Union leader slams ‘crazy’ shipping companies for refusing to ‘share’ ‘billions’ gained during violence.
FOX Business Correspondent Lydia Hu reports on the latest on the longshoremen’s strike after speaking with International Longshoremen’s Association President Harold J. Daggett.
Shipping companies have made billions during the COVID-19 crisis, Longshoremen’s Association International President Harold J. Daggett told FOX Business on Tuesday.
Now, he insists, “cash-crazed” businesses are pushing ahead with automatic pressures.
“It’s been a long time coming,” Daggett told reporter Lydia Hu about the strike that began Tuesday at midnight as an agreement between the dockers and the estimated 45,000 members of the International Longshoremen’s Association (ILA) reached its final stage.
This is the first time that this union has gone on strike in nearly 50 years.
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Harold Daggett, president of the ILA, criticized the shipping companies while speaking with FOX Business’ Lydia Hu. (FOX Business)
“Things were difficult at that time [in 1977]. We entered the $0.80 strike. Companies have only made 5 to 10 million dollars, but from COVID and pre-Covid’ until now, they are making billions and billions of dollars. It’s a completely different story, but they don’t want to share it. They would like to see fully automated terminals right here on the East Coast to make more money. They’re crazy about money,” Daggett continued.
“There is not one company in the United States, but they want to eliminate our jobs in the United States, that’s why we are all fighting here. Jurisdiction, health, wages. A lot of things, and they don’t want to come to the table and share.”
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A container ship leaves the port of Newark in Elizabeth, New Jersey, US, Monday, September 30, 2024. (Photographer: Michael Nagle/Bloomberg via Getty Images/Getty Images)
Thousands of workers began walking picket lines at midnight on Tuesday, marking what many warned could be a difficult time for the nation, with shortages looming and prices expected to rise if the strike goes on for much longer.
So far, there is no end in sight.
Information from Politico shows that the union’s constitution allows Daggett to call a strike without a vote of union members, and he previously urged his intention to allow the strike to go into effect unless the United States Maritime Alliance, which negotiates on behalf of the port industry, joins. ILA demands.
The organization maintains that the ILA failed to come to the table, which the ILA denies, according to Politico.
PORT WORKER SPEAKS ON HISTORY OF PICKET: ‘WE HAVE TAKEN LESS THAN WE SHOULD HAVE BEFORE’
Nicholas Wealth Management CEO David Nicholas explains how a port strike could affect the stock market and the economy as a whole in ‘Varney & Co.’
The center also warned the economic shock of the strike could have a negative impact on the Biden-Harris administration, especially as the vice president tries to portray the economy in a positive light.
While some of the demands are still unclear, Politico reported that some numbers are floating around indicating that Daggett is asking for a raise of nearly 80% over the next six years, a percentage the union denies while insisting it is closer to 60%.
Union records from the Department of Labor, meanwhile, show Daggett earned a total of $728,000 last year.
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The head of the National Association of Wholesaler-Distributors, Eric Hoplin, responded to President Biden saying that he will not intervene in the strikes at the port and discuss the ILA that wants to close the vending machine at the port.
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