FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contacts: Wade Gates, PMA,
(415) 591-4080, pmanews@bm.com
Craig Merrilees, ILWU, (415)
775-0533, ext. 113 (o), (510) 774-5325 (c)
PMA & ILWU Begin Talks
on New West Coast Waterfront Labor Pact
SAN FRANCISCO (May 12, 2014) --
Negotiations for a new labor contract covering nearly 20,000 dockworkers at 29
West Coast ports began this afternoon in San Francisco.
The current contract expires at
midnight on June 30, 2014.
The contract is between employers
who operate port terminals and shipping lines represented by the Pacific
Maritime Association (PMA) and dockworkers represented by the International
Longshore and Warehouse Union (ILWU). The parties have negotiated a West Coast
collective bargaining agreement since the 1930s.
“Dockworkers are looking
forward to negotiating a fair agreement that protects the good jobs and
benefits that support thousands of families and dozens of communities around
west coast ports,” said ILWU International President Bob McEllrath.
PMA President Jim McKenna said:
“West Coast ports have lost significant market share in recent years, and face
renewed competition from Canada, Mexico, the Panama Canal and other domestic ports for cargo that has powered job and economic growth in local port
communities and beyond. With these stakes in mind, PMA and its members are
focused on delivering a contract that ensures the West Coast’s standing as the
gateway of choice for goods sent to and from Asia.’’
Talks are scheduled to continue
on a daily basis in San Francisco until an agreement is reached. The site of
negotiations will alternate on a weekly basis, between the ILWU and PMA
offices, both of which are headquartered in San Francisco. Both sides say they
expect cargo to keep moving until an agreement is reached.
