The Tribune

Nassau’s main commercial shipping port yesterday said it is on “high alert” for potential supply chain disruption resulting from tomorrow’s US dock workers strike as it urged all businesses: “Be prepared.”

Dion Bethell, president and chief financial officer of BISX-listed Arawak Port Development Company (APD), in a series of e-mailed replies to Tribune Business questions confirmed that the strike - which is set to impact 36 US east and gulf coast ports from Maine to Texas - will pose multiple logistics-related “challenges” for an economy that imports virtually all it consumes.

He added that APD has recently seen the major carriers which service New Providence’s commercial shipping port “increase loads” in a bid to get ahead of potential strike action by up to 45,000 US dock workers and the anticipated fall-out.

“The potential strike by US dock workers poses several challenges that APD and the Nassau Container Port, as well as the wider Bahamian economy, need to be prepared for,” Mr Bethell told this newspaper. “Should the strike proceed, it could disrupt supply chains significantly, particularly for carriers/shipping lines that use unionised facilities/wharves.

“However, carriers/shipping lines that use non-unionised facilities/wharves may have an opportunity to capture a larger market share during this period, offsetting some of the potential negative impacts. From our perspective, the strike could lead to delays, which would affect the movement of goods through the port.

“We have seen an increase in loads by the major carriers in anticipation of the impending strike. While we are monitoring the situation, it is difficult to quantify the impact just yet as there is no empirical evidence linking recent shipping delays directly to this industrial unrest.”

Reuters last night reported the International Longshoremen’s Association union, which represents the 45,000 dock workers, as confirming tomorrow’s strike will go ahead after they failed to reach a new industrial and wage deal with the United States Maritime Alliance that represents port employers. The current agreement is due to expire on October 1. 

“If the strike does occur, we will explore viable alternatives to mitigate its impact on the general public, business community and ensure continued support for the carriers that use our facilities,” Mr Bethell pledged. “We remain hopeful for a resolution through strategic intervention to avert the strike. Nonetheless, APD is on high alert and will continue to monitor developments to adapt as necessary.”

Some in the business community yesterday said they had been unaware of the threatened industrial action which could potentially disrupt the supply chains that The Bahamas relies on almost as badly as the COVID-19 pandemic and the backlogs that created.

Ben Albury, the Bahamas Motor Dealers Association’s (BMDA) president, told Tribune Business that it appeared as if “two steps forward, two steps back” was becoming the norm as he warned that any widespread or long-lasting industrial action impacting US ports and shipping would be a “detrimental blow” to this nation’s import-dependent economy.

“I didn’t hear anything about it, but obviously that would be detrimental. That would not be good. I hope they can reach a compromise,” he said. “We’ve been rebounding from this, the same shipping challenges since COVID.

“Obviously if that happened it would be terrible for a lot of people; basically everybody. It would put strain on other areas, but obviously it would be a detrimental blow to the industry and everyone at large. Two steps forward, two steps back seems to be the norm.”

Any supply disruption could lead to goods and commodities shortages, and ignite a renewed inflationary and price increase surge that negatively impacted hundreds of Bahamian families as well as businesses amid the post-COVID cost of living surge.

However, the dispute appears to be developing deep roots. “United States Maritime Alliance ... refuses to address a half-century of wage subjugation,” the International Longshoremen’s Association union said in a statement. The United States Maritime Alliance did not comment.

Reuters reported that if union members walk off the job at ports stretching from Maine to Texas, it would be the first coast-wide strike by the Association since 1977, affecting ports that handle about half the US’s ocean shipping.

A source said no negotiations were taking place yesterday and none are currently planned before the midnight Monday deadline. The union said previously the strike would not impact military cargo shipments or cruise ship traffic. The White House did not immediately comment.

But, earlier on Sunday, President Joe Biden said he did not intend to intervene to prevent a walk-out if dock workers failed to secure a new contract by the October 1 deadline. “It’s collective bargaining. I don’t believe in Taft-Hartley,” he told reporters. Presidents can intervene in labour disputes that threaten national security or safety by imposing an 80-day cooling-off period under the federal Taft-Hartley Act.

A strike could stop the flow of everything from food to automobiles at major ports – in a dispute that could jeopardise jobs and stoke inflation weeks ahead of the US presidential election. Business Roundtable, which represents major US business leaders, said it was “deeply concerned about the potential strike at the East Coast and Gulf Coast ports”.

The group warned a labour stoppage could cost the US economy billions of dollars daily “hurting American businesses, workers and consumers across the country. We urge both sides to come to an agreement before Monday night’s deadline”.

For months, the union has threatened to shut down the 36 ports it covers if employers such as container ship operator, Maersk, opens new tab and its APM Terminals North America do not deliver significant wage increases and stop terminal automation projects. The dispute is worrying businesses that rely on ocean shipping to export their wares, or secure crucial imports.

On Friday, Biden administration officials met with the United States Maritime Alliance employer group to directly convey “that they need to be at the table and negotiating in good faith fairly and quickly” – a message it delivered earlier to the union.