PMA and ILWU announce West Coast waterfront contract

US West coast ports: A new labor deal between Pacific Maritime Association and the International Longshore and Warehouse Union

The Pacific Maritime Association and the International Longshore and Warehouse Union last week announced a tentative agreement on a new five-year contract covering workers at all 29 West Coast ports. The deal was reached with assistance from U.S. Secretary of Labor Tom Perez and Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service Deputy Director Scot Beckenbaugh. The parties will not be releasing details of the agreement at this time. The agreement is subject to ratification by both parties.

“After more than nine months of negotiations, we are pleased to have reached an agreement that is good for workers and for the industry,” said PMA President James McKenna and ILWU President Bob McEllrath in a joint statement. “We are also pleased that our ports can now resume full operations.”

The principal business of the PMA is to negotiate and administer maritime labor agreements with the International Longshore and Warehouse Union (ILWU). This includes a coast-wide contract covering roughly 13,600 longshore, clerk and foreman workers at 29 ports along the West Coast, from Southern California to the Pacific Northwest. These ports drive nearly half of all maritime trade in the United States, including more than 70 percent of all imports from Asia. PMA operates on behalf of 72 member companies who are among the world’s leading shipping lines and terminal operators.

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