Dockworkers on East and Gulf Coast to return to work after reaching agreement on wages

Thousands of dockworkers on the East Coast and Gulf Coast will return to work after reaching a tentative agreement on wages, ending one of the biggest work stoppages in decades.

In a joint statement, the United States Maritime Alliance, or USMX, and the International Longshoreman’s Association said the two sides have an agreement to extend their current labor contract through Jan. 15 and continue to negotiate.

“The International Longshoremen’s Association and the United States Maritime Alliance, Ltd. have reached a tentative agreement on wages,” the union and the alliance said in a joint statement.

“Effective immediately, all current job actions will cease and all work covered by the Master Contract will resume,” the statement said.

The International Longshoremen’s Association, known as the ILA, argued that big global cargo carriers have raked in huge profits since pandemic-era supply-chain snags drove up freight rates, and that workers haven’t sufficiently shared in those gains.

The United States Maritime Alliance, or USMX, represents major ocean freight and port operators. 

The union also sought limits on automation at ports. The joint statement only mentions wages.

The strike began at midnight Monday, going into Tuesday. The ILA strike that shut down ports is its the first since 1977. That one lasted 44 days.

The work stoppage involved ports from Maine to Texas. The governors of New York, New Jersey, Massachusetts and Maryland were among those calling for a swift resolution to the labor dispute.

President Joe Biden said Sunday that he had spoken to both sides and believes in collective bargaining, and earlier Thursday said that progress was being made in talks.