At least one terminal at the Port of Los Angeles canceled some cargo operations on Monday morning as disruptions that hit several key US West Coast ports last week appear to continue amid labor-contracts negotiations.
One port operator, Fenix Marine Services, said in a notice to truckers that, “due to unforeseen circumstances, FMS will have to cancel import appointments in certain areas.” The company had canceled work on Friday due to “a disruption” in gate and yard operations that prevented drivers from accessing imports.
Total Terminals International, or TTI, at the Port of Long Beach canceled Monday morning operations, according to a notice sent Sunday to truckers, without providing a reason.
Meanwhile, labor shortages that effectively shut Oakland’s international terminals on Friday have been resolved. “The Port of Oakland’s marine terminals are operational today,” Director of Communications Robert Bernardo said in an email.
Dockworkers and their employers have been holding labor contract negotiations for over a year.
The Pacific Maritime Association, which represents ocean carriers and terminal operators, said Friday that the dockworkers union “effectively shut down some terminals across every major container gateway on the US West Coast.”
The International Longshore and Warehouse Union said in its own statement Friday that cargo operations at LA and Long Beach ports continued, but that members in Southern California had “taken it upon themselves to voice their displeasure with the ocean carriers’ and terminal operators’ position.”
The White House, Labor Department and Transportation Department are monitoring the situation and encouraging the parties to work toward a mutually beneficial resolution on a labor agreement, according to a person familiar with the matter.
The ILWU, which represents about 22,000 dockworkers on the US West Coast, has been negotiating a new labor contract with the PMI since May last year. The previous contract expired on July 1, 2022.
