ILWU and PMA reach tentative agreement
After more than nine months of negotiations, the Pacific Maritime Association (PMA) and the International Longshore and Warehouse Union (ILWU) on Friday (20 January) announced a tentative agreement on a new five-year contract covering workers at all 29 West Coast ports.
The deal was reached with assistance from U.S. Secretary of Labor Tom Perez and Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service Deputy Director Scot Beckenbaugh. However, the parties will not be releasing details of the agreement at this time and it is still subject to ratification by both parties.
West coast ports can now resume full operations. Jon Slangerup, Chief Executive of the Port of Long Beach, commented on the developments: "We know that the marine terminal operators, longshore workers, truckers, railroads and others will be extremely busy as they work to clear out the massive backlog of cargo at all of the West Coast ports, including Long Beach. All of us will be working together to make this happen as soon as possible, but once again, we are extremely pleased with today’s news. "