Longshore & Shipping News

Kwai Tsing port business suffers ‘huge’ 11pc drop from dockers’ strike

Global News Sources / ILWU Coast Longshore Division — Tue, 21 May 2013 04:14:23 +0000

The longest strike in Hong Kong’s history caused a “huge” drop of almost 11 per cent in container volume at the Kwai Tsing Container Terminals last month.

Port operator Hongkong International Terminals – the target of the dock workers’ 40-day strike which ended after they accepted a 9.8 per cent pay rise said its operations had returned to normal.

But Dr Paul Tsui Hon-yan, chairman of the Association of Freight Forwarding & Logistics, said last month’s drop was huge and that many shippers had chosen to use the Shenzhen port instead.

He said the drop had a knock-on effect across all terminals, contributing to a 12 per cent fall overall.

The strike started on March 28 and ended on Monday last week.

Preliminary figures from the Port Development Council yesterday showed that April throughput at the Kwai Tsing terminals was 1.334 million teu (20-foot equivalent units), down 10.7 per cent compared to the same period last year.

“The drop is a result of the strike. It was not a seasonal drop,” Tsui said.

“We don’t usually see a double-digit drop. The last time it happened would have been in 2009 during the financial tsunami,” he added.

Hands off dairy, say farmers across several Trans-Pacific Partnership countries

Global News Sources / ILWU Coast Longshore Division — Mon, 20 May 2013 20:27:18 +0000

This week, the Citizens Trade Campaign — a U.S. coalition of environmental, labor, consumer, family farm, religious and other civil society groups — reported that farmers and labour groups across the Pacific region are demanding that dairy be taken out of the Trans-Pacific Partnership agreement altogether. Removing all barriers to trade in milk and milk products is a major demand of New Zealand and the United States in the TPP negotiations. But U.S., Canadian and Japanese dairy farmers and workers agree this is not in the interests of family farmers in any of the participating countries.

James P. Hoffa, general president of the International Brotherhood of Teamsters, added that, “Without a strong Labor Chapter and protections for dairy workers throughout the supply chain, the TPP should not be signed.” He said the Teamsters “join the dairy farmers of North America and Japan and throughout the region, and demand that dairy be taken ‘off the table’ in the TPP talks.”

More at the Council of Canadians’ blog

Longshoreman hit by truck at Port of Portland

Global News Sources / ILWU Coast Longshore Division — Mon, 20 May 2013 17:12:05 +0000

The Associated Press has reported:

A Portland longshoreman sustained minor injuries after getting hit by a truck while picketing at the Port of Portland.

Jennifer Sargent, a spokeswoman for the International Longshore & Warehouse Union, says the worker is recovering at home after injuring his knee, elbow and back. She declined to release his identity.

The union says the incident occurred Thursday when a truck driver got into an argument with workers while trying to cross a picket line and his vehicle moved forward.

The operator of a Columbia River grain terminal locked out union dock workers two weeks ago amid an escalating contract dispute.

Published at KOIN TV

Wolfe Research: Strong Initial 2013-14 Grain Projections

Global News Sources / ILWU Coast Longshore Division — Mon, 20 May 2013 17:03:06 +0000

Excerpted from Wolfe Research:

On Friday, the USDA released its initial grain production and grain export forecasts for the upcoming 2013-14 crop year. Total corn, wheat and soybean (the 3 major crops moved by the rails) production is expected to increase 22% y/y after dropping 8% last year and 14% in total the past 3 years. The USDA also expects total exports for these 3 crops to increase 18% y/y, a major reversal from a 30%+ decline the past 2 years.

This Would Be Positive for Grain Volumes Starting in Late 3Q

Total grain vols for the U.S. rails are tracking down 6% YTD and have been weak for the past 8 qtrs. following last year’s terrible drought. Initial crop forecasts are extremely sensitive to weather conditions (last year’s crop finished 21% below last May’s initial forecast), but assuming more normal weather this year, grain vols seem likely to inflect strongly positive y/y by late 3Q and to remain positive through 1H:14. Note that the USDA’s yield assumptions for this year’s crop already assume at least some negative impact from the delayed start to this year’s planting season.

Greater Grain Exposure in the West

Among the public U.S. Class I rails, UNP and KSU have the most total grain/agriculture exposure at 16% of total rev., well above CSX and NSC at around 9%. As shown below, UNP and KSU also have relatively more export exposure than the eastern rails. By crop, the western rails are primarily leveraged more to corn and wheat, while the eastern rails are relatively more exposed to soybeans.

Link to Source: Wolfe Research

Longshoreman recovering after being struck by Marubeni-Columbia Grain customer’s semi truck at picket line

Global News Sources / ILWU Coast Longshore Division — Sat, 18 May 2013 17:44:19 +0000

PORTLAND, OR (May 18, 2013) – A Portland longshore worker is recovering at home after being struck by a Marubeni-Columbia Grain customer who was crossing an ILWU picket line at the Port of Portland on May 16. The worker, a member of ILWU Local 92, was knocked to the ground after the semi truck’s driver confronted picketers and then allowed his semi to lurch forward into about a dozen picketing workers.

“It was scary to watch one of our brothers knocked to the ground by a truck that towered over everyone in its path,” said Martin Nelson, who was ILWU Local 8’s picket captain at the time of the incident. “The semi driver lost his cool, made threats toward the picketers, and without warning, his truck lurched forward into the crowd and knocked one of us over.”

Bruce Holte, ILWU Local 8 president, said, “The District Attorney’s office is reviewing video of the semi truck driving into the picket line, and we believe any fair process will result in charges bring brought against the driver. There’s no excuse for driving into picketers and putting their lives at risk.”

The injured longshore worker was knocked to the ground and remained there until medical staff arrived. He was brought to the hospital and found to have minor injuries to his knee, elbow and back. The union is not identifying the worker out of respect for his privacy. The truck belonged to a dairy in Bellfountain, Oregon.

ILWU members are volunteering to staff round-the-clock picket lines to protest the employer-initiated lockout at the Port of Portland’s Columbia Grain, which is owned by Japan-based Marubeni. The lockout began on May 4 and results in about 75 local workers being left unemployed each day. Marubeni has hired Delaware-based strikebreaking firm J.R. Gettier and Associates to provide security and replacement workers during the lockout.

Marubeni is a member of the Pacific Northwest Grain Handlers’ Association, which also includes United Grain in Vancouver (which is owned by Japan’s Mitsui, and which locked out ILWU Local 4 members on February 27); Louis Dreyfus Commodities in Seattle and Portland (LDC is French-owned but presently headquartered in the Netherlands to avoid French tax increases on the wealthy), and Tacoma-based TEMCO, with facilities in Kalama, Tacoma and Portland. All of the employers except TEMCO imposed a concessionary agreement in December that had been rejected by 94% in a union membership vote; TEMCO continued to negotiate with the ILWU and reached an agreement that was passed by the membership by a 74% yes vote and ratified in February. The ILWU has called on Marubeni and the other foreign grain employers to return to the negotiating table and consider the TEMCO agreement for negotiations.

– ILWU Coast Longshore Division news release

Beloved Longshoreman Plunges to Death in Oakland

Global News Sources / ILWU Coast Longshore Division — Sat, 18 May 2013 03:48:18 +0000

Our condolences go out to the family, friends and colleagues of our union brother.

From NBC:

A body retrieved from a truck that went into the water off of a street in West Oakland Friday afternoon was that of a local longshoreman who had worked at the Port of Oakland for more than 50 years, a co-worker said.

The truck went into the water shortly after 1:35 p.m. near the 2800 block of Seventh Street.

“He’s a very loved man, he’s like a father to all of us,” said Frank Gaskin, a business agent with International Longshore and Warehouse Union Local 10.

Read more here

Dock worker rescued from cargo hold in Port of Wilmington, DE

Global News Sources / ILWU Coast Longshore Division — Fri, 17 May 2013 20:03:47 +0000

A 23-year-old dock worker had to be rescued from the cargo hold of a ship being unloaded at the Port of Wilmington this afternoon after a 2,000-pound coil of wire rolled on top of his chest.

About 4 p.m., rescue workers from the Wilmington Fire Department and county paramedics were called to the Port of Wilmington and went 70 feet down into the hold to evaluate the injured man, said fire department spokesman Capt. Michael Schaal. The man is listed in stable condition with leg and hip injuries.

More at Delaware Online

Second foreign grain handler locks out longshoremen

Global News Sources / ILWU Coast Longshore Division — Fri, 17 May 2013 16:04:07 +0000

The Northwest Labor Press reports on the lockouts at Mitsui-United Grain in Vancouver and Marubeni-Columbia Grain in Portland:

Pickets at both the Port of Portland and Port of Vancouver are hammering on how the foreign-owned companies are profiting from local taxpayer investments while ruining local union jobs that pay good wages and benefits.

A flier handed out at Port of Vancouver picket lines says Mitsui, owner of United Grain, “makes huge profits by using Washington’s public ports, highways and railroads.” It points out that a “$275 million West Vancouver Freight Access rail project allows Japan’s Mitsui to export grain shipments for record profits” and the “$178 million Columbia River channel deepening project moves Mitsui’s massive grain ships in and out of United Grain.”

Mitsui & Co. Inc. reported profits of $6.08 billion in 2012.

More at the Northwest Labor Press

GAO: Jones Act carriers serve reliability

Global News Sources / ILWU Coast Longshore Division — Thu, 16 May 2013 22:23:08 +0000

‘Some of the cargo imported from the United States is temperature-controlled perishable goods, such as dairy, meat and agricultural products,’ the GAO said in the report. ‘According to representatives of the Puerto Rico Farm Bureau, the cost and reliability of shipping perishable food items is important because the island has less than a week’s supply of perishables at any given time.’

Puerto Rico has less than one week’s supply of fresh foods stored on the island at any given time, making reliable food deliveries one of the key advantages of the Jones Act, according to a study by the General Accountability Office.

Asked to study the effect the cabotage law has on Puerto Rico’s economy following the conviction of Jones Act carrier executives for price-fixing in the market several years ago, the GAO said its findings were inconclusive. Repealing or amending the Jones Act cabotage law might cut Puerto Rico shipping costs but would have a “highly uncertain” impact on competition and the U.S. shipping industry.

More at the Journal of Commerce

Longshore union: NBA vote against Seattle a chance to ‘take a deep breath’

Global News Sources / ILWU Coast Longshore Division — Thu, 16 May 2013 18:23:19 +0000

While NBA fans were disappointed after Wednesday’s decision by the league to reject a plan to move the Sacramento Kings to Seattle, not everyone in the Emerald City was that upset.

Freight industry leaders have been fighting plans to build a basketball arena in Seattle’s Sodo area. And the local longshore union has legal action against the Sodo arena plan.

On Wednesday, after the NBA Board of Governors voted against the Seattle group, International Longshore and Warehouse Union (ILWU) local 19 sent a letter asking “elected leaders to step back, take a deep breath” and consider Memorial Stadium and KeyArena as realistic options for an NBA arena.

More at the Puget Sound Business Journal