Several hundred truck drivers at the US’ largest port complex of Los Angeles and Long Beach were striking Monday against four ground-shipment companies. The drivers are unhappy as they are classified as independent contractors and not employees, leaving them with fewer workplace protections and lower pay than if they were company employees. As a result, they accuse these four companies of wage theft. Ports handle 43 percent of container goods
The strike impacts many companies and truckers. Nearly 14,000 drivers serve both ports, and about 1,000 trucking companies are registered to do so, according to a Long Beach port spokesman. Together, these ports handle 43 percent of containerized goods entering the US. The effect on port operations is unknown at this point. All terminals remained open Monday morning.
About 500 port truckers have filed wage claims with state labor officials accusing their companies of misclassifying them as freelancers and charging them to lease the trucks they drive. Thousands more drivers have yet to file claims, and national port-trucking companies could be liable for wage and hour violations of up to nearly $1.4 billion annually, the labor-backed National Employment Law Project has estimated.
The companies affected by the strike include Pacific 9 Transportation, Intermodal Bridge Transport, Pacer Cartage and Harbor Rail Transport.
Recovering from earlier dispute
The ports are still recovering from months of slowdowns after a dispute between shipping companies and dock workers earlier this year. That dispute was resolved in February with a five-year labor accord.
Photo credit: Margaret Carrero/KNX/CBS