FINAL UPDATE 10/4/2024 – The ongoing contract negotiations between the International Longshoremen’s Association (ILA) and the United States Maritime Alliance (USMX) have led to a potential work stoppage beginning October 1, 2024. Here’s an overview of the current situation and the actions ports are taking to mitigate disruptions.

Key Updates

ILA Calls for Potential Strike:

• On September 5, 2024, nearly 300 ILA Wage Scale Delegates unanimously supported a call for a coastwide strike at ports from Maine to Texas if no agreement is reached by September 30, 2024.
• ILA President Harold J. Daggett announced the mobilization of strike preparations, while the USMX has expressed a commitment to resolving the situation through negotiations.
• Negotiation Issues include job less due to automation, wages and benefits, and union work protections

Current Negotiation Status

• October 3rd: The International Longshoremen’s Association and the United States Maritime Alliance, Ltd. have reached a tentative agreement on wages and have agreed to extend the Master Contract until January 15, 2025 to return to the bargaining table to negotiate all other outstanding issues. Effective immediately, all current job actions will cease and all work covered by the Master Contract will resume
• October 2nd: As the strike enters its third day, the impact is growing with vessel backlogs and cargo rerouted to alternate ports. A total of 64 vessels are now queued across 15 affected ports, where carriers have begun invoking force majeure, rerouting cargo to places like Halifax. However, issues such as USDA restrictions on foreign discharge may complicate matters. Carriers are expected to make further routing decisions soon, while negotiations between USMX and ILA show little progress, increasing concerns about a prolonged disruption
• October 1st: The strike officially began at 12:01am outside the gates of Maher Terminal in Port Elizabeth, NJ, marking the first coastwide strike in almost half a century.
• September 30th: With just hours remaining before the deadline, there are no signs that an ILA strike will be avoided. Despite hopes for progress, intervention by the Secretaries of Labor and Transportation proved ineffective, as only the USMX attended the scheduled meeting, while the ILA declined. The USMX reiterated that they would “only negotiate at the bargaining table.” Meanwhile, the ILA released a statement on their website, affirming that all 85,000 union members are ready to strike at 12:01 AM on October 1.
• September 27th: The administration has called both parties to come to Washington, DC to meet with Secretary of Labor Julie Su, Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg and other administration officials today. The parties will meet individually with the administration officials. It is not clear if there will be a joint meeting among all parties at this point.
• September 26, 2024: USMX has filed an Unfair Labor Practice (ULP) charge with the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB), highlighting what they consider bad-faith negotiations by the ILA. This filing signals rising tensions as the contract expiration date approaches.
• September 23, 2024: USMX confirmed outreach from the Department of Labor and other federal agencies, signaling potential federal involvement to mediate the dispute. However, no formal mediation has been accepted by both sides yet​(

Port-Specific Contingency Plans

Philadelphia

• Vessel Operations: Packer Avenue Marine Terminal, Tioga Marine Terminal, Pier 122, and Pier 80 are currently Non-Operational. Southport Auto Terminal Vehicle Processing Center and Pier 98 Annex are Operational.
• Administration: Admin offices will continue working as normal.
  

Port Everglades

• Vessel Operations: PEV remains open to accommodate port business that does not employ ILA Labor for their cargo operations – cruise activity (Port Canaveral), aggregate materials, cement, and petroleum operations specifically. Only Marine Terminals that employ ILA Labor will be impacted.

Georgia Ports (Port of Savannah and Brunswick)

• Vessel Operations:
  • Garden City Terminal in the Port of Savannah: Closed until further notice
  • Ocean Terminal in the Port of Savannah: Closed until further notice
  • Port of Brunswick: Closed until further notice

New York

APM Terminals

• Vessel Operations: Terminal will be non-operational during the strike. APM will freeze free time and suspend all demurrage and storages charges for cargo left in the terminal during stoppage period.

Maher Terminal

• Vessel Operations: Terminal will be non-operational during the strike. Maher will freeze free time and suspend all demurrage and storages charges for cargo left in the terminal during stoppage period.

Port Newark Container Terminal (PNCT)

• Vessel Operations: PNCT will be closed during work stoppage.

The below ports are NOT affected by the strike at this time:

Updates from Major Steamship Lines

• Maersk: Encourages shippers to clear all cargo well before the strike date. Maersk is adjusting schedules and offering alternate routing where possible. Booking acceptance continues as normal with some exceptions, including bookings for refrigerated containers outbound from inland locations via the US Atlantic and Gulf coast. Customers should follow port authority and intermodal service guidance on gate hours. Please hold all empty containers until the labor disruption has ceased. Escalations can be sent to NAMEQUEDO@Maersk.com . Contingency inland routings from West Coast port locations in select East Coast markets will be available, please contact your Maersk representative.
• MSC (Mediterranean Shipping Company): All U.S. East Coast and Gulf Coast export bookings are currently impacted. Booking adjustments including rolls to other vessels or cancellations may be needed. Customers should follow port authority and intermodal service guidance on gate hours. MSC will follow terminal policy and only pass through at cost any Demurrage charges imposed by terminals during the strike. MSC will stop the clock on Detention and Demurrage Charges during the strike and once the strike has ended will resume billing following its tariffs.
• Hapag-Lloyd: Hapag-Lloyd is also working on contingency routing options to mitigate delays and advises customers to work directly with their local Account Executive. During the strike, cargo left on the terminal at the affected ports will not be accessible. Empty container pickups are subject to the operational conditions at the ports. Customers should follow port authority and intermodal service guidance on gate hours. Hapag-Lloyd may offer additional locations for returning empty containers near affected ports. Please visit their local page for Empty Return Depot options by U.S. location here. During the strike affected days will be classified as “shut out” for import and export Detention and Demurrage, meaning they will not be charged in D&D calculations. Additionally, any weekends between shut out days will also be considered non-chargeable.
• ONE Line (Ocean Network Express): ONE is continuing bookings for rail cargo and dry cargo, reefer bookings will be paused during work stoppage. Demurrage and Detention charges will be paused for any containers currently gated in until the terminal work restarts. Empties will be accepted only if the facility is open and accepting the containers, please refer to port specific hours and operational status. Customers will be notified of any vessel rotation changes.
• Seaboard Marine: Terminals, and vessel operations currently remain open in Port of Miami, Houston Jacinto Port, and Phila. Penn Terminals. Cargo operations are currently paused in New Orleans, Savannah, Wilmington, and Brooklyn. All warehouse activities have not been impacted and remain operational.

Resources for Real-Time Updates:

• USMX Negotiation Updates
• ILA News

Moving Forward: We recommend closely, and daily, monitoring of port-specific and steamship line advisories and making necessary arrangements for your cargo operations in anticipation of potential delays and cost increases. Please don’t hesitate to reach out to your representatives at the lines, ports, and here at 721 Logistics.