US dockers suspend strike threat

Dockers in the United States have agreed to suspend their strike until the New Year so that negotiations can continue.

Earlier this week there were fears that the dispute could seriously impact on seafood shipments from Norway, Iceland and the Faroe Islands.

Salmon exports would have been the most seriously affected. But last night the union representing the dock workers agreed to suspend the strike.

Members of the International Longshoremen’s Association walked out on Tuesday at 14 major ports along the east and Gulf coasts, halting container traffic from Maine to Texas.

The union says it has reached a tentative agreement on wages and will go back to work on Friday until 15 January, when they will return to the bargaining table to negotiate “all other outstanding issues”.

The action would have been the first such shutdown in almost 50 years and threatened to wreak chaos amid the busy holiday shopping season and forthcoming presidential election.

“Effective immediately, all current job actions will cease and all work covered by the Master Contract will resume,” said a joint statement by the ILA and the employers’ group, United States Maritime Alliance (USMX).

A separate strike by dock workers in Montreal, Canada was also halted after unions and employers agreed to mediation.