{"id":3524,"date":"2015-01-22T16:04:58","date_gmt":"2015-01-22T22:04:58","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/supfrt.com\/news\/?p=3524"},"modified":"2015-01-22T16:04:58","modified_gmt":"2015-01-22T22:04:58","slug":"west-coast-ports-latest-news","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/supfrt.com\/news\/2015\/01\/22\/west-coast-ports-latest-news\/","title":{"rendered":"West Coast Ports: The Latest News"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"port<\/a>West Coast Ports: The Latest News<\/p>\n

Congestion hits new high – both sides blame staffing<\/strong><\/p>\n

Even with\u00a0Federal Mediation, the PMA and ILWU are continuing their strategy of\u00a0withholding staffing or opportunities for staffing to pressure the other side in negotiations.<\/p>\n

From JOC<\/a>:<\/p>\n

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Terminal operators, which are incurring huge expenses because of plunging productivity, have been attempting to cut back on labor costs wherever possible. For example, terminal operators stopped night gate operations in Seattle and Tacoma several weeks ago, and in Oakland during the past two weeks.<\/p>\n

Most of the 13 container terminals in Los Angeles-Long Beach continue to operate night gates, but they recently stopped ordering longshoremen to work on vessels during the night shift. With mountains of containers building on the docks, employers said it had become counterproductive to unload more containers at night and add to the congestion. Therefore, the terminals in Southern California have maintained yard and gate operations at night in an attempt to make room for containers that would be discharged from ships the next morning when vessel operations resumed.<\/p>\n

These actions, while based upon basic operating procedures, have a residual impact as well on work opportunities for longshoremen. Dockworkers in Seattle, Tacoma and Oakland have lost all of their night work, and crane operators in Southern California have lost their vessel work at night. When longshoremen don\u2019t work, they don\u2019t get paid.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

West Coast: Volumes<\/strong> Down<\/strong><\/p>\n

Congestion and labor issues have both been a contributor at the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach<\/em> in December as the container volume at the busiest U.S. port complex declined 1 percent compared to December 2013. Total container volume includes both loaded and empty containers.<\/p>\n

In addition, from JOC<\/a>:<\/p>\n

Loaded import containers, which outnumber loaded export containers approximately two-to-one, declined 1 percent. Exports\u00a0decreased 12 percent at the combined port complex, according to end-of-year statistics released by both ports.<\/p>\n

Container volumes at the Seattle and Tacoma<\/em> ports declined slightly in 2014 for the second consecutive year. From Don Johnson, Port of Tacoma commission president:<\/p>\n

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\u201cThe industry is changing and the competition from other North American ports is fierce. We must adapt and work together to maintain, and grow, our share of the West Coast market to benefit the economic health of Washington state.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

US West Coast\u00a0terminals resume daytime shifts<\/strong><\/p>\n

The PMA reported on January 18th, U.S. West Coast terminals\u00a0would suspend vessel operations on all shifts Monday so they can concentrate their resources on clearing containers from the dangerously congested facilities.<\/p>\n

Terminal operators resumed daytime vessel unloading Tuesday\u00a0January 20th after one day.<\/p>\n

From JOC<\/a>:<\/p>\n

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That means the ports remained congested due to slowdowns by the International Longshore and Warehouse Union in Seattle-Tacoma and Oakland, and a refusal by the union to dispatch sufficient skilled labor in Southern California, said Steve Getzug, spokesman for the Pacific Maritime Association. \u201cCongestion still exists,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

From JOC<\/a>: California ports to face ‘systemic’ challenges even after ILWU reaches deal<\/strong><\/p>\n

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When the longshore contract negotiations are over and productivity has returned to normal, the CEOs of California\u2019s container ports will face even greater challenges dealing with the problems that remain: handling big ships, adjusting to powerful carrier alliances and establishing a new chassis regime.<\/p>\n

\u201cThese are systemic problems,\u201d Jon Slangerup, chief executive of the Port of Long Beach, told the annual conference of the California Trucking Association last weekend in Monterey. \u201cLabor is frustrating it, but the entire system is fragmented, inefficient and silo-driven\u201d he said.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Superior Freight Services, Inc. News<\/a>\/Blog<\/a>: To keep informed of the status of the West Coast Ports negotiations.<\/p>\n

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