Paul Berger of The Wall Street Journal reports that U.S. dockworkers and shipping companies have reached a tentative labor deal, avoiding a strike that could disrupt the economy. The agreement, still pending ratification, protects jobs and outlines a framework for modernizing ports with new technologies. The deal was reached ahead of the Jan. 15 contract deadline, with workers continuing under the current contract until ratification. Berger writes:
U.S. dockworkers and shipping companies reached a tentative labor deal, capping a contentious contract battle that drew attention from President Biden and President-elect Donald Trump and averting a strike at major ports that threatened to rattle the U.S. economy.
The agreement reached in principle verbally on Wednesday must still be ratified by port employers and by tens of thousands of members of the International Longshoremen’s Association, according to people familiar with the talks.
The union for months was locked in testy talks with the United States Maritime Alliance, which represents port terminal operators and some of the world’s largest ocean shipping companies. The two sides have been trying to reach an agreement ahead of a Jan. 15 deadline when the current labor contract ends. […]
The union and employers didn’t reveal details of the tentative agreement. They said in a joint statement that the deal “protects current ILA jobs and establishes a framework for implementing technologies that will create more jobs while modernizing East and Gulf Coast ports.”
They said dockworkers would continue to work under the current contract until the new contract is ratified by all of the parties.
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