The Latest Breaking News from ILWU

LA’s bustling ports hit by Trump tariffs: ‘Everyone in the US will feel this’

Traffic is down at America’s busiest port complex – and anxious dock workers are fearful of further economic harm

The Guardian - US · May 4, 2025

The future happens in Oakland first. That’s a cautionary tale for global cities

International trade boomed with the city’s early adoption of technological and economic changes, but Black neighborhoods became ‘sacrifice zones’

The Guardian - US · Mar 22, 2025

Martin Luther King Jr. was a strong friend of labor

King, who championed economic as well as racial justice, called labor unions “the first anti-poverty program,” a Western Illinois University professor writes.

Chicago Sun-Times · Jan 15, 2024

Southern California ports shut Friday due to worker shortage, snarling cargo traffic

LOS ANGELES — A dockworker shortage at the Los Angeles and Long Beach ports stretched into its second day on Friday, halting cargo traffic at the massive shipping complex while disrupting the local economy and the global supply chain.

Los Angeles Times · Apr 7, 2023

At Port of Tacoma, unions step in to help foreign seafarers get paid

When grain-carrying ship ASL Uranus docked in the Port of Tacoma this month, 15 Burmese seafarers spoke up: They hadn’t been paid in full for seven months, unlike their Chinese and Vietnamese co-workers. Unions stepped in to help and ensure the workers’ safety.

Tribune News Service · Feb 23, 2023

Before the holiday season, workers at America's busiest ports are fighting the robots

As the shipping industry pushes for more automation at West Coast ports, the powerful union representing dockworkers is fighting back, saying robots will only kill good American jobs.

WEKU · Sep 11, 2022

Retired labor leader says his former union must think outside the box to save jobs

James Spinosa led the West Coast dockworkers union through tumultuous shifts to new technologies over decades. With the shipping industry now pushing for more automation, he reflects on what's ahead.

WEKU · Sep 11, 2022

Workers want raises. Shippers want robots. The supply chain hinges on reaching a deal

The immediate future of the global supply chain rests on a bargaining table in San Francisco, where the union representing all West Coast dockworkers is hashing out a new contract with the assembled bosses of maritime shipping.

Los Angeles Times · Jun 7, 2022

What West Coast ports' labor negotiations mean for your packages

As the U.S.’s largest ports in California moved record amounts of cargo amid pandemic-induced supply-chain bottlenecks, union dockworkers strengthened their indispensable role in the nation’s logistics network.

Tribune News Service · May 26, 2022

Contract talks near for thousands of West Coast dockworkers

Contract negotiations between 22,000 workers at 29 West Coast ports and representatives of shipping companies will begin next week with automation and its impact on jobs emerging as a major point of contention amid supply chain issues

The Independent UK · May 6, 2022