LA and Long Beach Watchmen Strike Delayed Until Nov 4
A strike threatening some of the busiest container terminals in the United States has been put off. The Pacific Maritime Association (PMA) and the International Longshore and Warehouse Union (ILWU) Local 26 agreed to extend their negotiations through 4 November.
PMA announced the extension on Friday. Both sides signed it, and it runs until 5 p.m. Pacific Time on Wednesday, 4 November. It avoids a walkout that had been threatened for 1 November. Talks will continue with help from the Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service.
Small group, large reach
The dispute involves about 250 maritime watchmen, represented by Local 26, who do security-related work at terminals across the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach. The number is small. According to PMA, Local 26 members work at terminals that handle roughly 85% of the cargo moving through the Port of Long Beach and 33% of the cargo at the Port of Los Angeles.
PMA has warned that other ILWU workers are unlikely to cross Local 26 picket lines. That could halt vessel, yard and gate operations at the affected terminals. The union had named eight terminal locations that a walkout could hit.
A contract that expired in July 2025
The two sides have been negotiating since the previous contract expired in July 2025. Local 26 accuses the employers of failing to make meaningful progress. PMA says significant differences remain after more than a year of bargaining.
"PMA remains committed to reaching a fair agreement at the bargaining table that avoids disruption at the nation's two busiest ports," the employer association said on Friday.
The stakes are high for the Southern California port complex. It handled a combined record 2.04 million twenty-foot equivalent units (TEUs) in September. The underlying labour dispute remains unresolved, and the next deadline is Wednesday afternoon.
Source: gCaptain