Almost 20 years prior, International Longshoremen’s Association union official Harold J. Daggett found himself amidst allegations of collaboration with mob endeavors. Following a highly-publicised court case, he was cleared of all charges, including fraud and conspiracy to commit extortion. When news of his acquittal broke, his joyful team gathered around him outside the Brooklyn federal courthouse.
Fast forwarding to the present day, Mr. Daggett, after serving as the president of the union for 13 years, is striving for another triumph. He is at the forefront of a strike that erupted on Tuesday causing the major coastal ports on the East and Gulf coasts to halt most of their trading activities.
The union, comprising members who transfer cargo and containers onto and off the ships, is insisting on a significant wage increase, enhanced benefits, and restrictions on labour-saving machinery. Mr. Daggett depicts this strike as a struggle against giant corporations who made substantial gains amidst the pandemics’ supply chain turmoil.
In Mr. Daggett’s view, his 47,000 strong force of members are the ace up their sleeve. Their role, he asserts, is essential to the operation and success of automakers, retailers, and various other businesses that rely on port activities. He expresses an unwavering conviction of their victory, stating that the opposing businesses won’t hold up for long without their services.
In the eyes of certain labour specialists, Mr. Daggett is in a somewhat advantageous position to negotiate favorable terms. The basic premise is simple – if the union ceases to function, goods movement comes to a standstill, as remarked by Assistant Professor William Brucher from the Rutgers School of Management and Labor Relations.
The association is recognized for its hefty salary offers. As an indication, Mr. Daggett received over $900,000 last year and has secured earnings exceeding $7 million in the past decade alone from the union and one of its most substantial chapters. This is significantly more than the yearly income of the West Coast dockworkers’ association president who earned just over $234,000 in the same period.
Historically, the union has seen dominant presidents wielding the major share of power. It’s worth noting when West Coast dockworkers deviated from the I.L.A in the 1930s to establish their organization, they cultivated a democratic ethos which has since gained solid support from members and achieved significant lifts, as per labour historians.
Yet, some members of the I.L.A have voiced their grievances in hushed tones about the failure of Mr. Daggett to procure superior retirement benefits. Disclosing these sentiments could invite criticism and retaliation, particularly during the strike period and their identities remain anonymous.
The union, known for its authoritarian style, is adamant about addressing the wage disparity. Under the expired I.L.A. contract, $39 per hour marked the highest wage scale. Striving to push for a 61.5 percent salary increment over six years, Mr. Daggett disclosed his intentions on Tuesday during an interview with CNBC.
A union representative also unveiled last month the plans for the I.L.A. to ask companies to increase their contributions to a retirement scheme, even though it does not offer fixed retirement payouts. And the concern about job security consistently resonates with both coasts as it has always been a major matter of discussion.
Meanwhile, the presence of a stringent clause in the I.L.A contract, prohibiting the use of equipment devoid of human interplay, intensifies the debate
Over the years, issues of the mafia’s association with the union have sprung up intermittently. One of the turning points was back in 1949, when a New York Sun Journalist won a Pulitzer Prize for his findings on Mafia interference and corruption surrounding the I.L.A. This exposure eventually served as an inspiration for the popular movie ‘On the Waterfront’, starring Marlon Brando.
In a more recent development, the Waterfront Commission of New York Harbor was abolished resulting from the combined efforts of the I.L.A, corporations handling cargo, and politicians from New Jersey. Despite New York’s resistance leading to a legal skirmish, the Supreme Court favored New Jersey, thereby leading to the cessation of the commission. Although New York restored its own waterfront commission, its ports are relatively smaller than those in New Jersey, marking another negative hit on those dedicated to combating organized crime in these ports. In a 2021 letter to the Supreme Court, two senior agents from the FBI acknowledged the ongoing influence of the Genovese and Gambino crime families over the International Longshoremen’s Association and waterfront businesses