The Port of Los Angeles is moving ahead with an automation project for Pier 400, the port’s largest terminal, following several months of negotiations and after the International Longshore and Warehouse Union (ILWU) and APM Terminals agreed to set up a workforce training program to prepare workers for the jobs of the future.
The workforce training program will provide maintenance, repair, up-skill and re-skill training for up to 900 registered longshore workers and mechanics throughout the San Pedro Bay complex.
This workforce training program will ensure today’s waterfront workers are equipped for tomorrow’s jobs, and continue to support the harbor community,
…explained Mayor Garcetti.
The agreement follows several months of negotiations between the ILWU and APM Terminals over the automation of Pier 400, which requires ILWU mechanics to begin familiarization and training of the new APM equipment.
The workforce training program will be developed in close cooperation with the ILWU Local 13 and PMA, and a location at the Port of Los Angeles for a permanent longshore training complex will soon be identified.
Additionally, a Blue Ribbon Commission will be convened in the coming months to study the issue of automation and the future of the work at the Port of Los Angeles, and will provide recommendations to Mayor Garcetti and the full City Council.
This agreement calls for a comprehensive, fully-paid training program to re-skill and up-skill longshore workers to equip them for the next generation of work on the waterfront. This will help longshore workers prepare for the port jobs of the future,
…said Jim McKenna, CEO of the Pacific Maritime Association.
APM Terminals has agreed to defer additional automated-related projects until at least 1 July 2022.
In 2018, the Port of Los Angeles moved more cargo than at any time in its 111-year history — nearly 9.5 TEUs, 1.2% more than 2017’s record-breaking year, marking the third consecutive year of record volumes.
