should be put in place during the current ocean contracting season.”

The ILA has not been shy about challenging the parties to the master contract for possible violations, having sued Hapag-Lloyd and OOCL for $300 million over a disputed hybrid work model at Charleston's Leatherman Terminal.

The Loadstar contacted the USMX for comment on the ILA's decision to suspend negotiations, but the maritime alliance had not yet responded when this story was published.