975 words 4 minute read – Let’s do this!

And here we are, we’re waking up to yet another labor deal. Last night, dockworkers and shippers at the West Coast ports announced a tentative agreement — brokered by acting Labor Secretary Julie Su— that would end weeks of strife and avert a supply chain mess. Maritime employers and the International Longshore and Warehouse Union (ILWU) announced late Wednesday that they had reached a tentative agreement on a new six-year contract covering all 29 ports along the U.S. West Coast.

The statement said the parties would not release details of the tentative agreement “at this time.” The contract ratification processes normally take at least one month.

The new contract, when ratified, could bring shippers back to the West Coast. There was a decline in imports to the West Coast due to Uncertainty over the reliability of West Coast labor. The PMA is hopeful that the U.S. supply chain and economy will greatly benefit from the new contract.

We are not 100% in the clear as of yet on the West Coast, over 99.24% of members of Canada’s International Longshore and Warehouse Union (ILWU) have voted in favor of a strike should the union and maritime employers not come to terms over a new Canadian West coastwide contract, they are still in the midst of negotiations. Officials pointed out that talks are continuing between the two sides during a 21-day cooling off period imposed under Canadian labor law. Both sides have agreed not to take any actions before June 21st and then the union would be required to make a 72-hour advance notice of any planned action. The earliest a strike could happen is June 24th. Canada West Coast ports handle over $225 billion worth of cargo a year, and about 15% of U.S. inbound and outbound laden and empty containers move through the Port of Vancouver. An ILWU Canada strike would put vital U.S. retail and manufacturing supply chains in jeopardy and will also affect rail containers into the U.S.

Import TEU volumes are up 7.53% from last week, and the U.S. West Coast ports are showing some increase in volumes this month. Be aware that the ongoing West Coast labor issues have slowed down vessels being worked the past week, and have increased rail dwell times and could take a few more days to get everything back to normal. If you have rail cargo that came into the West Coast that are HOT, reach out to Port X Logistics about diverting your urgent containers to stay at the port for transloading into road trucks. In most cases we can get your containers out in 1-2 days (pending Port appointments) and on the road the very next business day. Contact us at letsgetrolling@portxlogistics.com

What’s happening at the ports and rails?:

You can find all the information on the below link where we cover port congestion, chassis issues and capacity lead times weekly at all U.S. and Canada Ports and rail heads

https://portxlogistics.com/port-rail-updates/

Highlights: SOME PORTS WILL BE CLOSED MONDAY JUNE 19^TH IN OBSERVANCE OF THE JUNETEENTH HOLIDAY

LA/LGB: There have been some delays on arrivals from the uncertainty of the contract decision. Late last week some vessel arrivals were pushed back 10+ days but have since subsided to just a few days of delays. Even with delays, there are no major congestion issues at any of the terminals currently.

Vessels currently at port Los Angeles: 155 Expected Arrivals: 81
Vessels currently at port Long Beach: 69 Expected Arrivals: 88

Oakland: Terminals are back to normal hours and with minimal congestion. Terminals will be closed on Monday June 19^th for Juneteenth Holiday and ILWU monthly stop work meeting
Vessels currently at port: 66 Expected Arrivals: 12

Vancouver/Prince Rupert: Congestion is still building up through the ILWU labor disruptions. Rail dwell times are over a week delaying containers on the Canadian Pacific and Canadian National into the U.S.
Vessels currently at port Vancouver: 216 Expected Arrivals: 67
Vessels currently at port Prince Rupert: 68 Expected Arrivals: 60

Chicago Rail: Rail dwell times are over a week from containers coming into Chicago through Western Canada on Canadian Pacific or Canadian National will be delayed. The Norfolk Port dwell times have decreased and getting containers on the trains fairly quickly. Predict that anything coming into Chicago on the east coast through Norfolk, moving on the Norfolk Southern or the CSX, will move inland quicker than usual once discharged from the vessel.

Columbus Rail: No available 40’ chassis currently, private chassis will be needed to get containers out of Columbus rail. Additional flip fees and driver wait time are occurring due to chassis shortages.

Did you know? We couldn’t be happier for Port X Logistics’ Founder Brian Kempisty to be recognized as a winner for the Entrepreneur Of The Year 2023 New York program. As the world’s most prestigious business award for entrepreneurs, Entrepreneur Of The Year® has been recognizing unstoppable business leaders for more than 35 years. We’re honored to have BK recognized among so many unstoppable business leaders in New York.

BK is more than an unstoppable leader, his goal through Port X Logistics was to change the lives of employees and customers alike, by building the best well-oiled machine provider of Drayage, Transloading and Trucking through Culture, Service and Tech. The Port X Logistics journey continues as we continue to grow and add more drayage and warehouse assets to our brand with BK helping us to row the boat along the way – Keep watching us all through the Eye of The Tiger BK!