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W ith 32 days le before the U.S. Election and 56 days before Black Friday on Nov. 29, 45,000 dockworker members from the International Longshoreman's Association (ILA) agreed to end a three-day strike and to continue working under their current contract until Jan. 15. e union ended their work stoppage aer agreeing to a tentative new contract offering a 62 percent pay increase over six years and an agreement for further discussion on issues such as automation. Many U.S. retailers reacted to the possibility of a strike earlier this year by rerouting merchandise to West Coast ports and moving up order shipments where possible. Imports at U.S. ports rose 21 percent year- over-year in June and were estimated to be up nearly 21 percent in August and 14 percent in September reported the most recent Global Port Tracker report from the National Retail Federation and Hackett Associates. Equity analysts have estimated the daily cost of a port shutdown on the U.S. economy at $3.8 to $5 billion with some of that total recoverable upon the resumption of normal port operations. According to the Wall Street Journal, citing White House sources, the U.S. economy would likely have been able to handle a strike about seven days long without prolonged impact on the supply chain movements of retailers or vendors. e last port strike, nearly 48 years ago in 1977, lasted for 45 days when trade accounted for approximately 16 percent of the U.S. economy. Today, trade represents approximately 28 percent of the economy. Aer the strike began on Oct. 1, an earlier plea by e American Apparel & Footwear Association to the Biden Administration to intervene in the contract matter between the U.S. Maritime Alliance and ILA was eventually acted on, avoiding potential catastrophic shipping delays at 36 ports.. "e shipping industry estimates that every one day of disruption creates five days of backlog," wrote AAFA president and CEO Steve Lamar as the threat of a longer strike loomed. "And just when inflation has started to come under control, American families will face a surge in prices and product shortages not seen since the pandemic." East and Gulf Coast ports account for an estimated 53 percent of all U.S. apparel, footwear and accessories imports, according to the AAFA, equaling over $92 billion in value. Any shi of imports to ports on the West Coast, where dockworkers there obtained a new, six-year contract in 2023 complete with raises of 32 percent, could result in huge backlogs. In a separate shipping matter, analysts recently told Reuters that Donald Trump's proposed import tariffs would accelerate inflation and ocean container shipping rates with consumers picking up the added cost on their product purchases. n DOCKWORKERS CONTRACT EXTENSION AVERTS CRISIS East and Gulf coast ports account for an estimated 53 percent of all U.S. apparel, footwear and accessories imports. 8 • September/October 2024 sportstyle • sportstylemag.com SUPPLY CHAIN / UNCERTAINTY

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