*US DOCKWORKERS UNION AGREE TO SUSPEND STRIKE UNTIL JAN. 15: AP
*DOCKWORKERS UNION REACHES TENTATIVE DEAL ON WAGES: CNN— zerohedge (@zerohedge) October 3, 2024
NEW YORK/WASHINGTON, Oct 3 (Reuters) – U.S. dock workers and port operators reached a tentative deal that will immediately end a crippling three-day strike that has shut down shipping on the U.S. East Coast and Gulf Coast, the two sides said Thursday.
The tentative agreement is for a wage hike of around 62% over six years, two sources familiar with the matter told Reuters, including a worker on the picket line who heard the announcement. That would raise average wages to about $63 an hour from $39 an hour over the life of the contract.
The International Longshoremen’s Association (ILA) workers union had been seeking a 77% raise while the employer group – United States Maritime Alliance (USMX) – had previously raised its offer to a nearly 50% hike.
The deal ends the biggest work stoppage of its kind in nearly half a century, which blocked unloading of container ships from Maine to Texas and threatened shortages of everything from bananas to auto parts, triggering a backlog of anchored ships outside major ports.