SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - West Coast shippers and terminal operators on Wednesday accused the powerful longshoremen's union of staging a work slowdown at two ports and vowed to take ``defensive'' action such as a lockout that could shut docks that handle more than half of U.S. trade.þþThe Pacific Maritime Association, which is negotiating a new contract with the 10,500-member International Longshore & Warehouse Union, said the slowdown began Monday at the Port of Long Beach and spread to the Port of Oakland on Wednesday.þþA spokesman for the union, which has been engaged in contract negotiations with port employers for five months, denied that there had been a slowdown at Long Beach and said there were simply not enough workers to fill the jobs.þþSteve Stallone, the union spokesman, said in the workers in Oakland left their jobs because the employer switched the lunch hour to a time that conflicted with a planned demonstration.þþ``This is not a slowdown,'' he added. ``We are still at the bargaining table.''þþStallone added shippers and retailers have been rushing to get their goods to American shores out of fear a breakdown in contract talks could lead to a shutdown of the 29 U.S. ports under the ILWU's jurisdiction.þþAnalysts have warned that closing the docks -- either through a strike or a lockout --- could cripple the U.S. economy, causing disruptions for a wide range of companies and shutting down the import of everything from cars to children's clothing. U.S. exporters would also suffer.þþThe U.S. trade deficit shrank 6 percent in July to $34.55 billion, led by record exports of U.S. autos and auto parts and high volumes of civilian aircraft and food, feeds and beverages, the U.S. Commerce Department said on Wednesday.þþThe talks have also been closely watched in Washington, where the White House has raised the possibility of intervening to prevent a strike.þþLabor Secretary Elaine Chao, on a visit to Los Angeles on Wednesday, urged both sides to continue contract talks. ``We've been very respectful of the collecting bargaining process,'' Secretary of Labor Elaine Chao told Reuters in a brief interview.þþ``We strongly encourage both sides to continue speaking,'' Chao said.þþIn response to a question of whether the Bush administration would impose a cooling-off period in the event that employers opt to lock out union workers, Chao said: ``We hope it will not come to that. I want to emphasize how important it is to both sides to come to an agreement.''þþThe employers' association did not say how it might respond but options could include a lockout. A decision could come as early as Thursday morning. The talks have deadlocked around the issue of how to implement new technology on the docks.þþWhile the union said there was no targeted slowdown, the employers' association president Joseph Miniace told Reuters PMA representatives at the longshoremen hiring hall heard dispatchers direct workers not to take work at the Stevedoring Services terminal in Long Beach.þþIn Oakland, the association said 20 union workers halted operations during a shift by going home early without providing replacement workers. þþUNION ESCALATION?þþ``The union has escalated this to another level,'' Miniace told Reuters. ``There are a number of options available and I don't want to limit myself to a West Coast lockout but that is an option.''þþThe slowdown highlights growing tensions in the negotiations covering dockworkers at the West Coast ports that handle more than $300 billion worth of goods annually.þþThe high-stakes contract negotiations between the Pacific Maritime Association and the union -- one of the most powerful and best-paid in the nation -- have been moving slowly since the longshoremen's contract expired on July 1. Most union dock workers make more than $80,000 per year.þþThe timing is also critical because September is the peak month for imports from Asia, including Christmas merchandise bound for shelves of U.S. retailers.þþLongshoremen with the ILWU have been working on day-to-day contracts since their last contract expired.þþBut the union recently allowed the temporary contract to run out after talks fell apart on the issue of new technology for the ports -- innovations employers say are necessary to keep port operations competitive but which labor leaders fear may cost union jobs.þþThe West Coast docks have not seen a strike since 1971 when dockworkers walked off the job for four months, but the association noted the union staged slowdowns in 1996 and 1999.þþEconomists warn that even short closures of ports serving West Coast cities could cost the U.S. economy billions of dollars and rattle international financial markets.þþStephen Cohen, a professor at the University of California at Berkeley, said in a study in January that a five-day shutdown would cost the national economy $4.7 billion, while a 20-day stoppage would result in a $48.6 billion hit.þþIn labor disputes involving industries key to the national interest, the White House has the power, under the Taft-Hartley Act, to order employees back to work during an 80-day cooling off period. þþ
Source: NY Times
