Oakland dockworkers a no-show Friday

Just 10 percent of longshoremen requested by terminal operator employers came to work on Friday, bringing vessel operations to a near standstill at the Northern California port, according to port spokesman Mike Zampa.    Hundreds of dockworkers at the Port of Oakland decided to skip work on Friday in an apparent protest of the inauguration of President Donald Trump, bringing vessel operations to a near standstill at the Northern California port.
   According to the Pacific Maritime Association (PMA), which represents terminal operators up and down the United States West Coast, just 35 of the 354 requested longshoremen showed up for their shifts, causing one terminal to close for the entire day and others to suspend or limit operations.
   Port spokesman Mike Zampa said Oakland International Container Terminal was closed Friday, but reopened Saturday to receive any exports that were held up the previous day. All port terminals are open and operating normally today, Zampa said.
   “Apparently some of the labor has decided to take the day off,” Port of Oakland Executive Director Christopher Lytle reportedly told the Wall Street Journal.
   Officials with the International Longshore and Warehouse Union (ILWU), on the other hand, denied instructing its members to take any labor action Friday, and instead blamed the absences on bad weather and employee illnesses.
   The ILWU had been an outspoken critic of Trump during the run-up to November’s election, formally endorsing Sen. Bernie Sanders before throwing its support behind Democratic nominee Hilary Clinton.
   PMA spokesman Wade Gates told American Shipper an arbitrator held that the sickout was an illegal work stoppage and ordered the longshoremen to return to work at the port.