A terminal at the Port of Oakland suspended operations today due to a dispute between labor and management over staffing levels, a spokeswoman said.
The port's international container terminal stopped its yard and gate operations sometime during the lunch hour, Port of Oakland spokeswoman Marilyn Sandifur said.
The port's other four terminals operated normally Wednesday, she said.
An update on the work stoppage was posted on the port's website at 12:35 p.m. Wednesday.
Sandifur did have any further details on the dispute late Wednesday.
The Port of Oakland was one of 29 West Coast ports affected by prolonged labor contract negotiations between the International Longshore and Warehouse Union and the Pacific Maritime Association, the management group representing shippers.
The stalled talks left workers without a contract after July 1, 2014 and triggered multiple shutdowns at the Port of Oakland, resulting in a major backlog of cargo and ships waiting to be unloaded. At the peak of the slowdown in mid-February there were 20 ships waiting at the port, port officials said.
Local
A tentative five-year contract agreement was announced on Feb. 20 with the help of a federal mediator and U.S. Labor Secretary Thomas Perez. However, that contract has yet to be approved by union members.
While the port is still experiencing cargo backup stemming from the contract dispute earlier this year, today there were only four ships waiting to berth, according to Sandifur.
