West Coast longshore workers vote for new 5-year contract

Workers from the International Longshore and Warehouse Union (ILWU) have voted to ratify a tentative agreement with the Pacific Maritime Association (PMA) over a five-year-long labour contract.

ILWU members from 29 West Coast ports voted 82% in favour of approving the five-year deal, compared to the 75% that voted in the previous contract. The new agreement will expire on 1 July 2019.

Robert McEllrath, ILWU international president, admitted that “the negotiations for this contract were some of the longest and most difficult in our recent history.”