Panama Canal Pilots Union and ILWU join forces

19 Sep 2011 - Port Planning

• ILWU become affiliated with the Panama Canal Pilots Union

• ILWU President claims employees need to follow employers by "going global"

The International Longshore and Warehouse Union (ILWU) has announced that it is to join forces with the Panama Canal Pilots Union.

The affiliation will see the already powerful West coast dockworkers union extend its reach to the Panama Canal, one of the busiest shipping routes in the world, in time for the completion of its vast expansion project in 2014.

“With so many employers now going global, it’s critical for workers around the globe to join forces and work together,” said ILWU President Bob McEllrath, speaking after the announcement was made at an ILWU board meeting in San Francisco last week.

McEllrath added that he hopes that the joining of the two organizations will help hold companies within the industry more accountable to not just the workers but local communities, according to the JOC.

The 250 members of the Panama Canal Pilots Union voted overwhelming in favor of the affiliation, said the Panama Canal Pilots Union's Secretary General Londor Rankin.

 

 

Staff Writer: Linton Nightingale