Attack on ports along the Gulf and East Coast is imminent

NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) – The International Longshoremen’s Association (ILA), which represents 85,000 workers at ports from Texas to Maine, including 700 at the Port of New Orleans, is planning a strike next week.

In a video posted on YouTube, ILA President Harold J. Daggett explained the potential impact of the strike and predicted widespread economic disruption.

“The first week there will be news everywhere: boom, boom. In the second week, people who sell cars won’t sell cars because the cars won’t come off the ships. Everything in the United States comes from a ship. They go out of business. Construction workers are being laid off because materials are no longer being delivered,” Daggett said.

Contract negotiations between the ILA and the United States Maritime Alliance, which represents 40 shipping companies and terminal operators, have been on hold since June. The union is demanding better wages and assurances that ports will not fully automate their operations, which the ILA says would put thousands of jobs at risk.

“They’re trying to get robots and things like that to do our jobs and put us out of business,” said Henry Glover, president of ILA Local No. 3000.

Tens of thousands of ILA members are ready to strike. At the Port of New Orleans, 700 workers are expected to join the planned strike. Longshoremen warn that without their presence at the docks, the public can expect shortages and supply chain disruptions.

“From cars to toilet paper to various chemicals. Anything shipped to the United States is unloaded by us,” Glover added.

Professor Ali Bustamante, director of the Department of Business and Economic Research at the University of New Orleans, says the impact of the strike depends on its duration.

“If we think about a strike that only lasts two weeks, that is very nominal considering that it will not have a significant impact on consumer prices. When we talk about a strike that threatens to last a month or more, we are talking about significant costs for consumers,” said Professor Bustamante.

The Port of New Orleans has declined interviews during ongoing negotiations. However, in a statement, a spokesman said the port had always maintained a “good” working relationship with ILA members and was preparing for a possible work stoppage on October 1.

The White House has called on both sides to resume talks, but with only a few days left, longshoremen say they will begin picketing Tuesday morning if a deal is not reached.

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