ILA, USMX Slam Each Other's Negotiating “Posturing"
The International Longshoremen's Association and United States Maritime Association traded insults over their respective negotiation tactics in dueling Nov. 20 press releases. The ILA asked for full master contract wage scale meetings with USMX to start Monday, Dec. 26. The union scheduled three full days of talks and will continue beyond them if a contract can be reached, it said. Preventing a cap on container royalty is one of the key battles facing ILA President Harold Daggett as he leads negotiations against USMX, the union said. Other issues are the eight-hour guarantee and the seven-man lashing gang.
The ILA sharply criticized USMX's “posturing,” accusing the industry group of engaging in “misleading rhetoric and scare tactics” while it should have been in talks with the union. He accused industry of putting “more into their media statements than in preparing contract documents,” saying that's not surprising because they invest around $200 million apiece in new ships but “don't put a dime on the table in negotiations to compensate ILA members who helped them accumulate their riches.”
USMX Chairman James Capo struck back, saying industry has given “due consideration to ILA demands” throughout the talks and has shown its willingness to compromise on some issues. ILA leadership’s “uncompromising posture” runs contrary to the cooperation that has characterized bargaining and that for more than three decades resulted in nine new master contracts without a single strike or coast-wide work stoppage, he said. “It's incredible that they continue to defend antiquated work rules, manning and other practices that have made many of the East and Gulf Coast ports prohibitively expensive, harming our ability to compete and threatening the viability of port operations.”
The need for improved efficiency and productivity at ports means beginning to control container royalty payments, Capo said. USMX accepts the fact that it will take time to change inefficient work rules and practices built up over many years, he said, but “meaningful discussions” about those challenges are needed if agreement is to be found on a new master contract, he said.