
According to employers, the attractive wages and working conditions - which the American port workers’ unions have ensured through decades of negotiations with their employers - are one of the major reasons why the current negotiations for a new six-year agreement have collapsed, now threatening to block the entry of almost half of the United States’ container import. Employers say that the wages and “antiquated” working conditions have reached a level that undermines the competitiveness of the major East Coast ports, such as New York and New Jersey.
“Members of the ILA (International Longshoremen’s Association) are among the most highly paid workers in the United States, with an average annual salary of USD 124,138, putting them at the top of all American workers. Port workers make an average of USD 50 an hour, or more than twice as much as an average worker, and they have better health insurance,” says a statement that is right now the employers in the United States Maritime Alliance’s sole response to the collapse of negotiations.
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