Bush administration intervenes in dock dispute
The action follows the decision taken on September 29 by the port employers' group, the Pacific Maritime Association, to lock out 10,500 longshoremen across 29 West Coast ports, having accused the workers of engaging in a slowdown. Union officials responded that the workers were simply observing safety procedures as five longshoremen have died on the job this year.
The major issue in the dispute, now in its fifth month, is the introduction of cargo handling technology which the union says it will not accept, unless any jobs that result from its introduction fall under its jurisdiction. The union also argues that the lockout was a management ploy intended to secure the President's intervention.
The Taft-Hartley act calls for a 60-day cooling-off period while talks take place. The National Labour Relations Board then has 15 days to poll employees to see whether or not they will accept the management's final proposal, before an additional five days are taken to count the votes. If the workers then reject the proposal, they can then choose to strike, but must work in the meantime.
Justifying his actions, the President said: "This dispute between management and labour cannot be allowed to further harm the economy and force thousands of working Americans from their jobs." He added he was especially concerned about disruption to the movement of military supplies .The Pentagon uses commercial shipping lines to transport supplies and equipment and the West Coast ports would become essential should fighting erupt in Iraq or elsewhere in the Middle East.
Labour Secretary, Elaine L. Chao, was previously unable to negotiate a 30-day contract extension to reopen the ports. The International Longshore and Warehouse Union agreed the extension but the employers' group rejected it, fearing the longshoremen would simply continue with the slowdown. The Western ports handle $300 billion in cargo each year and some economists estimate the dispute has already cost the economy more than $10 billion.
Judge William Alsup of Federal District Court in San Francisco has issued a temporary injunction that ordered the ports to be reopened immediately, and will hold a hearing in a week on whether to grant a full 80-day injunction.
