Court upholds NLRB rulings against ILWU Portland slowdowns

The United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit affirmed two National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) decisions that the International Longshore and Warehouse Union broke laws during job actions at Oregon’s Port of Portland.    The United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit on Nov. 6 affirmed two National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) decisions that the International Longshore and Warehouse Union (ILWU) is guilty of violating labor laws during job actions carried out in 2012 and 2013 at Oregon’s Port of Portland.
   Terminal operator ICTSI said the D.C. Circuit Court upheld the NLRB’s findings that the ILWU had engaged in deliberate work stoppages and slowdowns, made false safety claims, and engaged in other coercive conduct against ICTSI Oregon and its customers.
   ICTSI Oregon is the former operator of Terminal 6 at Oregon’s Port of Portland.
   “We are extremely pleased with the D.C. Circuit decisions because this means that the court, as well as the NLRB, confirmed our position that the ILWU’s actions at Terminal 6 violated federal labor law,” ICTSI Oregon CEO Elvis Ganda said. “Our effort continues in federal court here in Portland to hold the ILWU accountable and obtain compensation for the harm it has done.”
   The ILWU said it would appeal the court’s decision.
   “It’s ironic that ICTSI is sounding self-righteous when the United States Department of Labor, through OSHA, found ICTSI guilty of several serious safety violations in Portland, and ICTSI workers around the world have accused the company of safety violations, mass firings, poverty wages, and violations of international labor codes,” the union said in a statement.