Locked-out ILWU members and supporters have taken their message to the water. Union members have been locked out by Japanese corporations Marubeni and Mitsui. Photo by ILWU Local 4
Excerpts from the Journal of Commerce:
A federal judge has found the International Longshore and Warehouse Union in civil contempt of court for ignoring an order to stop waterborne picketing at grain barges.
[In addition to issuing suspended fines], the judge has also directed the U.S. Marshals Service to “take any and all necessary actions, including but not limited to the use of reasonable force” to ensure the union abides by the order.
“Today’s ruling is yet another example of how the legal complex in this country protects foreign companies from American workers who resist the loss of good jobs,” said Leal Sundet, ILWU coast committeeman, in a published remark. “The NLRB and the courts enjoin the opposition of workers and try to silence us with the threat of contempt fines. Labor law in this country does not protect the working lives of men and women – it reinforces corporate power.”
The NLRB’s administrative hearing against the union is scheduled for Jan. 14, 2014.