“We see labor being attacked all over this country, with it starting in Wisconsin and spreading all over the U.S. Now it is coming to the west coast and to Longview Washington. ILWU is not going to stand for this,” Coffman said. “We are going to do whatever we can to take protect our jobs.”
ILWU Local 21 members were arrested by the dozen on July 11 for defending good jobs.
The storming of the port terminal happened spontaneously during the protest of nonunion labor and was not planned by the leadership of the union, Coffman said. However, the port invasion represents the type of anger many rank and file union members feel about what is happening across the country in the assault on union employees.
__._,_.___