Maersk question unresolved
By Allyson Bird
Grooms
Nearly three weeks after Maersk Line announced its intentions to depart from the Port of Charleston and the scramble to save its business began, the situation remains static, worrying one state lawmaker.
"The longer this thing drags out, the harder it will be to have Maersk reverse their decision," said Sen. Larry Grooms, R-Bonneau, who has led discussion among port leaders, union officials and company representatives.
"There's been a proposal, but not all parties have signed off on it, so we're still working out the details," Grooms said. "I had hoped we would already have resolution to this."
He and others close to the situation declined to share details of that proposal.
Meanwhile, the State Ports Authority board of directors met Wednesday in Columbia in a closed-door session at the state Commerce Department offices. Much of the meeting was related to Maersk, according to the SPA, but the agency declined to elaborate about what was discussed.
In a similar show of concern, members of the maritime community came together earlier this week at an event at the Gaillard Municipal Auditorium. Its purpose, organizer Benjamin Flowers Jr. said, was to display waterfront solidarity to Maersk and to every other port customer.
An estimated 100 people, including shipping company representatives, truckers and longshoremen, attended. Flowers said the event aimed to stress the statewide importance of the maritime community.
Campbell
"A lot of jobs are going to come with enhancing the industry we have," he said. "It's going to spread from the port throughout the state."
One panelist, Bill Campbell of the Port Truckers Association, stepped away from the unity movement to speak in defense of organized labor, on which Maersk has placed blame for its decision to leave.
"This is all about busting the union here in the South, knowing people in the state of South Carolina are weak on union work," he said Wednesday. "If they succeed here, they know they can succeed elsewhere."
Maersk, the world's largest containercarrier and the port's largest customer, wanted the International Longshoremen's Association to allow it to break its contract and move into a part of the Wando Welch Terminal in which SPA employees would perform work historically handled by organized labor.
The three maritime unions, in a unanimous vote last month, rejected that proposal.
Maersk officials announced shortly thereafter that the shipping line would pull out completely by the end of its contract on Dec. 31, 2010, and that 25 percent of its business would leave within the next few months. Maersk accounts for 20 percent of Charleston's container volume.
Reach Allyson Bird at 937-5594 or abird@postandcourier.com.
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g4driver (anonymous) says...
Can anyone give an accurate picture of the average 2008 wage of an ILA longshoreman, excluding any Union Executives and the average number of hours each ILA member worked each week or month. And what benefits are including for each ILA member?
I've read a lot of comments about the greed of the union and the greed of the shipping companies. There are always three sides to every story. I'd like to see some unbiased, non-emotional wage facts if possible.
Did I miss any of this information in all of the P&C articles concerning Maersk leaving the Charleston Port?
Thanks in advance.
January 8, 2009 at 1:15 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
Neponset (anonymous) says...
g4
I have asked the same question and to my knowledge no one has come forth with accurate figures for pay and benefits. Also union work rules can add to the cost to the shipper (feather bedding etc). I think 2008 would not be a good year to use, since shipping was down for part, if not all of the year.
January 8, 2009 at 5:59 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
JohnGalt (anonymous) says...
Don't know about ILA salaries but you can find some of the SPA terminal worker's wages from the salary database from the P&C homepage
http://www.charleston.net/statesalary/
January 8, 2009 at 8:52 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
g4driver (anonymous) says...
Allyson,
Last night I read your article regarding Maersk, as I have read every article the P&C has written on the subject leading to Maersk's decision to leave Charleston.
I posted the first comment regarding your article, and wonder if you or the P&C staff could provide some wage and benefit information for both the ILA non-executive workers and the ILA Executive from 2004 through 2008.
The P&C has spent a great deal of time writing about Maersk and it's how it's decision to leave was based on the inability to lower ILA costs, but there has been no reporting on wage and benefit information on the ILA that I can find.
v/r
January 8, 2009 at 9:18 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
firemike (anonymous) says...
I still wonder why no one knows how much individual employees make at Maersk. At first I didn't want them to go (Maersk). Now that the salary amounts seem to be unattainable I'm wondering if they have been fleecing our state. I can't be sad to see Maersk go if I don't know the facts. The more they hide, the more I think it's time for them to pack up and ship out (sorry for the pun). I could be wrong - give me the facts and I then can make a better decision on the subject.
January 8, 2009 at 9:39 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
MyView (anonymous) says...
firemike-It doesn't matter how much Maersk employees make. They are a free enterprise. The issue is how much the unions demand for unskilled labor which increases the cost of goods to the entire world. It costs more to get here so it costs you more to buy it.
The rub here is this: Do you believe that a high school graduate or less should earn a comparable wage to a Dr. or Scientist which has dedicated many years of their lives to education and study to perform their profession for unloading a box from shipping containers?
Before you jump off the deep end this is just a hypothetical example with hyperbole meant to exemplify the point. I've heard various stories about the wages earned by unskilled labor in this environment, but do know for a fact that in a port elsewhere a convicted felon, with no license, is making $20 per hour with no high school diploma, and 3 months on the job for unloading boxes. That is a fact.
Here we go again. If you earn it, you deserve it and more power to you. But you are not entitled because you breathe.
January 8, 2009 at 9:55 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
longshoremans_wife (anonymous) says...
I really do not understand why it is so important for everyone to know the wage of the ILA members. What is your job and how much do you make? Unless a person holds a political position, it is no one else's business how much an employer pays its employees.
And just because they do not have a formal education does not mean these men are "unskilled." I really take offense to that term. Some of you try and make these men sound like a bunch of uneducated idiots. I would like to see some of you go down to the port and try to do the job my husband and his co-workers have to do on a daily basis. I seriously doubt you will last a full day.
January 8, 2009 at 5:30 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
devilsadvocate77 (anonymous) says...
I say let them all go. Maersk runs a horrible dock operation which is a combination of both the ILA and Maersk itself. They have the shortest operating hours with a hour lunch, shutting down completely between 12 and 1:00. And don't expect to find an ILA worker at 11:45 either. They are gone! Maybe its in their contract. And don't expect anyone back out there until 1:15. And let's talk about equipment availabilty. Maersk pretty much can't go five days without running out of something. Mostly its 20 foot containers and chassis. But it is Maersk's decision to leave export containers mounted and tie up the chassis. So then drivers are forced to wait for other drivers to bring in more equipment while sitting there looking at aisles of chassis sitting stagnant. Call the Maersk gate and you get the same two answers. 'We have people going out there now to free up equipment' or 'everyone that comes in will get serviced'. They don't tell you how many hours until they send some ILA worker out there to start. Contact your driver and 9 of 10 times they tell there is not a soul around doing anything. Then around 2:30 to 3:00 someone at Maersk will get sick of the bombardment of calls from dispatchers looking for answers and start getting equipment freed up. Meanwhile the truck driver has sat there for hours losing time and money. I support Maersk moving to the SCSPA Common User side with its longer hours, no lunch, Yard Management System to control availability and chassis pool for all steamship lines to share.
January 8, 2009 at 7:50 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
truthseeker (anonymous) says...
I do not like the idea of the SPA holding secret meetings and doing secret deals with corporations.
When have you ever seen a government agency do a good job for the taxpayers doing secretive deals without any transparency or sunshine?
What if the SPA decides next week to charge Maersk only a dollar per container to stay? Taxpayers would never know that their state agency cut a terrible deal-basically a subsidy to a foreign corporation.
As other posters have previously stated, we are not allowed to see any of the numbers that matter in this deal.If taxpayers own this business, we should know the economics of union labor versus SPA labor.
The largest most successful container port in the U.S. at LA - Long Beach leases our their terminals and puts the contracts online for the taxpayers to see and hold their elected officials accountable. It works there - why not here?
Our port leaders and some legislators want to do the deals in the dark so we know nothing about them.
I wonder why?
January 8, 2009 at 8:11 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
BillytheKid (anonymous) says...
I have watch the unions destroy the auto industry up north. It is time to "belly up to the bar" and give a little or you will be out of a job.
Are not any of the people in charge paying attention to what is going on in the world today.
Do some better planing for your future or be like the old shipyard workers.
January 8, 2009 at 8:47 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
firemike (anonymous) says...
Well "myview" and "longshoremans_wife" I want to know because it affects me and my family. Those boxes carry things like food and clothing. The more a person makes unloading it the more it cost to feed and put clothes on my kids backs. Guess what greedy longshoremen the ship is sinking. Having a sneering attitude does nothing but confirm that longshoremen don't get it. I'm just pissed because now my taxes will help support people who wont take a small pay cut! See you in the bread line jerks!
January 8, 2009 at 11:17 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
g4driver (anonymous) says...
To longshoremans_wife,
Just noticed your message and wanted to reply directly to you.
I'm the guy who asked the question in the first place and believe the question is most germane.
The wages of ILA members seem to be the core problem. Maersk wants to lower their operating costs and they will, with or without the cooperation of ILA members.
Furthermore, skilled or unskilled labor has nothing to do with an education. The Department of Commerce classified positions by positions, not the education level of a person working in that position. A worker could have a Ph.D but if they work as a cashier, they are classified as "unskilled labor".
The bottom line is Maersk has made a decision to leave the port of Charleston, which will ripple through the local economy affecting far more than just the ILA workers, and the SPA employees.
My wages are public knowledge available on several websites. Anyone who knows me or who wants to know how much I make can easily get that information. And I will gladly disagree with you your comments that only politicians wages should be made public.
Here is my payscale:
http://www.militaryfactory.com/milita...
Love to see you post the same information.
v/r
January 9, 2009 at 3:32 p.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
longshoremans_wife (anonymous) says...
g4driver,
Its none of my business how much you make, just as it is none of you business how much the ILA members make. The only reason I think it should be public knowledge about the salaries of politicians is because many of them vote to give themselves raises at the taxpayers' expense.
Maersk leaving has nothing to do with the earnings of the ILA. It does not matter which port along the east coast Maersk goes to, the ILA members will make the same wages that they do here in Charleston.
January 10, 2009 at 12:54 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )
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