US Port Strikes - Fact Sheet – 30 September 2024

Published: 30 September 2024

US East and Gulf Coast port strike

The current agreement between the International Longshoremen’s Association (ILA) and the United States Maritime Alliance (USMX) expires at the end of September

So far, no new agreement has been reached, and it appears almost certain that ILA members will strike starting 1 October

The USMX alleges that the ILA has repeatedly refused to meet to discuss a new deal and has filed an “unfair labour practices” charge with the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB). The NLRB will investigate and if it agrees with the charge it can force the ILA back to the negotiation table

On Sunday, President Joe Biden again confirmed that he will not invoke the Taft-Hartley Act to force the longshoremen back to work

Ports on the US East and Gulf Coast could close completely. Even if ports do not close completely ship and cargo operations will be severely impacted

About 60% of US container imports and exports move through the affected ports equal to an estimated 12% of global container traffic

Outside of the US, especially the Europe & Mediterranean and Central & South American regions could be impacted. More than 10% of the Europe & Mediterranean region’s container exports flow through the ports whereas more than 15% of the Central & South America region’s container imports and exports will be affected

Nearly 10% of container ships and about 15% of container ship capacity are deployed in the trade lanes in and out of East and Gulf Coast ports. Therefore, a strike could severely impact the global service networks. Maersk has estimated that one week’s shutdown would take four to six weeks to recover from

During a strike, some shippers may try to divert cargo to US West Coast or Canadian ports. However, there is a limit to how much cargo can be diverted before those ports as well as intermodal links would also clog up

If the strike begins, spot and short-term freight rates will likely begin to climb as capacity becomes scarce until ships waiting outside US ports can return to normal service. Liner Operators have already announced freight rate surcharges to cover the additional operational costs that could be incurred due to the disruption.

This article will be updated whenever there is new information

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