West Coast Ports: US Labor Secretary Says Reach Deal or Negotiate in DC
From JOC:
U.S. Labor Secretary Tom Perez on Thursday told the ILWU and PMA that they have until Friday to reach a contract or they’ll have to negotiate in Washington D.C.
Negotiators for the ILWU and the PMA on Friday were separately reviewing the details of the latest contract proposal and counter-proposal, with the plan to meet later today.
From the WSJ:
“He [Secretary Perez] has worked very hard to apply the necessary pressure to both of these parties to settle what to many of us seems like a very small matter in the scope of all the complex matters already settled,” said City of Oakland Mayor Libby Schaaf, who was on the call.“You recognize that this all comes down to one arbitrator who is holding the U.S. economy hostage,” she said.
The ILWU would like the option to fire arbitrators, who serve as judges in disputes between the port employers and union employees, at the end of each contract. The PMA would like to keep the current system, which only allows for dismissal if both parties agree. At the heart of the dispute is a disagreement over whether one of the arbitrators should continue in the role.
Meanwhile:
As of Friday morning, 27 ships were at anchor outside the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach, three fewer than Thursday. On a typical February day last year, no ships were in line.
Superior Freight will provide updates to the negotiations on the news page of our website.
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