Arrests and train blockades may have grabbed the headlines, but automation was at the heart of the year-long conflict between the ILWU and grain terminal operator EGT.Norfolk, Virginia’s semi-automated container terminal uses remote-controlled cranes managed with GPS, cameras, and computers. Photo: Port of Virginia.
At the same time ILWU members were fighting to keep work at the $200 million terminal in their union, they were pushing for the right to perform new jobs in the state-of-the-art operation and to keep control of the critical functions of loading and unloading grain—even as machines perform more of the work.
The prime target was work in the control room, where closed-circuit video cameras allow two operators to monitor the vast network of conveyors in the 35-acre facility and remotely control grain silo machinery. Performing maintenance and repair on the automated conveyors, as well as the new robotic systems for unloading grain, was also a top ILWU priority.
The heated battle over 25 jobs underscores the pivotal moment longshore workers on both coasts face, as employers deploy new technologies to erode one of labor’s strongholds.
Read more, including ILA’s experience with automation, at Labor Notes
