“R-E-S-P-E-C-T Find out what it means to me R-E-S-P-E-C-T Take care, TCB” - Port X Logistics (2024)

The summer is nearing the end with one final hurrah this holiday weekend. It’s hard to believe that Universities and some grade schools are back in session with the rest of the schools returning next week – seriously where did the time go? We wish everyone a safe and relaxing Labor Day long weekend and an exciting “Back to Business as Usual” return next week!

While the Teamsters did obey the order to return to work on Monday, the Union has warned it could lead to the imposition of future contracts, eroding workers’ bargaining power. Paul Boucher, president of the Teamsters Canada Rail Conference (TCRC), also said the union would work with other labor groups as it mounts a legal challenge to a Saturday decision that halted work stoppages at the Canadian National Railway Co. (CN) and Canadian Pacific Kansas City Ltd (CPKC) railways and imposed arbitration. The TCRC workers said that it will comply with the Canada Industrial Relations Board (CIRB) order and send its members back on the job, but it will also move forward with a legal challenge of the arbitration order. “Any federally regulated company, it’s a win for them at this point,” Boucher told Reuters in his first interview since the Thursday lockout. “This is disastrous for labor, for workers.” In conclusion, there is still no contract. CN and CPKC have said they offered raises in line with other recent rail industry deals. CN said its engineers make about $150,000 CAD a year, while its conductors earn $121,000 CAD. CPKC said its pay is comparable. At CN there was also a dispute over its effort to expand its system of temporarily relocating workers to other regions when there are staff shortages. The union didn’t want CN to have the power to disrupt families, but the railroad said the system is voluntary and is already in place in some places.

It may be weeks or months before the CN and CPKC are “fully operating back to normal” as a freight backlog has been building up due to inactivity. Although they resumed operations on Monday, it could take weeks before the nation’s railroad networks are fully recovered – returning tons of freight to the railroads is no easy task in the wake of a work stoppage and embargoes. If you have thoughts on the current state of the Canada Rail union or want to keep up with the current events as they unfold, subscribe to the Port X Logistics LLC LinkedIn page for up to date news and solutions for your supply chain and email Marketing@portxlogistics.com to sign up for this weekly Market Update Newsletter for updated on this new and future industry related news.

THE MOST IMPORTANT NEWS TO WATCH OVER THE UPCOMING WEEKS: The International Longshoremen’s Association (ILA) representing workers on the US East and Gulf coasts said that its members would go on strike on October 1, 2024 if a new contract is not in place. The union contract is scheduled to expire on September 30, 2024 and the ILA said that an October 1^st strike could follow.

On August 14, Sea-Intelligence issued a release stating that the impact on container shipments would be significant. “Using historical data, we estimate US East Coast handling volumes of 2.3 million TEUs in October, which translates into 74,000 TEUs per day, split 36,000 on imports and 38,000 on exports. For empties alone, a strike would mean the inability to load 20,000 TEUs each day,” it reported. Once a potential strike is over, this buildup of containers would have to be handled on top of the normal flow. “As we estimate the East Coast ports to have 13 percent excess capacity over the expected normal flow of 2.3 million TEUs in October, then it would take six days to clear the backlog from one day of strike,” Sea-Intelligence added.

Some shippers have been quick to get their goods to/from the market ahead of September 30^th, however from a project logistics standpoint, the impact of such a strike is very much cargo specific. Smaller items that can be easily shifted to other modes would benefit from being moved to/from the West Coast. For larger cargoes, that might not be possible. There are very limited options in the Northeast Coast for non-union, non-ILA private terminals and stevedores that help to continue the flow of cargo without any major disruptions for large cargo.  If you have questions on how the possibility of an ILA strike could potentially impact your project cargo, contact letsgetrolling@portxlogistics.com

Our dedicated project cargo team is skilled in navigating the complexities of large-scale logistics. From coordinating with multiple on-site parties to managing regulatory compliance, Port X Logistics ensures that every aspect of your project freight is meticulously planned and executed. We have the resources and expertise to manage your most demanding shipments, and our team is continuously growing with talent.

What’s happening at the ports and rails?:

You can find all the information on the below link where we cover port congestion, chassis issues and capacity lead times weekly at all U.S. and Canada Ports and rail heads on our website – click on the link below

LA/Long Beach: Beginning September 1, the TMF will be $37.71 per TEU (twenty-foot equivalent unit) or $75.42 for all other size containers. The TMF is charged on non-exempt containers. Containers exempt from the TMF include empty containers; import cargo or export cargo that transits the Alameda Corridor in a container and is subject to a fee imposed by the Alameda Corridor Transportation Authority; and transshipment cargo. Empty chassis and bobtail trucks are also exempt. Transload orders have been piling up as many shippers have been taking the early initiative to avoid a potential strike at the East and Gulf Coast ports, but we have all the transload capacity in the world for you! We also have 66 trucks and a huge amount of yard space to take on your LA and Long Beach drayage moves. Contact CA@portxlogistics.com for all your West Coast drayage, transloading and trucking needs.

Chicago: There has been severe driver congestion at the BNSF due to the long wait times for a container lift. Drivers reporting wait times in excess of 6 hours for picking up containers not mounted to chassis.