Port of LA workers on strike; imports suffering

[CaptainMattJ.]

http://www.mercurynews.com/news/ci_22088656/strike-idles-busiest-port-los-angeles-pier

So apparently these clerical workers have been offered 190k a year, compelte job security, a month of paid vacation, 14 sick days, and a plethora of other benefits...and they want more.

My god, some people just can't seem to be satisfied with anything....:nope:

15 billion dollars in estimated losses the last time this happened, can't imagine this absurdity to be any less unless these people pull their head out of their butt.

[yubba]

I guess that's 190k more than they are worth....greedy little monkeys.

[Jimbuna]

If the strike has been ruled as being invalid won't the employers have this dispute 'lawfully' dismantled/broken up? :hmmm:

[Stealhead]

Well arbitration might mean something a bit different in the UK.In the US it means that a third party that is supposed be neutral goes over the issue at hand.It is not the same a legal ruling and it is not uncommon in the US for the arbitrator to not be neutral at all in this case who can say.

Where does it say that the workers get or where offered 190k a year no company would agree to such collective bargaining. I see that no where in the article.That sounds like a made up number to me.

It sounds like a more two sided issue here one side claims that their jobs are being sent over seas the other claims that the union is trying to feather bed somewhere in between is the truth and I trust neither side given the vague information coming form media outlets.

Oh best offer to them was 90k per year(highest paid worker) and up 75k in pensions(what the highest paid worker gets for retirement). Every story I see lists
a different amount for what they get paid.

At any rate they are only going increase the move to more electronic automation so even if the workers have a fair argument they will loose in the long run.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/11/28/strike-shuts-down-port-of-la-clerical-workers_n_2205200.html

http://www.dcvelocity.com/articles/20121128-clerical-workers-strike-shuts-port-of-la-busiest-terminal/

[Jimbuna]

Yes I was also looking for the figure because even in US $ it is a hansome wage for clerical workers.

[Stealhead]

In my opinion when ever unions go on strike due to their controversy with some there is almost always some exaggeration as to pay and benefits.True some unions do get a bit out of hand but I lay as much blame on whom ever they have contracted with as the union itself.If you allow to much people will demand more and more.

Some people wonder how can so many show up for a strike.The reason is that part of union dues go into a fund that pays each member when they do go on strike it will not be their regular wage but it will allow them to strike.

I have mixed opinions about unions so long as one is reasonable I see no issue with them.It is when they go out of control and demand too much and do things that they should not do like
feather bedding that they go too far.Of course at the same time many companies will do what ever they can to have things their way as well both can be wrong.In this case I think that is the issue they have been in negotiations since June 2010 all parties should be ashamed of themselves if you ask me.

[Jimbuna]

I reckon the most noble deed of a union would be to protect the workers rights and support and represent them in employment relation matters but we all know many unions go much further than that.

[Stealhead]

True no one is reasonable any more in it for themselves in one way or another.What they don't realize is in the long run they wind up hurting themselves if you demand too much you demand yourself out of a job.

This is not the case everywhere but in some parts of the US industries once union dominated now there are non union auto factories mostly in the south and of course they are not US owned companies these places wind up offering many of the same benefits as a union job but without dues.

The problem is if you demand too much you'll run yourself out unless you are truly niche.Down in Florida there are some yacht manufactures and they all use these Korean Americans painters that have this union thing is they are all Korean they do really good work as well and they have tier little union it is pretty funny really the union car is an Acura TL.Of course I don't think there are very many members in this union so that is why they ride around in the TL.Just imagine if there was 100 Korean ship painters though would they still want the TLs?Of course they already cheat because they don't allow just anyone to join their little union.Another ship painter he might not have all of that bling like Koreans maybe if he marries a Korean woman they will let him join.

Most of the other workers at this ship yard are not union and they get low wages so one group gets alot and another gets almost nothing.My guess is that the company pays that Korean union a lot and skimps on most other workers short of skilled welders and carpenters but you really don't need very many of those types on yachts they only finish one at a time in this small yard so maybe 2 per shift.

[vienna]

So apparently these clerical workers have been offered 190k a year, compelte job security, a month of paid vacation, 14 sick days, and a plethora of other benefits...and they want more.



I live in Los Angeles and the news reports here state the 190k figure is top end compensation (newbies don't earn anywhere near that much); also, the 190k figure is total compensation, not just salary. If you take out the non-paycheck items (insurance, pension, etc), the actual on the paycheck, "put it in the bank" salary is fairly reasonable. The reports here have the unions more agitated over the outsourcing of jobs currently in place in L.A. Harbor to other places and countries. The unions are demanding job security and the management appears to be balking at the idea. The management states there has been no outsourcing and there are no plans to outsource. The unions, on their part, seem unable to produce any eveidence of an outsourcing policy or problem...

<O>

[Jimbuna]

I live in Los Angeles and the news reports here state the 190k figure is top end compensation (newbies don't earn anywhere near that much); also, the 190k figure is total compensation, not just salary. If you take out the non-paycheck items (insurance, pension, etc), the actual on the paycheck, "put it in the bank" salary is fairly reasonable. The reports here have the unions more agitated over the outsourcing of jobs currently in place in L.A. Harbor to other places and countries. The unions are demanding job security and the management appears to be balking at the idea. The management states there has been no outsourcing and there are no plans to outsource. The unions, on their part, seem unable to produce any eveidence of an outsourcing policy or problem...

<O>

This is often the usual position when both sides fail to reach agreement....then the courts step in to make a definitive decision.

In the UK anyway.

[Stealhead]

It happens about the same in the US.

[vienna]

This is often the usual position when both sides fail to reach agreement....then the courts step in to make a definitive decision.

In the UK anyway.


Unless it is an industry related to or directly and seriously affecting national security or public well-being, the courts tend to try to stay out of strike matters. However, there are available Federal labor negotiators and I heard a couple of hours ago both sides have agreed to Federal arbitration...

As a BTW, since the ports are closed, some shippers are sending their ships south of the border a relatvely short distance to Ensenada, Mexico to offload cargo and then get them to market via trucks. So, in essence, the jobs the union feared would be outsourced are, at least for the duration of the strike, being outsourced to Mexico...

And, as an FYI, the clerical union memebers have been working at their jobs for about acouple of years now without a new contract, negotiations have stretched out that long...

<O>

[Jimbuna]

All round a sad matter but industrial relations issues usually are.

[Jimbuna]

Looks like everything is sorted out now:


A deal has been reached to end a strike at the port of Los Angeles which has been disrupting the nation's busiest shipping complex for a week, the mayor of Los Angeles has announced.
Clerical workers had been fighting a proposal to increase staff outsourcing.
Federal mediators from Washington DC helped broker the deal, the mayor said.


http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-20605432