The International Longshoremen’s Association, the union that represents dockworkers on the East and Gulf Coasts, agreed on Thursday to suspend a strike that closed down major ports after receiving an improved wage offer from employers.
The strike, which began on Tuesday, threatened to weigh on the economy five weeks before national elections. Employers, represented by the United States Maritime Alliance, have offered to increase wages by 62 percent over the course of a new six-year contract, according to a person familiar with negotiations. That increase is lower than the union had initially asked for, but much higher than the alliance’s earlier offer.
In a statement, the union said it had reached “a tentative agreement on wages” and would go back to work after extending its current contract until Jan. 15. It said it was returning to the “bargaining table to negotiate all other outstanding issues.”
The post Port Union Agrees to Suspend Strike appeared first on New York Times.
