Businesses, Lawmakers, Industry Groups Sound Alarm as Port Strike Looms

Cargo shipping containers and cranes at cargo terminals in part of the Port of Baltimore on June 12, 2024. Saul Loeb/AFP via Getty Images

As the threat of a port strike looms over the U.S. East and Gulf coasts, warnings from industry leaders, businesses, lawmakers, and others have grown louder, all echoing the same concern—potentially massive disruption to a significant portion of the nation’s trade, with billions of dollars in economic losses expected daily.

At the heart of the issue is a labor dispute between the International Longshoremen’s Association (ILA), representing 45,000 dockworkers, and the U.S. Maritime Alliance, which oversees port operations. With negotiations deadlocked and the ILA threatening to strike on Oct. 1 and close 36 ports that handle more than half of America’s ocean trade, the potential fallout could be far-reaching.

From consumer goods to critical industrial components, the labor action could cripple key supply chains, according to the National Association of Manufacturers (NAM), which warned that a potential strike would halt operations at ports that handle more than 68 percent of the nation’s containerized exports and 56 percent of imports, with an estimated daily trade value exceeding $2.1 billion.

Jay Timmons, NAM president and CEO, urged the White House to take immediate action as the strike deadline looms increasingly larger.

“If workers at East and Gulf Coast ports strike on Oct. 1, manufacturing supply chains will be thrown into disarray,” Timmons said in a statement on Sept. 27. “The Biden administration must step in to ensure we can keep the ports open and avoid disruptions to billions of dollars of goods that families rely on every day.”

This sentiment is shared by a growing number of businesses, industry groups, and lawmakers, all of whom fear the wide-reaching economic damage that could ensue if the strike moves forward.

Neil Bradley, chief policy officer at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, warned that a port strike would have “a devastating economic impact, crippling major supply chains and cutting off the flow of numerous goods American consumers and businesses rely on every day” while urging the Biden administration, Congress, and all relevant parties to pursue negotiations until a deal is reached.

Bradley cited the impact of a similar 2002 disruption, which was estimated to have cost the economy $1 billion per day and took six months to recover from.

Costco CEO Ron Vachris said on the company’s Sept. 26 fourth-quarter earnings call that the company has been preparing for the potential strike for some time in an effort to minimize disruption.

“We’ve cleared the ports, we’ve preshipped. We’ve done several different things to get holiday goods in ahead of this time frame,” Vachris said.

While acknowledging that the strike could be disruptive, he noted that Costco has “looked at alternate plans” and remains focused on mitigating the impact, although the full extent will depend on how long the strike lasts.

Ryan Petersen, CEO of logistics company Flexport, warned that a worst-case scenario of a strike lasting more than several weeks or even months could create “massive risks” for the U.S. economy.

“Rerouted shipments could overwhelm West Coast ports, creating container pile-ups, chassis shortages, skyrocketing transport costs, rail congestion, and an air freight market that’s already stretched thin,” Petersen wrote last week in a series of posts on social media.

Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.) said in a statement on Sept. 27 that the strike could have catastrophic consequences for the U.S. economy, potentially crippling supply chains and leaving “store shelves bare.”

Greene noted the broader economic context, saying soaring inflation in recent years has squeezed U.S. households and that a port strike threatens to fan the flames of inflation.

“I think this situation is serious and could be a crisis going into the election, holidays, and winter—depending on if they strike and how long it lasts,” she wrote. “Retailers have been trying to stock up in preparation, but it’s always smart to be personally prepared just in case.”

Sen. Bill Cassidy (R-La.), ranking Republican member of the Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) Committee, wrote a letter to President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris on Sept. 24, calling on them to use the powers available under the Taft-Hartley Act to prevent the strike. The law allows the president to request a court order to delay strikes that threaten national safety or health.

The Biden administration has been urging both parties to continue negotiations.

Top officials, including Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg and Acting Labor Secretary Julie Su, have also urged both sides to negotiate in good faith, a White House official told Reuters on Sept. 27.