ILA, USMX reach contract agreement on automation, avoiding port strike

The International Longshoremen’s Association (ILA) and the United States Maritime Alliance (USMX) have reached a tentative agreement on a new six-year master contract. The agreement will replace the expiring contract which had been extended after a short strike in October 2024. 

The two groups issued a joint statement late Wednesday evening, saying “the two sides agreed to continue to operate under the current contract until the union can meet with its full Wage Scale Committee and schedule a ratification vote, and USMX members can ratify the terms of the final contract.”

The agreement covers approximately 25,000 union workers in container-handling at 14 ports and maritime cargo centers from Texas to Boston.

Workers in roll on-roll off vehicle handling, which was also shut down during the October work stoppage, are not included in the new deal.

In a classic compromise, both sides got what they had been seeking. A source with knowledge of the agreement told FreightWaves that terminal operators and ocean carriers get broader rights to introduce semi-automated rail-mounted gantry cranes and other technology they say are needed to improve efficiency in container-handling, while the union receives guarantees for new jobs linked specifically to each piece of equipment. Jobs associated with cranes are among the highest-paying among port workers.

The agreement came together quickly, the source said, after the sides fleshed out details in m

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