Longshoremen Protest Job Cuts : Southern Pacific Wants to End Contract and Replace Them
About 200 members of the International Longshoremen and Warehousemen Union Local 13 gathered with their supporters at Los Angeles City Hall on Friday to complain that Southern Pacific Lines plans to replace 350 workers with employees from another union.
The longshoremen asked the City Council to support union efforts to persuade Southern Pacific not to end its relationship with Rail Services of America, a subcontractor that employs members of the union to transfer containers from ships.
The company’s relationship with Rail Services will end Feb. 16 because, according to Southern Pacific spokesman Mike Furtney, the firm has failed to meet productivity targets. The longshoremen have threatened to disrupt maritime commerce at local ports if the contract is terminated. The City Council is scheduled to discuss the matter next Wednesday.
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