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THE east and Gulf coast dockers union is calling for a trade union common front to oppose ocean carriers and marine terminal operators that seek to automate port operations, reports New York's Journal of Commerce.

"It is time we put companies out of business that push automation. Someone must take the bull by the horns and that's me - worldwide," said International Longshoremen's Association (ILA) president Harold Daggett



"I feel more strongly that we must lead an international maritime alliance to go on strike together. This global alliance will have one major purpose, and that is to stop further automation," he said.



Mr Daggett delivered these remarks as 1,600 union delegates convened in Hollywood, Florida, to discuss their stance on a new collective bargaining agreement (CBA) for 45,000 dockers stretching from Maine to Texas.



During his address, Mr Daggett showed a video displaying automated straddle carriers operating at APM's Pier 400 terminal in Los Angeles.



The video claimed that such automation at Pier 400 and other terminals in Los Angeles and Long Beach resulted in the loss of around 600 jobs.



Mr Daggett questioned the actions of foreign companies like Maersk, criticising their involvement in building fully automated terminals within the United States.



He argued that these projects led to job losses in America while the profits flowed back to Copenhagen, Maersk's headquarters.