Well, that was fast.
Just three days into a strike shutting down East and Gulf Coast ports, the International Longshoremen’s Association (ILA) and U.S. Maritime Alliance (USMX) came to a tentative agreement that will see union labor return to work tomorrow morning.
This evening, the two parties issued a joint statement revealing the news.
The International Longshoremen’s Association and the United States Maritime Alliance, Ltd. have reached a tentative agreement on wages and have agreed to extend the Master Contract until January 15, 2025 to return to the bargaining table to negotiate all other outstanding issues. Effective immediately, all current job actions will cease and all work covered by the Master Contract will resume."
Related: The Toy Book Editor-in-Chief James Zahn discusses the port strike on Cavuto Coast to Coast on FOX Business
In recent months, the ILA and USMX have publicly clashed over wages, benefits, and automation leading to the short-lived strike that began at 12:01 a.m. ET on October 1, 2024.
The lead-up to this year’s Presidential election is serving up echoes of a few years ago, with talk of tariffs, inflation, and rising freight costs grabbing headlines once more. According to the National Retail Federation (NRF), the 11-day strike on West Coast ports in 2022 may have cost the U.S. economy $1 billion a day while creating a six-month jam-up.
Following this evening’s announcement, the NRF issued a statement commending the action.
The decision to end the current strike and allow the East and Gulf Coast ports to reopen is good news for the nation’s economy. It is critically important that the International Longshoremen’s Association and United States Maritime Alliance work diligently and in good faith to reach a fair, final agreement before the extension expires. The sooner they reach a deal, the better for all American families.”
Thus far, it appears that the damage from this short-lived scuffle will be minimal to the toy industry and its partners.
