Carriers are now announcing the implementation of congestion surcharges. The carriers filed the potential surcharges with the FMC in anticipation of labor disruption on the West Coast. As “disruption” was loosely defined, they have the legal right to implement the surcharges. The bad news is that most carriers are announcing the surcharges take effect on cargo discharging on or after November 17, 2014.
What can importers do about this?
Today, at the Ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach, port truckers from Total Transportation Services Inc (TTSI) and Pacific 9 Transportation (Pac 9) have resumed their strike protesting "severe and continuing labor violations" with the support of the Teamsters.
Currently, deliveries into the port have come to a halt. Teamsters have assembled picket lines at two terminals and will picket if company trucks attempt to enter.
According to the Journal of Commerce, productivity increased slightly this week at the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach as well as Seattle and Tacoma. However, at the Port of Oakland, the situation turned sour as ILWU members walked off their jobs for the third day in a row.
Congestion is still posing a serious problem to West Coast ports as negotiations between the ILWU and PMA continue to take place. We can only hope that a resolution will come soon.
To see the full JOC article, visit their website, www.joc.com.
WSSA has joined forces with a number of organizations from varying industries in endorsing a letter to the President, Secretaries, Congress, Governors, and the Press. The letter requests assistance in ensuring that the congestion issues plaguing the West Coast do not lead to a complete shut down of ports
Work stoppage concerns are escalating at the Ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach as terminals continue to experience skilled labor shortages, specifically in the way of Rubber Tire Gantry (RTG) operators. These operators man the transtainers that pick containers and place them on truck chassis.
Terminals are reporting getting half to less-than-half of what they are ordering.
