Members of the International Longshoremen’s Association went on strike at midnight, leading to what some fear could be a damaging work stoppage at 14 U.S. ports from Maine to Texas.
“While we have a very healthy respect for the collective bargaining process, the fact of the matter is the stakes are too high for New Jersey and the rest of the nation to be subject to supply chain shortages, higher prices and delays in goods reaching households and businesses,” NJBIA President & CEO Michele Siekerka said in a statement. “It’s critical that the federal government keep a close watch on both the ILA and the U.S. Maritime Alliance as negotiations continue – and to not wait long to invoke the Taft-Hartley Act if it appears this impasse cannot be resolved in short order.
“Our ports, especially here in New Jersey, are our gateways to goods that make up our way of life every day – from produce to manufacturing products and everything in between,” Siekerka added. “With supply chain backlogs a recent, pandemic-era memory and with inflation only recently coming back down to Earth, now is not the time to force businesses to pay shippers for delays and for goods to arrive late as the holiday shopping season approaches.”
Siekerka urged the Biden administration to be ready to invoke Taft-Hartley to allow negotiations between both sides to continue without negatively impacting the economy for an extended period of time.
