Global Courant
The largest terminal operator in the Port of Long Beach, Calif., told truckers on Sunday it will close Monday for both day and night shifts, according to an email obtained by CNBC. Ports and workers are embroiled in an unofficial dispute over wages, as well as safety, automation and pension benefits.
TTI is emailing trucking customers about terminal closures Monday amid labor unrest
The notification was sent by Total Terminals International (TTI), the largest terminal in Long Beach and part of MSC.
“Freight from the Port of Long Beach has been moving through the terminals and we expect the parties’ commitment to continue and the parties to be encouraged to place (a) full confidence in a final resolution,” said Mario Cordero, executive director of the port of Lang Strand.
But Matt Schrap, chief executive of the Harbor Trucking Association, said it is unusual to receive such a warning on Sunday and, despite the advance notice, it will exacerbate congestion.
Harbor Trucking Association, a coalition representing intermodal carriers that move containers in West Coast ports, told CNBC that policies vary at each terminal in each port, so if a terminal allows trucks to enter and pick up stranded containers on Friday, win, other terminals do not necessarily follow suit. Dock workers prepare the containers for collection each day.
“To put it mildly, gate disruptions make it difficult for our members to plan and deploy truck capacity,” said Schrap. “Unfortunately, we don’t know which terminals are going to restrict or stop operations until it happens and at that point it’s often too late to react as trucks are already being shipped for the day.”
In West Coast ports, both longshoremen did not show up for work this weekend, as did “daily newspapers,” the members who fill out the schedule to complete the workforce.
“The ripple effect of this moderate congestion will push us further and further back in container pick-ups where we need another two to three truck drivers to clear the congestion,” warned Paul Brashier, vice president of drag and intermodal at ITS Logistics. “For our clients, the shippers and the truck drivers, this is very bad, because the extra labor costs are tacked onto their invoice, as well as any extra jail time. Those extra costs are then passed on to the consumer.”
No longshoremen have reported to work in the Port of Oakland since Thursday.
“We continue to monitor the situation closely and we hope that this will be resolved quickly so that the flow of trade can continue,” said Robert Bernardo, communications director for the Port of Oakland. “Especially as we see cargo volumes improving” and more ships coming back into service, he added.
In the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach, no dailies reported for work on Sunday. Since the number of containers transported during the weekend is lower than during the week, some truck drivers were unable to pick up containers and not drop them off.
Allegations have grown that members of the International Longshore and Warehouse Union have “red label” equipment for safety checks and remove it from service. The ILWU declined to comment to CNBC.
“One kink at one terminal will chew through a whole day and reverberate a lot after that one shift,” added Schrap of Harbor Trucking. “If an entire complex is shut down, the key thrown into the gears not only disrupts that particular day’s activity, but it takes days for the remaining effects to resolve as new appointments have to be made, schedules changed and customers have to adjust receipt schedules.”
Transport companies work most efficiently when their drivers perform a “double transaction”, bringing and collecting a container on the same day.
The Port of Los Angeles, the country’s largest port, handled 2.5 million containers from January to April.
