The strike ends at American ports after pressure from the White House and the new salary offer

Longshoremen and other port operators in the United States reached an agreement with their employers and ended a three-day strike on Thursday (3) that had disrupted shipping on the East Coast and Gulf Coast.

According to information received from Reuters Along with two sources close to the negotiations, the interim agreement calls for a salary increase of about 62% over six years. This would increase average wages to about $63 per hour from $39 previously.

The agreement ends a strike that closed container ports from Maine to Texas and threatened to disrupt everything from the supply of bananas in supermarkets to the flow of cars to American factories.

the The Wall Street Journal He stressed that the new offer, which is larger than the previously proposed 50% increase, came after the White House exerted private and public pressure for a new proposal from major shipping companies and charging station operators.

President Biden praised the agreement, saying in a statement that “collective bargaining is successful and necessary to build a stronger economy from the middle out and from the bottom up.”

At least 45 container ships unable to unload were anchored outside the 36 ports — including New York, Baltimore and Houston — that handle a variety of containerized cargo.

Economists said the port closures would not initially lead to an increase in consumer inflation because companies have accelerated shipments of basic goods in recent months. However, a prolonged lockdown would have ended up spilling over, with food prices likely to react first, according to economists at Morgan Stanley.

(with Reuters)