[R-G] Dockworkers Plan Walkout over Iraq (without Formal ILWU Support)

[Yoshie Furuhashi]

Apparently the top ILWU officials' initial reluctant consent (cf.
<http://www.sfweekly.com/2008-03-12/news/may-day-work-stoppage>) to
this action has been withdrawn. -- Yoshie

<http://www.presstelegram.com/breakingnews/ci_9105565>
Dockworkers plan walkout over Iraq
WARS: Workers don't have formal union support, but some are expected
to skip jobs to protest actions in Iraq, Afghanistan.
By Art Marroquin, Staff Writer
Article Launched: 04/30/2008 06:41:51 AM PDT

West Coast dockworkers plan to walk off the job Thursday to protest
the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, even though the action doesn't have
the formal support of their employers or the International Longshore
and Warehouse Union.

It was unclear how successful the effort will be at the ports of Los
Angeles and Long Beach, where a group of longshore workers admitted
uncertainty to how widely the plan was received by other dockworkers.

"There are lots of members who are expressing their personal views and
committing to this voluntary action," said Craig Merrilees, an ILWU
spokesman.

ILWU executives had initially given their blessing to an eight-hour
work stoppage during the busy day shift, which was suggested two
months ago during a union caucus in San Francisco.

A clause in the union's current contract allow workers to hold monthly
"stop-work" meetings during the evening shift, when cargo activity is
considered to be lighter.

The union withdrew its support shortly after the Pacific Maritime
Association denied the union's request for the walkout. An arbitrator
ruled last week that the union had to inform its members about the
change in plans.

As a result, any work stoppage held Thursday will be initiated by the
union's rank-and-file members, not by union executives, according to
Merrilees.

"In light of those developments, we hope that May 1 will come and go
without disruption," said Steve Getzug, a spokesman for the PMA, which
represents the West Coast's shippers.

"We're anticipating that May 1 is a regular work day," he said.

Workers who choose to walk off the job Thursday might face some sort
of discipline, but it was unclear what avenues the employers would
pursue.

Immigration rights groups also plan to hold a series of marches and
rallies in Los Angeles and cities across the country on Thursday to
call for reforms in immigration policies.

Some port truck drivers and dockworkers have resisted signing up for
the federal Transportation Workers Identification Credential because
undocumented workers do not qualify for the high-tech security card.

art.marroquin at dailybreeze.com

-- 
Yoshie
<http://montages.blogspot.com/>