International Dockworkers Council (IDC) and Its 140,000 Worldwide Members Tell President Harold Daggett and ILA: We Support You In Contract Dispute with Maersk
NORTH BERGEN, NJ- (JUNE 11, 2024) Less than a day after the International Longshoremen’s Association announced it was cancelling scheduled Master Contract negotiations with United States Maritime Alliance (USMX) over APM Terminals and Maersk Line violating the current contract with the use of an Auto Gate system at several ILA ports, the 140-member International Dockworkers Council (IDC) delivered a powerful message of support and solidarity to ILA President Harold J. Daggett in the dispute.
“You can count on our full support in this struggle that is so important for the present and future of our industry,” the IDC wrote in a letter signed by Dennis A. Daggett, IDC General Coordinator; Jordi Aragunde, IDC International Labor Coordinator and the six IDC global zone coordinators. “The IDC are closely monitoring this concerning issue. We are fully award of the impact that the dispute with APM-Maersk..is having on these crucial negotiations.”
Yesterday, the ILA canceled Master Contract talks with USMX after discovering that APM Terminals and Maersk Line are utilizing an Auto Gate system, which autonomously processes trucks without ILA labor. This system, initially identified at the Port of Mobile, Alabama, is reportedly being used in other ports as well.
“There’s no point trying to negotiate a new agreement with USMX when one of its major companies continues to violate our current agreement with the sole aim of eliminating ILA jobs through automation,” said International President Harold J. Daggett, who serves as chief negotiator for the union.
The ILA President expressed gratitude to the IDC for their rapid statement of support.
Read the IDC Letter of Support to the ILA:
