Dockworkers’ union, employers to resume talks as strike threat looms [Video]

The labor union representing the 45,000 U.S. dockworkers who went on strike in the fall is returning to the negotiating table with port employers amid threats of carrying out another strike at East and Gulf Coast ports this month.

FOX Business confirmed Thursday that the International Longshoremen’s Association (ILA) and United States Maritime Alliance (USMX) will resume contract discussions on Tuesday after talks broke down in November. The deadline to reach a deal before another strike is Jan. 15.

Both parties signed a tentative deal in October — which gave workers a 62% wage hike over six years — to end a three-day strike, but left issues related to automation unresolved.

The two sides are still at an impasse over automation. If a second strike occurs, the wage agreement agreed to in principle that ended the first strike would be taken off the table, and both sides would be back at square one.

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