The contract deadline for union security workers at the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach and their maritime employers has been pushed back to Friday, again prolonging the threat of a potential strike at the San Pedro Bay docks.
Early Thursday, the Pacific Maritime Association (PMA) announced it had agreed with the Local 26 branch of the International Longshore and Warehouse Union (ILWU) to extend their negotiations through through midnight Pacific time on Friday, Nov. 6.
Last week, the two parties agreed to extend the deadline from Sunday till Wednesday.
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The ILWU Local 26 represents roughly 250 watchmen employed at terminals responsible for about more than half of the combined cargo at the Southern California ports. The watchmen represent roughly 2 percent of the ILWU employees who work at the ports.
Negotiations will continue Friday with the help of federal mediators, the PMA said.
The PMA, which represents the marine terminal operators and ocean carriers, contends that a labor stoppage would put the terminals’ operations at risk.
The watchmen handle gate security and cargo watch duties, sitting at the entry and exit points for containers to move in and out of some of the busiest terminals in the U.S.
The impacted terminals handle roughly 85 percent of the cargo moving through the Port of Long Beach and 33 percent at the Port of Los Angeles , the PMA says.
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