Today, March 11, 2025, The International Longshoreman’s Association (ILA) and the United States Maritime Alliance (USMX) are set to sign a new six-year deal that will increase wages for U.S. dockworkers and safeguard workers from the threat of automation.
The new contract, which will be in effect from October 1, 2024, to September 30, 2030, came with a wage increase, stronger healthcare plans, an increase on retirement plans, and a safeguard from automation. More than 45,000 U.S. dockworkers agreed on a deal that offers a 62% wage increase over the next six years, which results in the union’s highest paid workers earning $63 per hour. The deal also allowed for the use of automation at ports—to a point.
ILA President Harold Daggett, who served as the union’s chief negotiator was quoted as saying the agreement is “the ‘gold standard’ for dockworker unions globally.”
January 2025 Deal Issues – Ratified in February 2025
The ILA and USMX ratified a new six-year contract on February 25, 2025, avoiding a strike. In January 2025, the union’s demand was a 77% pay raise over six years. The other main issue at stake was the use of automation at ports. The union’s worry was that automation machines, especially cranes, would replace human workers. While the new contract allows for more modernization of technology, full automation is not a threat. The new contract makes it easier for employers to use automated cranes but bars employers from deploying fully automated cranes, which would make human workers useless. The union secured a guarantee that assigns at least one worker for each additional crane.
President Trump’s Support
President Trump previously backed the union against the use of automation following his inauguration. Additionally, according to labor experts, Mr. Daggett’s strong ties with President Trump have bolstered the union’s cause. “The only way they would have gotten a deal like this was through striking, showing that they had the economic power and, it turns out, the political power,” said William Brucher, an assistant professor at the Rutgers School of Management and Labor Relations.