As we’ve noted before, not all is going smoothly in the negotiations between U.S. East and Gulf Coast port employers, represented by USMX, and the ILA union. Both sides are bargaining as ILA members work under a temporary extension of their current master contract until Jan. 16, 2025. The sticking point continues to be what the union calls “automation” and the employers call “port modernization.” At the center of the impasse, says ILA executive VP Dennis A. Daggett, is the employers’ push to...