PMA SAYS COMPLAINT TO JUSTICE DEPARTMENT WAS VALID

PMA SAYS COMPLAINT TO JUSTICE DEPARTMENT WAS VALID    The Pacific Maritime Association has responded to comments by the International Longshore & Warehouse Union that the current backlog of cargo at West Coast ports has been caused by “PMA mismanagement” rather than alleged ILWU slowdowns cited in a PMA complaint filed last week with the Justice Department.
   “The facts are the facts,” the PMA said in a statement. “Despite its rhetoric, the union fails to refute the substantial drop in productivity. Our member companies and their customers are losing millions of dollars because of the slow movement of goods at the ports.”
   The PMA said that “at the request of the Justice Department,” it had provided “additional detailed information” last Friday concerning productivity.
   “The PMA once again has put more priority on publicity stunts than on resolving the backlog in our ports,” said James Spinosa, president of the ILWU. In a letter to the Justice Department, “the ILWU categorically denies any concerted effort by the union to slow production on the docks,” Spinosa said. “Instead, the ILWU noted that the PMA violated the court’s order by not moving cargo efficiently.”