US East Coast port strike looms Tuesday with no talks scheduled
ILA threatens strike, would be first such strike by the union since 1977
Strike could cost the economy an estimated $5 billion a day
Strike disputes include pay, terminal automation project issues
Biden administration urges negotiations
Retailers stock merchandise to avoid holiday disruptions
By Lisa Baertlein, Timothy Aeppel and David Shepardson
Sept 30 (Reuters) -U.S. East and Gulf Coast port workers are set to go on strike at midnight on Monday with no talks currently scheduled to head off a stoppage threatening to halt container traffic from Maine to Texas and cost the economy as much as $5 billion a day.
The labor contract between the International Longshoremen's Association (ILA) union representing 45,000 port workers and the United States Maritime Alliance (USMX) employer group expires late Monday, with negotiations at an impasse over pay.
A port strike will go ahead starting Tuesday at 12:01 a.m. ET, the ILA said on Sunday. The USMX "refuses to address a half-century of wage subjugation," the union said in a statement on Sunday.
If union members do walk off the job, it would be the first coast-wide ILA strike since 1977, affecting ports that handle about half of the nation's ocean shipping.
No negotiations are taking place and none are planned before the Monday deadline, a person familiar with the matter said on condition of anonymity as the matter is a sensitive one.
The union has previously said the strike would not impact military cargo shipments or cruise ship traffic.
But a strike could stop the flow of everything from food to automobiles at major ports, potentially jeopardizing jobs and stoking inflation weeks ahead of the U.S. presidential election.
Business Roundtable, which represents major U.S. business leaders, said it was "deeply concerned about the potential strike at the East Coast and Gulf Coast ports."
The group warned a labor stoppage could cost the economy billions of dollars daily, hurting businesses, workers and consumers across the country. "We urge both sides to come to an agreement before Monday night's deadline."
A short strike could have a limited economic impact given many companies have imported extra goods ahead of a possible work stoppage or shifted more shipments to West Coast ports. But a strike that continues for weeks could have serious economic impacts.
"These people today don't know what a strike is," Harold Daggett, the ILA's fiery leader, said in a recent video post. "I'll cripple you. I will cripple you."
For months, Daggett has threatened to shut down the 36 ports covered by his union if employers like container ship operator Maersk MAERSKb.CO and its APM Terminals North America do not deliver significant wage increases and stop terminal automation projects.
The dispute is worrying businesses that rely on ocean shipping to export their wares, or secure crucial imports.
Steve Hughes, CEO of HCS International, which specializes in automotive sourcing and shipping, accused the ILA of "holding the entire country over a barrel."
HIGH STAKES
An ILA strike could wedge labor-friendly President Joe Biden into a no-win position as Vice President Kamala Harris runs a razor-tight election race against former President Donald Trump.
Biden on Sunday said he did not intend to intervene to prevent a walkout if dock workers failed to secure a new contract.
U.S. presidents can intervene in labor disputes that threaten national security or safety by imposing an 80-day cooling-off period under the federal Taft-Hartley Act, forcing workers back on the job while negotiations continue.
On Friday, Biden administration officials met with the USMX employer group to directly convey "that they need to be at the table and negotiating in good faith fairly and quickly" – a message it had delivered earlier to the ILA.
The USMX has accused the ILA of refusing to negotiate.
Retailers that account for about half of all container shipping volume, and are headed into their all-important winter holiday sales season, have been busily employing backup plans.
"There is potential for another violent move across consumer stocks next week if – as is consensus thinking - the East Coast Longshoremen do indeed strike," Jefferies analysts said in a client note.
Many of the big retail players rushed in Halloween and Christmas merchandise early to avoid any strike-related disruptions - incurring extra shipping and storage costs.
Retail behemoth Walmart WMT.N, the largest U.S. container shipper, and membership warehouse club operator Costco COST.O say they are doing everything they can to mitigate any impact.
But a lot of shippers do not have that flexibility as they are small, do most of their business on the East and Gulf Coasts or lack the financial might to load up on safety stock.
Ash Bhardwaj, CEO of Onx Homes, has factories in Florida and imports materials used to build homes in the company's planned communities through the Port of Miami.
Like other shippers in his position, he was resigned to his fate. "Everyone will have the same problem," Bhardwaj said.
Reporting by Lisa Baertlein in Los Angeles, Tim Aeppel in New York and David Shepardson in Washington; additional reporting by Andrea Shalal in Washington Editing by Himani Sarkar
免责声明: XM Group仅提供在线交易平台的执行服务和访问权限，并允许个人查看和/或使用网站或网站所提供的内容，但无意进行任何更改或扩展，也不会更改或扩展其服务和访问权限。所有访问和使用权限，将受下列条款与条例约束：(i) 条款与条例；(ii) 风险提示；以及(iii) 完整免责声明。请注意，网站所提供的所有讯息，仅限一般资讯用途。此外，XM所有在线交易平台的内容并不构成，也不能被用于任何未经授权的金融市场交易邀约和/或邀请。金融市场交易对于您的投资资本含有重大风险。
所有在线交易平台所发布的资料，仅适用于教育/资讯类用途，不包含也不应被视为用于金融、投资税或交易相关咨询和建议，或是交易价格纪录，或是任何金融商品或非应邀途径的金融相关优惠的交易邀约或邀请。
本网站上由XM和第三方供应商所提供的所有内容，包括意见、新闻、研究、分析、价格、其他资讯和第三方网站链接，皆保持不变，并作为一般市场评论所提供，而非投资性建议。所有在线交易平台所发布的资料，仅适用于教育/资讯类用途，不包含也不应被视为适用于金融、投资税或交易相关咨询和建议，或是交易价格纪录，或是任何金融商品或非应邀途径的金融相关优惠的交易邀约或邀请。请确保您已阅读并完全理解，XM非独立投资研究提示和风险提示相关资讯，更多详情请点击 这里。
