Port Strike Day 6: Labor Talks Continue Sunday

The negotiating teams representing employers at the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach released a progress report about labor talks with union workers whose strike has shut down the nation's busiest shipping basin.

The ports, which employ thousands of Southern California workers, and the economic food chain dependent upon global goods movement is suffering losses of an estimated $1 billion daily, according to the L.A. Times.

The shipping companies, who refer to themselves as employers in news releases, worked into Saturday night and resumed talks about 11 a.m. Sunday, said Steve Getzug, senior vice president of a public relations firm handling media queries for the Los Angeles/Long Beach Harbor Employers Assn., that late Saturday regarding the status of negotiations with the International Longshore and Warehouse Union Local 63 Office Clerical Unit ("OCU"):

"Following late-night talks Friday that extended into the early morning, representatives of the harbor employers and OCU leadership have resumed negotiations Saturday in an effort to reach a fair agreement that will end the strike initiated by OCU employees.  

"Unfortunately, as the port-wide strike extends ... continued picketing by 600 of the highest paid administrative clerical workers in America means more lost work and pay for thousands of truckers, longshoreman, railroad and warehouse workers and businesses that serve the port communities. The growing number of idle ships at the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach mean new delays in the loading, unloading and movement of cargo that drives the national economy."

Patch is seeking comment from the ILWU, and awaits a Sunday update on labor talk progress. Read more herre about the strike and background.