Port Labor Dispute Deadline Saturday

Port Labor Dispute Deadline Saturday

Port Labor Dispute Deadline Saturday

I’m KayDee Gilkey with the Northwest Farm and Ranch Report.
We’ve all been watching the talks between the grain terminal owners and the The West Coast longshore union which have been in the news throughout fall.

While visiting Portland with a Washington Wheat Commission Wheat Export Tour, I visited with Shawn Campbell, Assistant Director of the U.S. Wheat Associates West Coast Office. He said the Northwest Grain terminal owners have extended a final contract offer of this Saturday.

I spoke to Campbell on Wednesday afternoon and he shared.

Campbell: “Pretty much what is going to happen is on December 8th is the deadline for the offer that the export terminals gave to the union. Two options that happen are either the union accept it and everything goes on as normal or the union decides not to accept it and we see some kind of lockout or a strike situation. In which case we will see a major halt of grain through Portland.”

Approximately 25 percent of the nation’s grain exports being handled through these affected grain-terminals, a disruption of either a strike or lockout would be bad news.

Campbell: “It is really not profitable for either group for the elevators to be shutdown but if they can’t agree on something and their differences are far enough apart it can last a long time.”

The stakes are high either way, as $10 billion in annual exports are handled by these terminals.

 

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