Chassis threat rescinded

   The International Longshoremen’s Association, and the group that represents their employers, the U.S. Maritime Alliance (USMX), have agreed to rescind an Aug. 6 letter that threatened containers would not be loaded on leased chassis that were not repaired by ILA members.
   David Adam, USMX chief executive officer, said the letter was rescinded “for the forseeable future.”
   The letter, which was sent by Adam and Harold Daggett, ILA president, said starting Sept. 16 chassis would not be worked at facilities covered by the ILA-USMX master contract if they were being leased to truckers not using ILA labor.
   After computer problems, a shortage of labor because of summer vacations, and other issues snarled the Port of New York and New Jersey this summer, Daggett and Adam sent a letter expressing concern about an influx of containers leased to truckers who do not use ILA labor to maintain and repair their equipment.
   “The historical jurisdiction of ILA-represented workers is now being eroded by the acquisition of their traditional work. That work must be preserved,” the Aug. 6 letter asserted. It said shipper-owned and trucker-owned chassis would continue to be worked.
   But an industry source said there were some chassis arriving at the port with markings that had been altered to conceal the fact they came from a leasing company that normally had its equipment maintained by the ILA.
   Though it was not clear if those alterations were being done by truckers or leasing companies, one executive said “the ILA was pretty upset about that. They felt the leasing companies had all committed to the ILA.” – Chris Dupin