Washington, D.C.—Dec. 28, 2012—In a message issued from Harold J. Daggett, President of the International Longshoremen's Association (ILA), the organization made major gains on the Container Royalty issue that will protect ILA members. Consequently, the ILA agreed to extend its ILA Master Contract by 30 days—beyond the December 29th deadline to the new extension date of February 6, 2013.
Both the ILA and USMX reached the agreement as a result of a mediation session conducted on December 27th by George H. Cohen, Director, Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service (FMCS) and Scot Beckenbaugh, Deputy Director for Mediation Services.
“The container royalty payment issue has been agreed upon in principle by the parties, subject to achieving an overall collective bargaining agreement,” said Cohen. “The parties have further agreed to an additional extension of 30 days during which time the parties shall negotiate all remaining outstanding Master Agreement issues. The negotiation schedule shall be set by the FMCS after consultation with the parties.”
“Given that negotiations will be continuing and consistent with the Agency's commitment of confidentiality to the parties, FMCS shall not disclose the substance of the container royalty payment agreement,” said Cohen. “What I can report is that the agreement on this important subject represents a major positive step toward achieving an overall collective bargaining agreement.”
“On behalf of our agency, I want to thank the parties, especially ILA President Harold Daggett and USMX Chairman & CEO James Capo, for their ongoing adherence to the collective bargaining process, which has enabled them to avoid the imminent deadline for a work stoppage that could have economically disruptive nationwide implications,” said Cohen.
