Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi spoke on the floor of the House of Representatives about the passing of LeRoy King, the legendary waterfront labor advocate who died recently at the age of 91.
By Patrick Burnson
Published: July, 2015
Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi spoke on the floor of the House of Representatives about the passing of LeRoy King, the legendary waterfront labor advocate who died recently at the age of 91.
“King served as Northern Regional Director of the International Longshore and Warehouse Union (ILWU) for more than 30 years,” said Pelosi. “It was important to him to overturn a discriminatory system that elected only whites to union office, and he helped create a fully inclusive, integrated workforce.”
Pelosi noted that King worked with ILWU leader Harry Bridges to support Cesar Chavez and Martin Luther King Jr.
Port of Oakland Posts Strong May Numbers
The Port of Oakland reported that May 2015 was its busiest month in nearly four years. Oakland handled 213,260 cargo containers last month, which was the most since it reported volume of 216,276 containers in August 2011.
The total volume of import, export and empty containers was up 3.8 percent in May from a year ago. It was the third straight month of year-over-year volume increases reported in Oakland. The volume increase was despite the fact that, on May 31, ILWU staged a “stop work” action by refusing to dispatch workers for the second shift, causing a temporary shutdown of terminal operations.
“We’re seeing steady improvement—especially in import cargo,” said Port of Oakland Maritime Director John Driscoll. “Our job now is to accelerate the momentum.”
Loaded import container volume increased 4.5 percent in May from the same period a year ago, port spokespeople said. Shipments of empty containers back to origins in Asia were up 20 percent. The empty repositioning indicates that ports are still rebalancing containers dislocated by winter trade slowdowns.
The Port of Oakland is regarded as the main ocean cargo gateway for outbound agricultural goods. But May was not a great month for exports, with volume declining 5.6 percent. The decrease was attributed to a strong dollar, which makes U.S. exports more expensive. Nevertheless, export volume of 79,890 containers was the most in Oakland since last October.
Pasha Group Acquires Hawaii
Shipping Business
Based in San Rafael, the Pasha Group recently announced its acquisition of the Hawaii trade-lane business of Horizon Lines. The Pasha Group, one of the nation’s leading Jones Act shipping and integrated logistics companies, has served the Hawaii market for more than 50 years, adding roll-on/roll-off liner service between the mainland and Hawaii in 2005 with the M/V Jean Anne.
Pasha Hawaii assumes operations for all of Horizon’s Hawaii business, including its four U.S.-flagged container ships serving the Hawaii trade lane. The Pasha Group has also acquired Horizon subsidiaries Hawaii Stevedores; the California-based operations of Sea-Logix, which provides trucking services; and Sunrise Operations, a subsidiary that includes Horizon’s Hawaii trade-lane vessels and employees.
“Horizon Lines, Hawaii Stevedores and Sea-Logix are companies that complement the Pasha Group’s legacy of a proud family history and a focus on innovation and service with an ability to combine competencies to provide streamlined solutions,” said Pasha Group President and CEO George Pasha IV. “Like Pasha Hawaii, these companies have strong ties to Hawaii and the mainland, are aligned with our integrated shipping and logistics model, and share our values and community commitment.”
“Since Pasha entered the Hawaii liner-shipping business 10 years ago, we have strived to deliver quality shipping options for our commercial and military customers. In 2015, we strengthen that commitment with the deployment of our new tonnage in the Marjorie C and the acquisition of Horizon’s Hawaii service capabilities,” said Pasha. “Our mission is to provide a smooth and seamless transition for Horizon’s customers and employees, and continue to enhance all our customers’ shipping
The company noted that environmental responsibility and stewardship will continue to be a major part of Pasha Hawaii’s culture and vessel operations with the addition of and improvements to Horizon’s Hawaii ships. The company will also remain actively involved with local charities and organizations in the communities it serves. “We are pleased to be growing our shipping capabilities between Hawaii and the Mainland, along with enhanced trucking in the vital Oakland corridors,” the company said in a statement.
Patrick Burnson is the past president and current board member of the Pacific Transportation Association, based in San Francisco. www.pacifictrans.org
