Just one week remains to settle a significant ports strike that could catastrophically affect American retailers as they approach the busiest time of year. Holiday shopping is coming, like it or not, and without dockworkers to move all that stuff into your favorite stores, we’ll all go without.
Furthermore, there doesn’t seem to be much chance of stopping the October 1st strike by tens of thousands of International Longshoremen’s Association (ILA) marine workers at ports across the nation.
This would be the first nationwide longshoremen’s strike since 1977 if the workers decide to go on strike. It seems many aren’t taking this seriously. Though five of the ten biggest ports in North America are located on the East and Gulf coasts, there is little doubt that a strike affecting both regions would have a significant impact. This significant upheaval would have repercussions that would affect every industry and every location for a long time. All this on top of election stress.
I know it’s the end of a six year contract, but the timing, am I right? Please prepare now, any way you can. And no, I don’t mean start hoarding everything. It will be increasingly difficult to stock your pantry with survival supplies when you can’t find them.