An accusation of unfair labor practice was filed before any containers were moved in the new Hugh K. Leatherman Terminal of the South Carolina Ports Authority.
At issue is a contract clause that basically says that all work on a proposed terminal must be done by workers at the International Longshoremen Association. SCPA argues that the Leatherman Terminal at the port of Charleston, about to open, was planned years before the clause was added to the contract.
Wednesday’s filing with the National Labor Relations Board by SCPA and South Carolina Attorney General Alan Wilson, on behalf of the state, alleges violation of the National Labor Relations Act by ILA, its Local 1422 and the United States Maritime Alliance Ltd. (USMX).
According to a statement from Wilson’s office, “The prosecution alleges that ILA and USMX violated the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA) by attempting to implement a secondary boycott to acquire new jobs for the union, putting pressure on shipping customers to do not use The new Hugh Leatherman (HLT) Terminal, scheduled to open in March 2021. A secondary boycott occurs when two parties, in this case ILA and USMX, agree to harm a third party, in this case the SC Port Authority. Secondary boycotts are illegal under the NLRA. “
ILA added two clauses to its main contract with USMX in 2013. One provision states that USMX can “notify any port authority that contemplates or intends to develop a new container handling facility that USMX members may be prohibited from using. new installation if work on that installation is not performed by employees of the main contract negotiation unit. ”
SCPA President and CEO Jim Newsome told American Shipper on Thursday that construction of a container terminal on a former Navy base was under construction a decade before the clause was added to the contract.
“We designed the new terminal, the Leatherman Terminal, in 2003. We applied for a license. In 2007, we obtained the license and started construction of the terminal in 2013 ”, said Newsome.
SCPA uses a hybrid work model in which some jobs are performed by state workers and others are run by union members employed by private sector companies. For about 50 years, state officials operated the cranes and elevators, while ILA Local 1422 workers loaded and unloaded cargo from ships, Local 1771 members served as clerks and verifiers, and 1422-A mechanics repaired containers and chassis. .
ILA workers and civil servants work side by side, Newsome said. Union members “work with our crane operators, our forklift operators – they all have their own responsibilities, but they work together. They are two different entities working together to supply a product. This is not uncommon in the supply chain.
“I would say with certainty that the relationship is very harmonious. This does not mean that everyone always sees everything eye to eye. But I would say, and I think the product of the work proves this, the relationship is harmonious ”, said Newsome.
Since 2009 alone, according to SCPA, “this hybrid work model has contributed to doubling the volume of containers in Charleston and the growth in annual ILA man hours by approximately 850,000 – the equivalent of more than 400 full-time jobs with week basis. An ILA member can exceed $ 100,000 per year in full paid health and pension benefits, which exceed those in most sectors. This level of remuneration is achieved through collective bargaining between the shipping companies and the stevedores’ management, represented by the USMX and the ILA. SCPA is not part of this collective bargaining agreement. ”
However, another clause added to the main contract in 2013 says that USMX and ILA would conduct a study to determine how the hybrid work model “could be changed to allow work currently done by state officials to be done by employees represented by ILA in a more productive, efficient and competitive fashion. ”
Newsome pointed out, “No such study has been done.”
SCPA said the attempt by ILA and USMX to enforce Article VII of the contract against the operation of HLT, which is scheduled to open in late March, is illegal.
“Article VII was carried over to the main contract of 2018. Given the interpretation of the ILA, this clause is, at best, vague and, at worst, facially invalid, as it attempts to take jobs away from SCPA civil servants in violation of the existing balance of the hybrid working model and without the SCPA agreement, ”the port authority said in a statement Wednesday. “However, SCPA plans to continue to operate HLT and its container ports under the hybrid working model in force today and is, in fact, prevented by public policy from the state of South Carolina from doing the opposite.”
Newsome noted that no employee – state or unionist – is being hired for the new terminal. “On the day the terminal opens, we will be moving 300,000 containers from the Wando Terminal to the Leatherman Terminal. Therefore, we are not adding any number of employees to do this. We are transferring part of our workforce there to operate the equipment, ”he said.
Newsome said Wednesday’s request was made to “obtain clarification from the NLRB as to whether Article VII of that contract applies to the Leatherman Terminal. We don’t think so. Apparently, ILA and USMX think so, so we have to resolve this before the terminal is opened.
“Our position is that we are not limited by this article. We are not part of this contract and we will operate this terminal with the same hybrid model that we use in our existing terminal. For a port like ours, having two different operating models would be a disaster, ”said Newsome.
“We need to open the terminal. We spent a billion dollars on phase one. We need the capacity, but we have this uncertainty that no one will proactively agree that we can put ships there. So we need to resolve this now, ”he said.
Newsome said he hopes to start communicating with an NLRB investigator assigned to the case as early as Thursday. He expects a quick resolution.
“We hope it will be quick. We think the facts of the case are quite clear. We also feel that we provide a lot of information, so hopefully, quickly. We certainly plan to resolve this until the terminal opens in late March, ”he said.
Newsome said he does not expect the issue of terminal work to negatively affect SCPA’s relationship with ILA.
“We are simply asking for a determination on an article in a contract that we are not really part of, but that affects our ability to do business,” he said.
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