ILA President Warns of October Strike at Atlantic and Gulf Coast Ports

(ILA.com) The leader of the International Longshoremen’s Association (ILA) said the threat of a strike at all Atlantic and Gulf Coast Ports is becoming more likely as time is growing short before the current contract expires in 80 days, on 30 September 2024.

Harold J. Daggett, ILA President and the union’s Chief Negotiator, said that the employers represented by United States Maritime Alliance (USMX) are running out of time to negotiate a new Master Contract agreement and avoid and coastwide strike on 1 October 2024.

“Only 80 days remain before the end of our current contract and we are waiting on USMX,” said ILA President Daggett. “The actions of violating our current Master Contract by some of their members caused us to cancel scheduled negotiations with USMX in early June.” The ILA canceled Master Contract talks with USMX after discovering that APM Terminals (APMT) and Maersk Line were utilizing an Auto Gate system, which autonomously processes trucks without ILA labor.

President Daggett said the ILA rank-and-file members are 100 percent behind him and are willing to “hit the streets” on 1 October 2024, if the union’s contract demands are not met. “We will not entertain any discussions about extending the current contract, nor are we interested in any help from outside agencies to interfere in our negotiations with USMX,” said President Daggett. “This includes the Biden Administration and the Department of Labor.”