Union dockworkers, locked out for more than three weeks in a contract dispute with United Grain Corp. at the Port of Vancouver, say the company and two other operators of Northwest grain-export terminals have agreed to return to the bargaining table.
The agreement to renew talks is outlined in a March 15 written response from the International Longshore and Warehouse Union to the Pacific Northwest Grain Handlers Association. The ILWU’s letter, obtained by The Columbian, says the union has agreed to meet with United Grain, Columbia Grain and Louis Dreyfus Commodities on Friday and Saturday in Vancouver.
Meanwhile, U.S. Sens. Patty Murray, D-Wash., and Maria Cantwell, D-Wash., are urging the parties to resolve their differences. In a March 18 letter to company and union officials, the senators say they hope a separate interim agreement the union reached with another terminal operator — Temco — will help the union and remaining companies (United Grain, Columbia Grain and Louis Dreyfus Commodities) produce fruitful talks.
