The long arm of Hurricane Katrina has pushed thousands off the job and on strike at one of the nation?s biggest shipyards here, workers and union officials say. On Thursday, nearly 7,000 workers went on strike at the Ingalls shipyard, owned by Northrop Grumman, which builds ships for the Navy. On the picket line Monday, strikers said they were demanding better wages and benefits to make up for sharp post-Katrina increases in the price of everything from milk to gas to rent, which they said are bringing family finances to the breaking point. The walkout here is believed to be the first major strike related to Hurricane Katrina, which continues to disrupt many aspects of life up and down the Gulf Coast.
See "Strike at Big Shipyard Is Yet Another Effect of Katrina", Adam Nossiter, The New York Times, March 12, 2007