TRUCKER GROUP OPPOSES BIDEN’S LABOUR SECRETARY PICK OVER AB5 SUPPORT
A trucker group has come out against the White House’s secretary of labour because of her support of the controversial California worker classification legislation AB5 while she was the state’s labour chief. “Make no mistake, if were to advance the same policies that they championed in California, it would force hundreds of thousands of truckers to change their business model and put their livelihood in jeopardy,” the Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association (OOIDA) said in a letter sent to all US senators.
VISIBILITY PROVIDERS TARGET CHALLENGES OF CONTAINER TERMINAL MILESTONE DATA
The race to improve the visibility of container terminal milestone data sought by shippers geared up over the past week as vendors Vizion and project44 both unveiled new products. Vizion, which focuses purely on ocean container visibility, said it has established direct connections with 60 ports and terminals in the US and abroad, and will use data feeds with
those terminals to offer two new alerts to its shipper and logistics service provider (LSP) customers. The new alerts highlight key milestones: the last free day for a container in a terminal before demurrage fees begin to accrue, and when a container is available for pickup by a drayage carrier. Those alerts are added to existing Vizion data milestones for when a container is discharged from a vessel, gated out of a port, and returned empty. Separately it has beefed up its terminal data offering, called Ocean Terminal Visibility, by providing container discharge events — location, last-free day information, and status, including holds, customs clearance, and availability for pickup. The new products from project44 and Vizion are a signal that terminal visibility remains a troublesome area for shippers, especially involving demurrage fees related to the late collection of laden import boxes.
ILWU OFFICE CLERICAL UNIT NEGOTIATIONS UNDER WAY IN LA-LB
Negotiations for a new contract between clerical office workers at the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach and the shipping lines and terminal operators they work for are under way, talks that have the potential to disrupt cargo flow should complications arise. The current six-year contract between the office workers who process shipping documentation, represented by the International Longshore and Warehouse Union Local 63 Office Clerical Unit (OCU), and their employers expires on June 30. Preliminary discussions between Local 63 OCU and employers have thus far dealt with more minor issues.
US SE PORTS PREPPING FOR MORE GROWTH AMID CONTINUED WEST COAST DIVERSIONS
US importers of Asian-made goods are increasingly favouring ports in the Southeast, particularly Savannah, given the lack of a US West Coast longshore labour deal and continued enhancements to increase berth capacity and landside cargo flow. Southeast coast ports — Savannah, Norfolk, Charleston, Wilmington, Jacksonville, Everglades, and Miami — handled 20.9 percent of that total last year, up from 19.8 percent in 2021, thanks to a 5.2 percent increase in volume. West Coast ports, on the other hand, saw their market share dip to 56.4 percent from 59.9 percent owing to a 6.1 percent decline in volume.
ILWU CANADA TALKS BEGIN WITH FOCUS ON WAGES, AUTOMATION: SOURCES
Longshore workers at the Western Canadian ports of Vancouver and Prince Rupert are seeking significant increases in wages in their first proposal to employers as the two sides this week begin negotiating a new contract to replace the current five year deal expiring at the end of March. Automation of cargo-handling equipment, a source of tension in past contract negotiations, will likely once again be a prominent issue. The International Longshore and Warehouse Union (ILWU) Canada and its 12 locals and the BC Maritime Employers Association (BCMEA), representing container lines and marine terminals, exchanged proposals two weeks ago and formally began negotiations Monday, according to two people familiar with the process who spoke on the condition of anonymity.