Labor dispute at West Coast ports ends with pay hike for dockworkers

The deal also includes retroactive pay at that increased rate for the hours that dockworkers worked during the eight months without a contract — a major point of contention in the final stages of negotiation.

Delegates from each of the union’s chapters will convene for one week in July to approve the details of the contract, which will then be sent to the Pacific Maritime Association to be ratified in August.

“We are pleased to have reached an agreement that recognizes the heroic efforts and personal sacrifices of the ILWU workforce in keeping our ports operating,” said Adams and Pacific Maritime Association President James McKenna in a joint statement. “We are also pleased to turn our full attention back to the operation of the West Coast Ports.”

The ports at Los Angeles; Long Beach, Calif.; Oakland, Calif.; and Seattle serve as critical gateways for container ships bringing imports from Asia. They collectively process hundreds of billions of dollars in cargo each year for products such as agricultural goods, manufacturing components and consumer electronics.

Business groups, including the National Retail Federation, have called those supply lines “crucial” to their operations as they urged the White House to broker a deal.

Pay and automation concerns