Dockworkers go on strike at East and Gulf Coast ports
Former U.S. Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross reacts to shippers making their counter offer to ILA on The Claman Countdown.
Unionized dockworkers at 36 East and Gulf Coast ports went on strike early Tuesday amid an impasse in negotiations over a new contract with a group representing port employers.
The International Longshoremen's Association (ILA), which represents 45,000 dockworkers, began its first strike since 1977 after its six-year contract with the U.S. Maritime Alliance (USMX), which represents port employers, expired Monday night.
Negotiations between the ILA and USMX have been deadlocked thus far over the union's demands related to wage hikes and compensation, as well as protection from automation at ports.
The ILA has said that it will exempt cruise ships and military cargoes from the strike and will continue to handle those to prevent disruptions to travelers' schedules as well as national security.
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The dockworkers strike will impact ports on the East and Gulf Coasts. (Photographer: Michael Nagle/Bloomberg via Getty Images / Getty Images)
USMX reportedly made a new offer to the ILA on Monday afternoon that would've raised wages by nearly 50% over the new contract as well as tripling employer contributions to retirement plans, better health care and kept language about automation in the deal. Sources told FOX Business that the ILA rejected the offer and didn't make a counter.
The strike comes after USMX filed an unfair labor complaint with the National Labor Relations Board against the ILA last week, arguing that the group was breaking labor laws by refusing to negotiate. The ILA criticized the move as a «publicity stunt» and said USMX
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