In today’s world, being able to order items from overseas is crucial to people’s daily lives.
However, on Tuesday, September 30, dockworkers, part of the International Longshoremen’s Association (ILA) from Maine to Texas, went on strike.
“We are prepared to fight as long as necessary, to stay out on strike for whatever period of time it takes, to get the wages and protections against automation our ILA members deserve,” Harold Daggett, the leader of the ILA, said on Tuesday.
Daggett is reportedly pushing for a 61.5%-77% pay increase.
During the pandemic shipping companies made billions of dollars by charging high prices, Boise Butler, the president of the union local, argues.
“Now, we want them to pay back. They’re going to pay back,” Butler said.
The ILA is demanding a $5 dollar-hourly increase per year over a 6-year-span, meaning the highest paid wage would go from $39 to $69.
“Since Covid, they’re making billions and billions of dollars,” Harold Daggett told CNN. “But they don’t want to share it. They’d rather see a fully automated terminal right here on the East Coast so they can make more money.”
The port strikes that started Tuesday will raise the prices of cars, clothes, coffee, fruit, and even things such as toys and artificial Christmas trees for the holiday season.
“Automation Hurts Families: ILA Stands For Job Protection” is a message posted on the side of a truck in Philadelphia.
The ILA are not only fighting for better wages, but also against automation. The ILA surges that automation will put countless workers out of a job.