Thousands of truck drivers went on strike over salary and haulage rates in the eastern Chinese port of Ningbo this week, and a logistics firm said on Friday the industrial action was disrupting operations at the world’s sixth busiest port.
News / Supply Chain Alerts
Per Bloomberg News, airlines are on alert as one of Iceland’s biggest volcanoes rumbles to life, threatening ash clouds that could force flight cancellations across the North Atlantic, the busiest international travel market.
As the International Longshore and Warehouse Union and the Pacific Maritime Association continue their contract talks, reports that the Teamsters have taken down their pickets in the LA/LB harbor is a positive sign.
The International Longshore and Warehouse Union (ILWU) and the Pacific Maritime Association (PMA) today issued the following statement:
The Coalition of New England Companies for Trade (CONECT) issued an advisory Thursday evening regarding a possible West Coast Trade Disruption.
Please note we are currently seeing congestion and delays at the Los Angeles and Long Beach ports. The port congestion, coupled with equipment shortages, is resulting in delays of 7 to 10 days or more for containers destined to move inland on rail.
In follow up to MIQ’s Trade Alert of May 27, 2014; the PMA / ILWU the current labor contract is set to expire on July 1, 2014. No one expects a renewed contract agreement prior to July 1. It is important to note that from the beginning of the contract talks on May 12, 2014, BOTH sides have said that they are committed to reaching an agreement without any labor disruption. So unified have they been on this message, when there was a rumor that the talks had broken down on June 4, 2014 a joint press release was immediately issued reaffirming their mutual commitment to working through an agreement without any labor disruptions.
Please note the following MIQ Logistics holidays. All MIQ Logistics offices within the specified country will be closed on the dates listed, unless noted otherwise.
On May 12, the PMA (the negotiating body for the west coast marine terminal operators) and the ILWU (the west coast longshore union) began 2014 contract negotiations in San Francisco. Each side has laid out their starting demands most of which will either be settled quickly or completely dismissed depending on merit by both parties. The ILWU indicated that they want a two year contract while the PMA prefers a six year contract but have indicated they could concede to a minimum contract term of no less than three years.