Workers from the International Longshore and Warehouse Union (ILWU) have voted to ratify an agreement with the Pacific Maritime Association (PMA). ILWU members from 29 West Coast ports voted 82 percent in favor of approving the five-year contract, compared to 75 percent that voted in the previous 2008 contract. The new agreement will expire on July 1, 2019.
Robert McEllrath, ILWU international president, said that “the negotiations for this contract were some of the longest and most difficult in our recent history.” Stalled contract negotiations early this year caused U.S. West Coast port operations to grind to a halt, contributing to large backlogs at the regions premier ports. Gene Seroka, executive director at the Port of Los Angeles, said “the approval of this labor contract allows us to move full speed ahead sharpening our competitive edge.”
