"...Pay for longshoremen is based on their years of experience. Under the ILA's former contract with USMX, which expired on Monday, starting pay for dockworkers was $20 per hour. That rose to $24.75 per hour after two years on the job and to $31.90 after three years, topping out at $39 for workers with at least six years of service.
The union is demanding a 77% raise over six years, or the equivalent of a $5 increase per hour for each year of the contract. Under the union's proposal, workers would make $44 for the first year of the contract, $49 for the second and up to $69 in its final year. .."
I am not familiar with the kind of work longshoremen do.
Anyone here familiar with the jobs?
Loading and unloading ships.
Most of it is containers. Some loading of cruise ships.
Sitting in a huge air-conditioned/heated crane or a 20-ton forklift to move the containers around. I think that there is a bit of down-time too while waiting on trucks, trains, etc.
A number getting touted on X is that on average they make $145k a year as well as $35k in medical benefits. The medical benefits seems REALLY high, so I think both numbers might be fake.
That said, the garbage drivers in Seattle went on strike several years ago. They had documented wages of something like $105k a year on average.
Years ago Boeing went on strike. Part of it was over having to start paying a five dollar co-pay on doctor’s visits!!
They make an easy 6-figures.
The train operations, not too much graft with them.
If you’re driving a semi, wanting to pick a container off the port, it’ll cost you unless you want to wait all day. Nothing gets your container faster that slipping some cash into the palms of the yard dogs and forklift folks.
They probably double their money, half being cash