Port hiring dispute intensifies, even as more hires are authorized

International Longshoremen’s Association President Harold Daggett went down to the docks in Elizabeth this morning and, with hundreds of union brethren cheering his brawny poetry, accused the Waterfront Commission of New York Harbor of creating a labor shortage that threatened the viability of the port.

“Put the commission into remission!” shouted Daggett to loud applause. “Labor and management agree, the Waterfront Commission is destroying our port.”

Framed by placards reading “Stop the Waterfront Commission,” and “We Are Not Criminals,” Dagget called for an end to hiring delays he said were brought on by the commission, which was meeting at its lower Manhattan offices.

In September, the International Longshoremen’s Association and employers belonging to the New York Shipping Association proposed a plan to hire 532 deep sea longshoremen and 150 checkers, or clerks. The Waterfront Commission agreed to exercise its authority to “open” the hiring register in multiple rounds.

At the same time longshoremen were rallying in Elizabeth, the Waterfront Commission was meeting this morning at its offices in Lower Manhattan. At the meeting, six months after the hiring plan was proposed, the commission issued the first group of waterfront passes, or working papers, to 136 longshoremen. The commission also opened another 150 longshoremen slots on the register for the plan’s next round of hires.

“Ensuring the integrity and diversity of the men and women who are employed to work on the docks is paramount.”

All agree that the plan’s implementation has been slow. In November, it was interrupted when the ILA and the NYSA joined in a federal lawsuit charging the Waterfront Commission with overstepping its authority by inserting itself in the hiring process. The commission rejects the contention, and its motion to dismiss the suit is pending.

Under the hiring plan, the ILA, the NYSA and a veterans’ hiring office set up by the shipping association are to refer job candidates to the commission for a background check and pre-qualification. The would-be checkers or longshoremen are then eligible for sponsorship by an employer, who must send the commission a sponsorship letter and certification that he or she was chosen through a nondiscriminatory process. The sponsored candidate then makes one more, brief appearance before the commission, and is issued a waterfront pass, allowing them to start work or training.

The commission contends it is the ILA and the shipping association that have delayed hiring by failing to sponsor candidates, particularly veterans who returned from the Iraq or Afghanistan wars.

In advance of the rally, New Jersey Waterfront Commissioner Jan Gilhooly issued a statement saying he was “greatly troubled that continuous misrepresentations are being made to elected New Jersey officials, members of the media and members of the industry” by the ILA and NYSA.

“The Waterfront Commission will continue to do everything in its power to fulfill its mandate to ensure the fair hiring of a diverse workforce in the Port,” Gilhooly stated.

During the rally, state Sen. Richard Codey (D-Essex) called on Gov. Chris Christie — who appointed Gilhooly — to intervene in the dispute to speed the hiring process. ILA President Daggett made a similar plea to Gov. Andrew Cuomo of New York.

Another lawmaker at the rally, Assemblywoman Annette Quijano (D-Union), told longshoreman that the Assembly Labor Committee had approved a resolution on Monday calling on New York State to pass a law similar to one approved by New Jersey in 2007 removing the Waterfront Commission from the port hiring process altogether. Since the commission is a bi-state agency, legislation governing it must be approved by both states.

The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, which has been monitoring the hiring process, issued a statement applauding yesterday’s move by the commission.

“Ensuring the integrity and diversity of the men and women who are employed to work on the docks is paramount,” the agency stated. “We strongly urge the Waterfront Commission and the New York Shipping Association to continue the significant progress they have made on port hiring issues.”

Source: NJ.com