Dock strike averted; talks will continue

Advertiser Staff and News Services

Hawai'i's longshore industry has agreed to an indefinite extension of its current labor contract, allowing negotiations to continue without interruption after the contract expires tomorrow.

The move comes as the Bush administration yesterday encouraged West Coast dock workers and companies to reach an agreement before their contract expires and avoid a work slowdown or strike. West Coast officials said earlier this week that contract negotiations are not going well. Hundreds of longshore workers rallied Thursday, warning they will strike if no progress is made in talks this weekend.

The West Coast contract, which expires at 2 p.m. Hawai'i time Monday, covers about 10,500 members of the International Longshore and Warehouse Union and the Pacific Maritime Association, which control the flow of goods through the nation's 29 major Pacific ports.

Any work stoppage would slow goods to a trickle and ripple through the nation's economy, particularly in Hawai'i, where shipping accounts for about 90 percent of goods to the state.

Yesterday's contract extension by the Hawaii Employers Council, representing the local stevedoring industry, and Local 142 of the International Longshore and Warehouse Union, ensures the continuation of local longshore work and talks, which began yesterday.

A White House spokesman would not say whether President Bush would intervene in the West Coast longshore contract talks if negotiations break down. The Taft-Hartley Act allows a president to block a strike for 80 days if a dispute in a substantial segment of an industry will "imperil the national health or safety."