You Know When You Are...............

You know when you are looking for something and don't find it but you find something else that is even better. Well a few minutes ago I was trying to get to the PMA site to check the dispatch summary for tomorrow. Well it was down and I couldn't get there. So I googled it thinking I could get around it somehow, and I found this it is a bulletin released back in 2002 about the ILWU work slowdown. I guess it was written to upset people and turn them against the union. But starting on page two it starts to list events that are suggesting a slowdown. and I found this list funny. Here is a portion of the list.

In Portland, ILWU members refused working a grain ship, alleging a safety
concern because a U.S. Customs official, carrying a weapon, was on board inspecting
cargo.

In Los Angeles, the Union failed to dispatch adequate numbers of workers to
terminals, while in Oakland, one crane driver moved three containers per hour when the
three-year average for the vessel being worked is 30.

At the Matson terminal in Oakland today, one crane was moving 12 containers
per hour, despite averaging 30 per hour over the past three years. That ship missed its
sail schedule by at least one day.

The cargo ship, Hyundai Emperor, docked in the Port of Portland, experienced an
average of 5 container moves per hour this morning against an average of 21.68 moves
per hour. During the evening shift, this ship experienced 11.1 moves per hour.

In Tacoma, an Evergreen ship being worked at the MTC terminal is experiencing
10-12 container moves per hour against an average of 32. A K-Line vessel was
producing 11.4 container moves per hour against an average of 26.35. Maersk operations
in Tacoma were operating at 50 percent of normal today. The ILWU failed to dispatch
any labor to unload the ship during the midnight shift.

In Los Angeles/Long Beach, the Union refused to work extended shifts, violating
its ongoing agreement with PMA. In addition, the ILWU also failed to post clerk
positions in the casual hiring hall, thereby violating an arbitration award.

At the Hanjin terminal in Southern California, ILWU clerks stopped working,
alleging that a gear certification on a piece of equipment had expired, even though a 90-
day extension of that certificate was in place. The clerks then alleged erroneously that
the signatures on the extension were forged.


The whole thing after that was just great. PMA sounded like a bunch of whiners not getting their way.