On Monday, November 3rd, the Pacific Maritime Association (PMA) released a statement accusing the International Longshore & Warehouse Union (ILWU) of “orchestrating slowdowns at the Pacific Northwest ports of Seattle and Tacoma”.
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The International Longshore & Warehouse Union (ILWU) has initiated orchestrated slowdowns at the Pacific Northwest ports of Seattle and Tacoma, severely impacting many of the largest terminals during the peak holiday shipping season. The two ports handle an estimated 16% of containerized cargo on the West Coast.
The work actions come as the ILWU and its employer group counterpart, the Pacific Maritime Association (PMA), are in the sixth month of negotiations for a new contract covering nearly 13,600 workers at 29 ports along the West Coast, from California to Washington. Initially, the PMA and ILWU set a goal of reaching a new agreement in July.
Institute for Supply Management
Economic activity in the manufacturing sector expanded in October for the 17th consecutive month, and the overall economy grew for the 65th consecutive month, say the nation’s supply executives in the latest Manufacturing ISM® Report On Business®.
Nine containerships were among the 13 vessels waiting at anchor outside the adjacent ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach on Monday because of congestion in the harbour.
The highest number recorded by the Marine Exchange of Southern California since it started compiling congestion figures on October 16 was 14. That was on Sunday and included 11 containerships, with the number down by two yesterday.
“The LEI picked up in September, after no change in August, and the strengths among its components have been very widespread over the past six months,” said Ataman Ozyildirim, Economist at The Conference Board. “The outlook for improving employment and further income growth are expected to support the moderate expansion in the U.S economy for the remainder of the year.” – Conference Board
Shipping containers are being delayed for up to three weeks, threatening timely holiday goods delivery to retailers, due to a dearth of transportation equipment and possible labor slowdowns at the the Ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach.
The delays are affecting retailers including JC Penney Co, Macy’s, Kohl’s, Nordstrom, American Eagle, Ralph Lauren and Carter’s, according to three people with inside knowledge of the situation. Retail giant Wal-Mart recently diverted 300 TEUs to Oakland to avoid the bottlenecks, one source said. Wal-Mart declined to comment.
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The congestion at Los Angeles and Long Beach ports has been going on for at least two months, but no one expected it to last this long, and no one anticipates an immediate fix – gridlocked docks possibly threatens holiday season. By Deborah Belgum
For nearly two weeks now, Ram Kundani has been waiting to receive seven cargo containers filled with tops, sweaters and dresses shipped from Bangladesh, China and Indonesia to the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach. But some 10 days after their arrival, the containers on Oct. 21 were still stacked on container vessels as gridlocked docks made it difficult to unload the big metal boxes.