Dockworker Caucus to Debate Contract
Eighty West Coast members of the International Longshore and Warehouse Union (ILWU) today began their review of a six-year contract proposal tentatively agreed to by union leaders and the Pacific Maritime Association (PMA) last month (see WIT for Nov. 25, 2002). Requiring a majority vote of those attending, a recommendation from the delegate caucus will have a major impact on how the 10,500 West Coast ILWU members will vote next month on the agreement to trade a green light on new technology for raises, improved healthcare and pensions, and union representation for any new jobs created. ILWU members both inside and outside the delegate caucus are expressing concerns with, and even some outright opposition to, the length of the proposal---twice that of all previous contracts---which must be ratified by sixty percent of the dockworkers covered.
See "Dockworker Caucus to Debate Contract", ALEX PHAM, Los Angeles Times, December 8, 2002