If the strike lasts for an extended period of time, there could be issues for manufacturers and price increases, according to a professor of supply chain management.
For the first time in almost 50 years, dockworkers went on strike early Tuesday at more than a dozen ports along the East and Gulf coasts.
About 45,000 members of the International Longshoremen’s Association began the strike after the union’s contract agreement with the ports ended at midnight.
The union wants a 77% pay raise over six years and “certain reassurances that technology and automation won’t be used to improve the efficiency of the ports and potentially take their jobs,” said William Sawaya, an associate professor of supply chain management at Bowling Green State University.
The ILA strike does not impact local ports, but depending on how long it lasts, there could be long-term impacts on manufacturing and what we see at the store. Sawaya says people should not expect to see noticeable impacts soon, …