This education link has been set up to keep all ILA members informed of what’s taking place in our industry; past and present. This site will include articles, stories, photographs and videos. At times, some of the videos will include training and be educational. Other times, we will take a look into our past and learn more and more about the history of this union and how it was built into what it is today.
ILA Education/History
OFFICIAL ILA EDUCATION/HISTORY PAGE ENDORSED BY OUR INTERNATIONAL
Never forget the sacrifices ILA members made to build our great union into what it is today
Jacksonville, FL
Third Bi-annual South Atlantic and Gulf Coast District, ILA Women’s Conference Brings Together Hundreds Of “ILA Women on the Waterfront” to Jacksonville, Florida.
JACKSONVILLE, FL (March 5, 2026) - The 3rd bi-annual South Atlantic Gulf Coast District, ILA Women’s Maritime Conference officially set sail in Jacksonville on March 5, welcoming women from across the maritime industry for several days of networking, learning, and leadership development. The conference opened with registration and an evening welcome reception, giving attendees the opportunity to reconnect with colleagues, meet new faces, and celebrate the growing impact of women across ports.
This year’s gathering marks another milestone for the conference as it continues to strengthen a community dedicated to professional growth and mentorship within the maritime workforce. Participants represent a wide range of roles—from port operations and labor to administration and leadership—highlighting the diverse contributions women make throughout the industry.
Leading the 2026 conference are co-chairs Betty Hooker and Lovette McGill, whose leadership and vision have helped bring this year’s event together. Through their dedication and collaboration, the conference continues to expand its reach, creating opportunities for women to connect, share experiences, and inspire the next generation of maritime professionals.
As the conference begins, the energy and enthusiasm in Jacksonville set the tone for the days ahead. With engaging discussions, workshops, and meaningful connections on the horizon, the 3rd bi-annual ILA Women’s Maritime Conference promises to be another powerful step forward in supporting and celebrating women in the maritime industry.
Thank you ILA Chief of Staff Jim McNamara for sharing this to us
#InternationalLongshoremensAssociation
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Jacksonville, FL
2026 ILA WOMEN’S CONFERENCE
SOUTHBANK HOTEL
JACKSONVILLE RIVERWALK
JACKSONVILLE, FL
**WOMEN OF THE ILA….MAKING HISTORY**
The Biannual ILA Women’s Conference began in Jacksonville in 2022. In 2024 it took place in Savannah and in 2026 it is back in Jacksonville.
Please scroll through the photographs of the ILA Women’s Conference Welcome Reception, which took place last night, March 5, 2026.
Photo Credits:
Mary Jaeger
ILA International
ILA Local 512 Vice President/Recording Secretary
Thank You!
#InternationalLongshoremensAssociation
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Ok Ladies.🙏🏾🌺. Blessings all the way from ILA Local-1329. …Providence RI
Jacksonville, FL
ILA Local 1235 ladies attend the 3rd biannual ILA WOMEN’S CONFERENCE in Jacksonville, FL
#InternationalLongshoremensAssociation
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P yes yes yes yes yes that's what I like to see that's what I'm talking about lady rule
🫶🙌🙌
Port of Boston
ILA WORKING AROUND THE CLOCK MOVING THE WORLD’S CARGO
The Ever Fore making a grand entrance in the Port of Boston this evening. This Evergreen container ship was built in 2021, is 1,100 in length, and has a max capacity of 11,888 teu’s. Two gangs working over night by Locals 799, 800, 805, 1066, and 1604.
Photo Credit:
Eugene Stancato
Vice President, ILA Local 800
Thank You!
#InternationalLongshoremensAssociation
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Port of Brisbane Australia.
Port of Avilés, Spain
-Not One Step Back
-An injury To One Is An Injury To All
-You Will Never Walk Alone Again
-If We Are Together, It Is Impossible To Fail
-If It’s A Fight They Want, It’s A War They’re Gonna Get
-Which Side Are You On?
A MESSAGE FROM IDC LABOR COORDINATOR JORDI ARAGUNDE AS OUR DOCKWORKER SISTERS AND BROTHERS FROM THE PORT OF AVILÉS, SPAIN CONTINUE TO FIGHT FOR BETTER WAGES AND WORKING CONDITIONS ON THE WATERFRONT:
These are the consequences when someone makes it their only objective to liquidate and dismantle the dockers’ workplace and rob dozens of dockworkers—both permanent and casual—of their future.
But today I want to say something else, something even stronger: I am incredibly proud of the dockers of Avilés. After 14 days of struggle, they continue to stand firm. Their unity, solidarity, and determination are a true example of dignity, resistance, and working-class strength.
They remind us of something fundamental: when workers stand together, they are stronger than any attempt to divide or erase them.
We continue to call for unity among all, to remain strong, organized, and combative. And we call on the Principality of Asturias, the City Council, and the Port Authority to step up and play their role. Public institutions must protect their workers from the voracity of companies that only see profit.
We are not asking for privileges.
We ask for dignity and a future for the families of permanent and casual dockworkers, and for the entire port community.
They seek profit.
They seek to weaken us.
They seek to precarize our work.
But as I learned very well during the ILA strike with Dennis at the front, our unity and the justice of our cause are our greatest weapons.
Many people are already showing their solidarity.
Now is the time to turn that solidarity into action and show those companies that want to eliminate us that they will not succeed.
Until victory.
Not one step back
Please take a moment to watch this video that was sent to us this morning of the dockworkers passion on full display to fight for their livelihood in Spain.
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Toda mi respeto y solidaridad compañeros
Keep pushing!!! Not one step back! Solidarity!! ✊🏻💪🏻🙏🏻❤️
Port of Baltimore
ILA EDUCATION AND TRAINING
ILA MEMBERS OUT OF THE PORT OF PHILADELPHIA VISIT THE PORT OF BALTIMORE
ILA Locals 1291,1566 and 1242 out of the Port of Philadelphia visited the Port of Baltimore earlier this week to check out the operations and training that take place at that port.
Discussions took place of what they do in Baltimore on a daily basis so the ILA members can take those practices back to Philadelphia to implement them and put them in place moving forward in the future.
In photograph, left to right:
Mike McCann, Jason Young, Craig Slattery, Chris Barry, Jason Casper, Michael Coe, David Saunders, Robert Daly, Al Braun, Maurice Mulgrew.
#InternationalLongshoremensAssociation
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Yes indeed!!!
Great to see the brotherhood working together and sharing knowledge between ports. Stronger together. ⚓
Looking good boys!!
👊🏻
👍🇺🇸
💪🏼
💪🏾
Training… ro ro training and lash g has strongly been supported by WW
Go Union
Only one is black smh
1410 mobile Alabama
Solidarity 💪🏾✊🏾
My 1291 crew 💪🏽💪🏽💪🏽
ILA all the way!!!
ILA
Hello Baltimore I and with ILWU in Los Angeles
Kingz
A MESSAGE FROM ILA INTERNATIONAL EXECUTIVE VICE PRESIDENT DENNIS A. DAGGETT:
“There are moments in history when working people are reminded of something powerful. Alone, a worker can be ignored. Together, workers can move the world.
Dockworkers have understood this truth for generations. Our industry stretches across oceans and continents, yet when one group of dockworkers is in a fight, the entire global waterfront pays attention.
In 2024, during the ILA strike, we witnessed that power once again. It was not just the unity of our own membership that carried us forward. Officers, delegates, and rank and file of the ILWU stood with us on the picket line, and Jordi did as well. Messages of solidarity came from dockworkers across the globe who understood that our fight was their fight as well.
That same spirit lives today in the struggles of the dockworkers in Avilés, who are fighting not only for their jobs but for their very lives and livelihoods. It lives in the Maritime Union of Australia as they stand firmly against automation that destroys jobs and communities. It lives in the history of the dockworkers in Lisbon who endured a five year struggle to defend their livelihoods and their dignity. Time and time again the waterfront has shown the world what happens when workers refuse to be divided. When dockworkers stand together, they become a force that cannot easily be broken.
Today that same spirit lives on in the struggles of the dockworkers in Avilés and in the Maritime Union of Australia as they protest the spread of job killing automation. It reminds us of the five year battle fought by the dockworkers in Lisbon to defend their livelihoods and their dignity. Time and again the modern history of the waterfront shows the same lesson. When dockworkers stand together, they become a force that cannot easily be broken.
What makes this solidarity so powerful is that it is not built in boardrooms or written into corporate strategies. It is built by workers who know what it means to stand on a dock in the middle of the night, move the cargo that keeps nations alive, and still fight to protect the future of their families and their communities.
Meanwhile, powerful financial investment firms study the waterfront from a very different perspective. They see numbers, profit margins, and opportunities to replace people with machines. Their concern is the bottom line. Our concern is the people who make the industry work.
History has shown us something important. Working people cannot depend on governments or corporations to protect their future. The real protection has always come from solidarity and from the relentless determination of workers who refuse to allow their livelihoods to be erased.
Dockworkers have shown what collective strength looks like. But the challenges facing us today are not limited to the waterfront. Workers in every industry are facing the same pressures from the same financial interests. Workers must Unite now!! Our time is now!!
The lesson is clear. When working people recognize their shared struggle and stand together, they become something far more powerful than any corporation or investment fund.
They become a movement that cannot be ignored.
They become unstoppable….”
#InternationalLongshoremensAssociation
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Ni un paso atrás
What a Blessing to see this movement working!!
We won’t back down!!!! Solidarity
👊👊👊💪💪💪
Santiago, nun tienes nada que decir?, tando las empresas contentas, tu también eh?
Port of Long Beach, CA
ILA LEADERS ATTEND TPM CONFERENCE IN LONG BEACH, CALIFORNIA
The International Longshoremen’s Association is well represented at the annual TPM (Trans Pacific Maritime Conference) in Long Beach, California.
Among the ILA leaders are:
Monta Bivins, President, ILA Local 1970, Port of Virginia
Brandon Garcia, Atlantic Coast District Vice President/President, ILA Local 1235, Port of NY/NJ
Billy Hartigan, ILA Local 1804-1 Business Agent/ITF Representative, Port of NY/NJ
Jonathan Coley, Atlantic Coast District Vice President/President ILA Local 970, Port of Virginia
We are the International Longshoremen’s Association
Established 1892
#InternationalLongshoremensAssociation
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Port of St, John’s
Newfoundland
Canada
**WOMEN OF THE ILA**
Sisters Sam Power and Jessica McCormack of ILA 1953. St . John’s Newfoundland, Canada. ILA strong 💪
#InternationalLongshoremensAssociation
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Good old sand bug
Has To Be A Summer Picture
Great photo
#UnionStrong #ILAStrong #Godisgood
I load that in Halifax on Friday . Good job ladies. ILA 269 Halifax
1410 mobile Alabama
Go Union
Sexy
ILA LASHERS HAVE ONE OF THE MOST DANGEROUS JOBS ON THE WATERFRONT.
The following was shared to us by ILA Local 1804-1 lasher Dariel Rodriguez
Thank you!
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When this happens, it's usually because the owner only shared it with a small group of people, changed who can see it or it's been deleted.2 CommentsComment on Facebook
It’s undeniable the lashers have the hardest job on the port. It’s also undeniable that they get compensated accordingly. The sacrifices they make to move the worlds freight in a safe and timely manner is immeasurable. When the MMR Rail guys perform the same sacrifices physically & mentally, we always seem to be undercut and our contract continuously gets kicked down the road. This time around we’re going to all in as a union, as skilled laborers and as men. STAND WITH THE RAIL 2027!
I KNOW THE GAME DUTY OF ALL LONGSHOREMAN LASHING SECURING FREIGHT