U.S. port strike fears stoked as ILWU pledges solidarity with ILA

LWU presiden Willie Adams (L) with ILA president Harold Dagget. [Photo: ILA]

Raising the specter that a threatened Maine to Texas U.S. port strike could ratchet into something even further reaching, Willie Adams, U.S. West Coast dockworkers’ union president on Friday wrote International Longshoremen’s Association (ILA) president Harold J. Daggett reaffirming his union’s support for the ILA in its negotiations with United States Maritime Alliance (USMX).

“As you continue negotiating and move close to the expiration of your contract, the ILWU stands in solidarity with the ILA for a fair contract that respects dockworkers and protects our jurisdiction,” ILWU International Adams wrote. “From coast to coast, the ILWU and the ILA remain militant and resolute in our fight against automation. We will not settle for a substandard deal that does not adequately address our concerns about the future of our workplace and the safety of our members.”

In response, Daggett said, “Knowing we have this support from the ILWU arms us with a powerful weapon to fight the intentions of so many greedy shippers, who put profits over people, and fail to recognize the contributions your members and mine have made to this industry.”

The ILWU finally signed a six year contract with the West Coast employers in September of last year after another long drawn out U.S. port strike negotiations nail biter was finally resolved after the intervention of Acting Secretary of Labor Juli Su.

Meantime, USMX has said nothing further on the status of the Atlantic and Gulf Coast negotiations since an August 9 statement.