Shipping and Logistics
St. Lawrence Seaway Union Members Ratify New Labor Deal
Written by Laura Miller
November 7, 2023
Unifor members at the St. Lawrence Seaway Management Corp. (SLSMC) have voted to ratify a new labor agreement.
The new, three-year labor pact covers 360 union members at the company. The workers are responsible for facilitating the transit of ships along the St. Lawrence Seaway, the lock system that connects the Great Lakes to the Atlantic Ocean.
The maintenance, operations, and clerical group voted 85% in favor of the new agreement, and the supervisory group voted 87% in favor, according to a Unifor statement.
Ratification of the deal comes after a strike by Unifor members shut down the Seaway and halted transit through the system from Oct. 22-30.
Navigation on the Seaway was reopened at 7 a.m. on Oct. 30 after the tentative agreement was reached. The backlog of waiting vessels throughout the system was cleared by Nov. 3, a spokesperson for the SLSMC said in an email to SMU.
“Over the coming weeks, as the end of the navigation season approaches, the SLSMC will continue to take measures to maximize the movement of vessels carrying essential cargo along the Seaway,” the SLSMC said.
The navigation season typically runs from late March to late December before the Seaway’s locks are closed due to winter weather, according to the American Great Lakes Ports Association.
“We are now looking to extend the season by four days to recuperate some of the lost time” from the strike, the SLSMC spokesperson added.
Laura Miller
Read more from Laura MillerLatest in Shipping and Logistics
Wittbecker: Challenges ahead for container freight in 2025
In 2024, volatility with a capital “V” has been the rule. That will remain high heading into 2025.
Reibus: November flatbed rates cool after October bump
Following the short-lived East Coast port labor strike in October, we now turn toward the Jan. 15 deadline to reach a long-term agreement.
Reibus: Flatbed, dry van rates ticked up post-hurricanes
After closing the third quarter -3.84% on a y/y basis, our first look at fourth-quarter flatbed spot rates puts us virtually flat y/y, coming in at -0.68%.
Leibowitz: Thorny issues remain as ILA-USMX talks kicked into 2025
On Thursday, the International Longshoremen’s Association (ILA) and the US Maritime Alliance (USMX), representing carriers and port operators on the East and Gulf Coasts, announced a three-and-a-half-month extension of the recently expired collective bargaining agreement. The extension kicks the can down the road until Jan. 15, 2025, after the 2024 election and the certification of the results on Jan. 6.
Ports strike over as longshoremen reach tentative pact with employers
The International Longshoreman's Association (ILA) union and the United States Maritime Alliance (USMX) reached a tentative agreement on wages on Thursday evening. The move ends a strike at East Coast and Gulf Coast ports that began on Tuesday and that had threatened significant supply-chain disruptions.