West Coast ports and terminals are shutting down after union workers walked off the job after a failure in negotiations with port management.
The Port of Oakland was shut down Friday morning due to insufficient labor for terminal operations, a stoppage that is expected to last at least through Saturday. A source close to the situation told CNBC the port shutdowns are expected to spread across the West Coast as a result of lack of sufficient labor as workers protest over wage negotiations in contract talks with port management.
"Oakland is a big port for U.S. ag exporters," said Peter Friedmann, executive director of the Agriculture Transportation Coalition . "Fridays are a big day for Ag exports." On April 20, the Pacific Maritime Association, which represents the ports, and the International Longshore and Warehouse Union, announced they reached a tentative agreement on certain key issues, though they did not disclose more.
The ILWU released a statement on Friday saying that rank-and-file workers had taken it upon themselves to "voice their displeasure" amid the ongoing "arduous fight" with port management. ILWU said cargo workers at ports "remain on the job," but the port source told CNBC there is an insufficient number of workers overall for port operations to continue.