HOUSTON – About 45,000 dock workers are poised to walk off the job at midnight Tuesday if a deal is not reached between the union representing the workers and the United States Maritime Alliance, which represents the ports, in contract negotiations.
A prolonged strike could seriously impact the prices of goods and may even lead to shortages of some items.
Houston is one of the ports which will see workers on the picket lines if a deal is not reached before the end of Monday.
If there is a strike, Port Houston is prepared for potential picketing as soon as 12:01 a.m. Tuesday, according to a port official.
Here are five things to know about the looming strike.
1. Is there hope for a deal before the strike begins?
Right now, it seems unlikely that the strike will be averted. In a Monday update, the International Longshoremen’s Association continued to blame the United States Maritime Alliance, which represents the ports, for continuing to “to block the path” toward an agreement before the deadline for the contract.
Under the 1947 Taft-Hartley Act, President Joe Biden could seek a court order for an 80-day cooling-off period, which would suspend the strike. However, Biden told reporters on Sunday he has no intention of intervening the prevent the strike.
“Because it’s collective bargaining, I don’t believe in Taft-Hartley,” Biden said.
2. What are the workers demands?
The International Longshoremen’s Association, the union representing the dock workers, is demanding higher wages and a complete ban on the automation of cranes, gates and container-moving trucks which are used to load and unload freight.
The 36 ports in the United States affected handle roughly half of the nations’ cargo from ships.
If ILA workers strike, it will be the first time by the union since 1977.
According to the West Gulf Maritime Association, in this last contract year, there were 3,315 workers that worked through the ILA in Houston.
3. How will this affect goods?
Depending on how long the strike lasts, it could either seriously impact the price and availability of retail goods or not have much impact.
If the strike is prolonged, it would likely cause shortages of some consumer products. Ed Emmett with the Baker Institute at Rice University says two of the items that will be impacted the most include automobiles and fruit and vegetables.
“I mean, like I keep going back to fruits and vegetables, you know, they don’t last that long, so you can see that impact. But in terms of general goods, it’s my understanding that a lot of the shippers, the people who actually own the freight, have been looking for toward this for some time. And there have been an increase in containerized traffic in the last month or so to try and get the stocks up compared to where they would normally be,” he said.
According to USA Trade Online, imports to Port Houston in 2022 were dominated by consumer goods like computers, TV’s, electronics and other equipment. Other items imported included pharmaceuticals and medical supplies, bedding and furniture, toys and games, food and alcoholic beverages, and apparel.
One product that will almost certainly be impacted is bananas. The American Farm Bureau Federation says the ports that could be affected by the strike handle 3.8 million metric tons of bananas each year, or 75% of the nation’s supply.
4. How will this affect holiday season shopping?
Many large retailers, anticipating the strike, had goods shipped to U.S. distribution centers back in June.
Jonathan Gold, vice president of the supply chain and customs policy at the National Retail Federation, told the Associated Press retailers will have a hard time replenishing items and are incurring extra warehouse costs to store goods longer. Gold also noted that carriers are already announcing surcharges on containers to address potential disruptions.
The Toy Association, the nation’s leading toy trade group, was one of roughly 200 trade groups that sent a joint letter to President Biden earlier this month urging the administration to work with ILA and USMX to come up with a contract. Greg Ahearn, its president and CEO, noted that a strike would happen at an extremely critical time for toy sellers and makers — up to 60% of a toy company’s annual sales come during the fourth quarter. The holiday shipping window for the toy industry is anywhere from six to eight weeks and started in July, though some toy companies tried to ship earlier or add more toys to shipments, he said.
“It hits many ways,” he told the Associated Press. “From a consumer perspective, it starts with delays in availability and then starts to surface as product shortages within toys. At retail for the toy industry, it results in potentially higher prices based on scarcity and increased costs.”
5. How will this affect truckers?
Truckers who do work in the Houston area say a port strike would significantly impact their business.
Dezmon Hogan owns a trucking business and says as a small company, a strike could potentially be devastating for his business.
“We’re a small company. So in all small companies that we really depend upon that flow of traffic with, if we’re to stop that flow of traffic, we would have to look for something else to do. You know, we don’t have anything else to do. So for us, knowing that this was going to happen, we tried to get all of those containers off of the port beforehand before the strike and store in different locations so that we can stay busy during the time where we have the stop work,” he said.
Hogan says a prolonged strike could cost his company hundreds of thousands of dollars.
“If it’s a short strike, maybe about $45,000, if it’s a longer strike, anywhere from $300,000 to $500,000,” he said.
The Associated Press contributed to this report