Most businesses report minimal impact, despite claims from driver groups that the strike is causing “massive disruptions.”
A strike by truck drivers against four trucking companies that move containers in and out of marine and rail terminals near the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach entered its fourth day on Thursday.
The drivers participating in the strike want to be recognized as employees, as opposed to independent contractors, and have the right to join a labor union.
About 500 drivers work for the four companies being targeted, and the Teamster affiliated group Justice for Port Truck Drivers said several hundred workers are striking Intermodal Bridge Transport, Pacific 9 Transportation (Pac 9), Pacer Cartage, and Harbor Rail Transport
“Picket lines were up all night and will continue today,” said Barb
Maynard, a spokesman for the Teamsters. “Picket lines will also swell in
San Diego at Toyota as allies join Pacer drivers in support.” Maynard said Pacer
Cartage trucks bring cargo to Toyota’s Otay Mesa facility just north
of the border for transfer to Toyota Mexico’s manufacturing plants, and the strike is causing significant disruption to Toyota’s cross-border operations.
The union claimed a picket line at the Port of Los Angeles created major disruption Tuesday night and Wednesday morning and led some marine terminals to reject trucks from struck companies. A rally and march was held in Los Angeles on Wednesday.
The group claimed that some company owners were “desperately trying to make private deals with individual striking drivers on picket lines” but that drivers were telling them “talk to the Teamsters.”
The ports told a different story on Wednesday, saying the strike was having a relatively minor effect on operations.
A spokesman for Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti said earlier this week that the ports are serviced by “800 trucking companies operating 13,700 trucks, so there are plenty of trucks and drivers to keep commerce flowing.”
“Things are pretty much normal here today,” said Phillip Sanfield, a spokesman for the Port of Los Angeles, on Wednesday. There was “Little to no impact on flow of trucks in/out of terminals. Handful of pickets (less than 5) at a couple terminals. We’ve heard that some terminals are turning away the companies targeted by truckers. I don’t have specific info on that though.”
Art Wong, a spokesman at the Port of Long Beach, said there was “no noticeable impact at Long Beach terminals. We’ve heard terminals might turn away trucks, but no way for us to tell.”
“Most terminals are reporting no effects,” said John Cushing, president of PierPass. “One terminal reported that they have picketers blocking trucks from entering/exiting in 2 minute increments.”
Weston LaBar, executive director of the Harbor Trucking Association, a group that represents drayage companies said, “Our members reported minimal impacts as a result of the labor activities. I cannot speak to any specific impacts or who may have been affected.
“However, these impacts, be it perceived or actual, are the same impacts we as an association warned against prior to the labor picketing,” LaBar added. “Our ports are still recovering from a major congestion crisis, which was compounded by labor unrest and they are doing a commendable job working towards a more reliable and consistent flow of cargo.
“The fact is that we have lost a great deal of cargo to other seaports in recent months and we don’t need to give cargo owners another excuse to move their cargo elsewhere. When we lose cargo we lose jobs!” he said.
“Yesterday’s actions continue to put Southern California jobs in jeopardy and this is the wrong time to further an agenda. The overwhelming majority of truck drivers prefer to be owner operators because they see the opportunity to earn a better living and have flexibility over work hours. They want more than just the keys to a truck; they want keys to their future. That is exactly what being an owner operator provides and what the HTA stands for. Let’s get back to work moving America’s cargo,” said LaBar.
Fred Potter, a Teamster vice president and head of the union’s port division, said on the Rick Smith radio program the drivers were “about as independent as a soldier in the U.S. Army, that is how independent they are. They have to follow the commander’s line and if not, they are not going to be there. They have no say in the rates or when they work or what they haul.
“We are making progress,” Potter said, noting that several companies have agreed to make drivers employees. Most recently, Green Fleet Systems announced it would make the switch to an employee driver model over the weekend.
Port driver strike enters fourth day in Los Angeles, Long Beach
