THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Thursday, March 16, 1995 TAG: 9503160383
SECTION: BUSINESS PAGE: D1 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY CHRISTOPHER DINSMORE, STAFF WRITER
LENGTH: Medium: 70 lines
The stalemate in talks between port management and the dockworkers' union over the creation of an apprenticeship program has ended.
Both port and union officials confirmed the breakthrough. One official said that an agreement could be signed as early as today, but management's chief negotiator, John J. ``Johnnie'' Johnson, said Wednesday that an agreement will likely be consummated next week.
``Negotiations are going good,'' Johnson said.
Johnson represents the Hampton Roads Shipping Association, which includes the terminals, shipping lines and stevedoring companies in the port of Hampton Roads.
Port management has been working with the International Longshoreman's Association to create an apprenticeship program to help keep the port competitive for key break-bulk commodities such as cocoa beans.
The ILA represents nearly 2,000 long- and shortshoremen, line handlers, warehouse workers, and checkers in Hampton Roads. Break-bulk cargo unloading and handling provides about 9 percent of the work ILA does in the port.
``We've seen significant reductions in break-bulk cargos over the past year,'' said Edward L. Brown Sr., ILA vice president.
Break-bulk cargo is shipped on pallets rather than in containers. Key break-bulk commodities shipped through the port of Hampton Roads include cocoa beans, rubber, plywood and steel.
Other East Coast ports such as Philadelphia and Wilmington, N.C., have been siphoning off Hampton Roads's break-bulk business with lower labor costs.
One major shipping line, Waterman Steamship Lines, which brings in rubber from Indonesia, has been threatening to stop calling at the port because of labor costs. The nearly 150,000 tons of rubber Waterman brings to Hampton Roads a year generates more than 30,000 hours of labor for ILA workers.
``We want to stem the flow of cargo that's moving away from Hampton Roads and the apprenticeship program should help do that,'' Brown said.
Under an apprenticeship program, newly hired longshore workers would handle break-bulk goods and be paid a lower wage rate. After a number of years they would likely start working containers where wage rates are higher.
Talks had been bogged down since January over questions of seniority rights for longstanding dockworkers, said a port official close to the talks who didn't want to be identified.
Neither Johnson nor Brown would disclose details of the pending agreement.
``We've finally gotten the bugs worked out,'' said Joseph A. Dorto, general manager and chief executive of Virginia International Terminals Inc., which operates the three state-owned terminals.
``We've still got to dot the i's and cross the t's, but I'm confident we'll have something signed'' very soon, Dorto said.
Both Newport News Marine Terminal and Norfolk International Terminals, which are state-owned and managed by VIT, handle a lot of break-bulk cargo, particularly cocoa beans. But imports of that commodity fell 27.3 percent in 1994 from 1993.
Imports of rubber and plywood, much of which passes through Lambert's Point Docks, were off 38.9 percent and 42.5 percent respectively. Lambert's Point is owned by Norfolk Southern Corp.
Only steel shipments were up. Demand for steel in the nation's expanding economy buoyed that commodity.
``We expect that once this apprenticeship program is introduced we'll be competitive with just about any other U.S. port for break-bulk cargos that are not even coming here now, let alone the ones already coming here,'' Brown said. by CNB