The longshoremen strike is going to affect a lot more people than just the longshoremen. We already know that. I support Labor and Trade Unions for many reasons. One is the right unions have to strike. However, that doesn't always mean it is "right" to strike.
In 1947 the Taft-Hartley Act was written and adopted as law. This law was to enforce and facilitate Labor/Management relations. In 1974 Taft-Hartley 2 was an amendment enacted as a result of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act, known as ERISA. ERISA allowed for Multi-Employer Trust to protect Pension Plans and Health and Welfare Plans that were a result of collective bargaining, to protect the workers.
Even though unions have a right to strike, if that strike brings much more harm to the American public, I think it needs a closer look. The President of the United States has the power to stop the strike under the provisions of the Taft-Hartley Act. This does not settle the strike, nor give either management or labor a victory, rather it sends them back to the table for further arbitration and keeps American moving and families with the necessary goods to provide for their families.
The main sticking point in these negotiations is the advancement of technology. This same sticking point happened when railroads changed from steam engines to the more efficient diesel locomotives. A segment of railway workers, called firemen, shoveled the coal into the furnace to heat the boiler, thus producing steam. The union didn't want to have to have these "firemen" retrained to do other jobs and wanted them paid to just ride the trains. It was called "feather bedding", and for good reason.
Modernizing the ports will actually create more jobs, higher pay for longshoremen and more trade for the USA. The trickle-down effect starts with the trucking companies being back on the roads to deliver goods to the American dinner table. This is more than about just the longshoremen and is going to turn the American public to further resent unions (who are already misunderstood). It's all just wrong for so many reasons.
Longshoremen, come back to the table and "man-up" for the good of yourself and the United States of America.
J. Pat Williams