BALTIMORE–Dozens of dockworkers demonstrated outside the Dundalk Marine Terminal off the Port of Baltimore on Tuesday, as part of a series of strikes that swept the coast from Maine to Texas.
The protests began early in the morning after the working contract ended at midnight on Sept. 30, demonstrators told Capital News Service. Until an agreement is reached, the demonstrators say, they are set to continue to protest. In the words of one protester, the demonstrators will stay there “as long as it takes.”
They chanted, “Shut them down!” Several signs read, “No work without a fair contract.”
The demonstrators told CNS that they were under strict instructions not to speak with the media. When asked why, one said, “You never know what might come out of these people’s mouths.”
Drivers passed by honking and waving in apparent support of the International Longshoremen’s Association, or the ILA, whose letters and emblem marked the picket signs. Demonstrators sang and danced, marching in circles and yelling chants – in high spirits, despite the hazy weather conditions.
The protests in Baltimore follow the recent reopening of the Francis Scott Key Bridge, after months of clean-up and rebuilding of the collapsed infrastructure. For the workers and the community, the contentious contract talks and ensuing strike are just the latest disruption.
The U.S. Chamber of Commerce called on President Biden to intervene with a non-strike resolution and avert the consequences of port shutdowns. But Biden said he is pushing the ILA and the United States Maritime Alliance (USMX) to work things out themselves.
“I have urged USMX, which represents a group of foreign-owned carriers, to come to the table and present a fair offer to the workers of the International Longshoremen’s Association that ensures they are paid appropriately in line with their invaluable contributions,” Biden said in a statement released Tuesday.
Local Democrats also lined up with the union.
“I certainly stand with the shoremen,” said Peter Smith of nearby Anne Arundel County, a member of the county council. Smith said he hopes officials “can help influence where we are in this process to make sure that our hard-working employees are paid what they deserve.”