Strike by port clerks averted as talks go on
Talks between shipping lines and a clerks union were set to resume this afternoon after union negotiators agreed to remain at the table despite an earlier vow to strike if a deal wasn’t reached by midnight Saturday.
Representatives of the 930-member office clerical unit of Local 63 of the International Longshore and Warehouse Union are in talks with shipping lines and terminal operators at the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach over a new labor contract.
A walkout threatens to disrupt cargo operations at the ports as they enter their busy season, when retailers import goods for the holiday season.
Local 63 is part of the 15,000-member ILWU but negotiates its contracts separately. The ILWU has indicated that it will honor Local 63 picket lines, which would effectively shut down the ports.
If no agreement is reached, picket lines will go up at the employers’ gates shortly after 12:01 a.m. Monday, Local 63 President John Fageaux Jr. said. The local handles the paperwork for the cargo ships that come to port.
The employers have offered a generous wage and benefits package to what they describe as the nation’s highest-paid clerical workers, said their negotiator, attorney Stephen Berry. He added that they get 20 paid holidays, 13 sick days and up to six weeks of vacation a year.
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