Rx-360 Flash Report #354
A Nonprofit Organization
www.Rx-360.org

Contract Negotiations Continue to Advance with the US East Cost Longshoreman's Union

	Please note below the latest pertaining to the US Maritime Alliance(USMX) and East/Gulf Coast International Longshoremen Association(ILA) contract negotiation update:
Please note below the latest pertaining to the US Maritime Alliance(USMX) and East/Gulf Coast International Longshoremen Association(ILA) contract negotiation update: The ILA and employers are trying to work out a deal before their latest contract extension expires Feb. 6 Both parties have agreed that the negotiations will continue under the auspices of the Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service (FMCS) Negotiations talks resume last Tuesday on New York-New Jersey port issues that may pose the toughest challenge to settlement of an East and Gulf Coast dockworker contract Negotiations on a coast wide master contract between the ILA and USMX are expected to resume the week of 1/28 From December Update: If the International Longshoremen's Assn. (ILA) does strike ­­-- and observers are expecting it to -- ports from Maine to Texas would have to close, says big insurance broker Marsh in its "U.S. Port Strikes: What's at Stake and How to Manage Your Risk." Important affected ports would include those in New Orleans, Houston, New York/New Jersey, Baltimore, Savannah, Norfolk, and Charleston. The most important thing to do is add new shipping ports. That may be challenging, though, because major West Coast ports already have strained capacities as a result of recent strikes in Los Angeles and Long Beach, as well as increased Asian trade. Gary Lynch, global leader of Marsh’s supply-chain risk-management group, tells CFO that Risk managers also might recommend that their company consider: Alternative buying strategies — for example, buy locally or have supplies trucked in instead of shipped by sea. Stockpiling inventory before the strike date. Moving subassembly into target sales markets. Emphasizing product offerings that rely less on shipping-dependent materials. Particularly at risk are pharmaceutical companies. Drugs are often shipped in drumlike containers and would be especially vulnerable to changes in temperature and humidity as they sit unhandled in the port. “We’re not talking about weeks and months of flexibility in the supply chain,” Lynch says. Even if the strike were settled almost immediately, before product was ruined, it would be a huge challenge to identify and segregate lifesaving drugs for priority shipping. In the meantime, Rx-360 recommends that members prepare contingency plans for their critical materials that are imported/exported.

Contact Info:

Rx-360 | An International Supply Chain Organization - Washington D.C.
E-Mail: info@rx-360.org

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