FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Nov. 14, 2002

ILWU SAYS JUSTICE DEPARTMENT DECISION SENDS CLEAR MESSAGE

SAN FRANCISCO - U.S. District Court Judge William Alsup is holding a hearing today with the International Longshore and Warehouse Union (ILWU), Pacific Maritime Association (PMA) and Justice Dept. representatives to review the status of the parties’ adherence to the Taft-Hartley injunction he issued in October.  The Justice Dept. brings a clear message to today’s court hearing:  The U.S. government rejects claims by the PMA that the union is responsible for the backlog and slowdown in West Coast ports.  As the ILWU has said all along, the PMA would be more productive working with the union to reduce the backlog, rather than going to court and issuing press releases.

“I have repeatedly stated that our workers are ready, willing and able to move goods out of our ports and into the hands of consumers.  And that’s what we have been doing.  If there have been any roadblocks, they have been caused by mismanagement,” said ILWU International President James Spinosa. “I hope that PMA will stop using the court as a way to advance their baseless charges and focus instead on working with us to make our ports work smoothly.”

Echoing statements by the ILWU, the Justice Dept. cited a string of logistical problems as contributing factors in the drop in productivity following the PMA lockout.  At the same time, the department said some of the problems were caused by employer mismanagement:

“Continuing congestion at the West Coast ports may also be a contributing factor to the loss of productivity at the ports,” the Justice Dept. said in its statement.  “In particular, the large number of containers on the ground at the ports have contributed to the lower than normal productivity on the docks, and contributing to this congestion is the ‘normal’ practice of granting ‘free time’ to cargo owners by the ports, which means that shippers have little or no incentive to pick up their containers in a timely manner.  In addition, some foreign carriers, many of whom are members of the PMA, discharged all their U.S.-bound containers at their first port of call, usually Los Angeles/Long Beach, rather than continue to another scheduled port and wait at anchor for a berth.  The result has been a build-up of cargo containers at the ports, with some terminal yards remaining ‘jammed’ with containers, causing delays in movement of cargo to customers.” 

“We’re back at the bargaining table.  And while a good deal of work remains, we believe we can get it done,” said President Spinosa.  “We’ve already made great progress with an agreement on a key issue – technology enhancements – and we look forward to working in partnership with the industry to make the ports even more efficient and successful.  At the same time, the workers who will produce new profits for the shipping companies through these enhancements must receive pension security as part of the agreement.”

For more information, contact: Steve Stallone at 510-390-4748 or Jeremy Prillwitz at 415-775-0533 x115 or 415-286-0555.

JP/mer:opeiu29afl-cio

###