Excerpts from the Journal of Commerce:

Striking office clerical workers and their employers agreed Tuesday to accept federal mediation in an attempt to end the week-long strike that has crippled the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach.

Dozens of trade and transportation groups have pleaded with negotiators to accept mediation in a dispute that has already cost the national economy billions of dollars. One hundred organizations signed a joint letter to President Obama seeking engagement from the White House, including a request for a Taft-Hartley back-to-work injunction if needed.

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