i feel for anyone getting a new car these days out west :shakehd:

remember the Z pics from the port lots??? i wonder how packed the lots r now

Los Angeles, Oct. 2 (Bloomberg) -- U.S. West Coast ports are closed for a sixth day over a contract dispute, and no new talks are scheduled between ocean carriers and the union representing 10,500 dockworkers. The shutdown may bring billions in losses to the economy.

Representatives of the International Longshore and Warehouse Union walked out of a meeting with a federal mediator yesterday. Last night, the union hadn't decided yet whether it would attend a possible meeting today with Peter Hurtgen, director of Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service, union spokesman Steve Stallone said.

The National Retail Federation yesterday asked President George W. Bush to open the 29 ports, which handle about $300 billion in trade annually. The organization, which represents about 1.4 million retailers, said it is worried that the shutdown is affecting the arrival of holiday merchandise, including consumer electronics, toys and housewares from Asia.

About 72 ships were lying idle in the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach, the two busiest U.S. ports, yesterday evening, with eight more expected to arrive last night, said Captain Dick McKenna, deputy executive director with the Marine Exchange in Los Angeles. He said 17 ships are expected tomorrow, some of which are tankers that may be able to unload, he said.

 

That means, if this goes on long enough, we are going to be fooked....

Cars and parts, etc will be shut down as most of the people making cars, engines, computers, whatever are using JIT (Just In Time) manufacturing and procurement these days and if you don't get your off-shore goodies or run a "tight" inventory, it means problems. So, watch out...

So, it's not just "finished" items, but there is a ripple effect begining to take hold....


Hey, I thought 80K to 150K a year wasn't bad pay for a HS education

 

it not only affect cars it affect all products are that imported from asia. my company imported truck components from China and we must use the west coast ports. Our customers always ask us were their shit's at. If we clean out our stock, we're screwed as well as them. they'll have to shut down their factories due to shortage of parts. the US economy will really be screwed cuz almost everything is imported. i'm just rambling now, but you get the general idea which is it's screwing all of us.

 

Don't forget EXPORT...my dad's business relies souly on the ports to stay open. He does export of raw material and perishable goods to asian countries. I know a significant amount of the produce grown in Cali is exported to foreign countries, so in turn this is going to affect the farmers as well and the local economy in whole. As if our economy isn't bad enough.....I hope this isn't the straw that breaks the camel's back.

 

some more info...

Seoul, Oct. 2 (Bloomberg) -- South Korean carmaker Kia Motors Corp. said 540 of its vehicles are waiting to be unloaded in the U.S., where a labor dispute that has shut 29 West Coast ports is
disrupting shipments to Asia's biggest export market.

Other exporters of cars, auto parts, food and electronic goods face similar risks from the stoppage, already six days old. Four-fifths of the more than $330 billion of goods the U.S. imported from its six biggest Asian trade partners last year arrived at West Coast ports, according to the U.S. Commerce Department.

Honda Motor Co., Japan's No. 2 automaker, will face delays in unloading 2,800 Civic compacts and Accord sedans if the closure
continues today, West Coast time, said spokesman Kazuhiro Suda. Toyota Motor Corp., the biggest Japanese car producer, hasn't suffered any disruption, said spokeswoman Shino Yamada.

The U.S. is the biggest overseas market for many Asian manufacturers. Kia Motors, an affiliate of Hyundai Motor Co., sold
186,019 Spectra, Sedona and other vehicles there during the first
nine months, half its total exports. Only 580 of the 1,120 cars in
its latest shipment have been unloaded, it said.

 

damn unions

 

For real though, I think they could unload the damn ships while they dispute their contracts.

 

how bout in London where the tube (subway) workers r striking, leaving millions of people scrambling to get around the city

 

Damn, Bush needs to get his ass in gear...

Instead of worring about the damn war with Iraq, he should take care of things in his own courntry first. (I saw it on the news last night, and they said the the "Bush administration" is watching closely.)

 

FUCKING UNIONS

Fire all the crybabies and hire replacement workers at HALF the cost.
With all the unemployment in this country, I hate when the damn Unions go on strike and then end up getting what they want in the end.

If I want more money I work harder or take on more responsibilities.
((( Bad example I guess, since I’m surfing the NET right now )))

Shawn S

 

Exactly...they can extend their current contract while they work out another one.

 

Yea, but it doesn’t get all the same media attention if they do THAT.
Those shots of the ships floating offshore waiting to unload are PRICELESS when negotiations happen.

Kind of like when the Teachers go on strike and the schools close.
Did I mention I HATE UNIONS ???

Shawn S

 

blah blah blah. I can't believe the crap people are saying. I hate both business and labor unions but to start talking shit about unions is STUPID.

Organized Labor Movement is SOLEY responsible for the 5 day work week, paid vacation, workmans comp ., etc.,

Haters! If other people can get more money for what they are doing, why do you care??????????? More power to them!!!!!

 

Heard from the Radio that launch for the G35 Coupe and M45 will have to be delayed if the lockout drags on!

 

Unions were needed back in the 1920’s and 1930’s when people in the factories were being abused and even DYING on the job because of unsafe and intolerable work conditions.
Now it’s all about the MONEY.

My father is retired after 44-years in a union and he’s seen the changes over the years.
Years ago it was a proud thing to be part of a union.
Today’s blue-collar labor generation just doesn’t want to work.
Most are just in the union for the job protection, benefits and MONEY.

Shawn S

 

All my high end electrconics are sitting out there. High Definition 30" LCD TV's! Ugh.

 

Of course. Not all business owners are bad and not all unions are good. But i think for the most part they keep big business in check. Have there been changes? Sure. Do businesses owners make more money? Yes. Should the people who make the product ask for more $ Why not?

It's always been about the money.......

 

I agree. I just HATE the way they usually inconvenience everyone to FORCE their demands.

Shawn S

 

unfortunately, this is not like the UPS Teamsters where if there's a strike, u can just use FedEx instead

but i agree y does business have to come to a complete standstill?? if the union people were more sympathetic to the fact that their trade rakes in a HUGE chunk to the US economy, maybe they'd b more apt to continue working under new temp contracts instead of being so selfish, the economy suffers, and consumers LIKE THEM suffer...so in essence, they're fukin themselves over as well as the rest of us...guess there should b mandatory college degrees for this trade now :shakehd:

 

I hope GW comes and and calls'em a monopoly. This isn't negotiating, this is an ultimatum.

 

This is bullshit, my new ATV helmet is sitting over there too!

 

DAMM RIGHT..........FKin FAMM RIGHT !!!!!


Juker008

 

Just simply replace em with cheap labor. I know there are hundreds out there just dieing for a job.


Juker008

 

My new 19's are most likely out there too!!!

 

guess no backordered OBX headers comming in soon...

 

Amen!

 

this thread sounds like my accounting class..hehe

 

I missed this thread earlier, but I can sing you a first hand verse on this whole sorry affair, because I work in the steamship industry and we cannot get our ships unloaded. You guys don't even begin to understand how this ripples through the entire transportation network, e.g. the railroads have now embargoed any steamship line containers (90% of what moves as containers) from going to all points west, because otherwise it will totally shut down their ramps and get their (rail)cars and engines tied up. When GW finally steps in and declares an 80 day cooling off period ( a very obscure law called the Taft-Hartley Act), the entire network will need to be untangled again.
Imagine shutting down the busiest freeway in your town without warning on the night of game 7 of the World Series and with no re-route for an hour, and then watch what happens.

 

Well.... right now business (in general) has not exactly sitting at the on the moral high ground. (And, I'm not saying that there are NOT some great people who are not CEO sleaze bags...)

However, there has been a tremendous amount of good that has come out of trade unions and a lot of bad things too. (I could site examples of the good and the bad...) BAD: Remember the cars that came out of Detroit in the 70s with bolts welded into the frames by "unhappy" workers. It took the Japanese to shake-up the system. GOOD: getting workers living in barbaric conditions a chance to earn a living wage (the early days).

Correct me if I'm wrong, but I believe that one of the issues concerns "automation". I don't know about you, but if I'm not productive enough and can be replaced by equipment that allows for a greater ROI (return on investment), my services are terminated as early as possible. There is a fine line that separates a legitimate grievance regarding "How we'd all like to keep things as they are" vs. competitive pressures vs. greed. (I'm talking about all angles)

The "problem" is -- we are going to reach a point where the self-interest of these workers and companies is going to have to be balanced with welfare of the rest of the country (and even other countries).

Excerpt from MSNBC:

"The labor dispute has put pressure on the White House to intervene. President Bush has told reporters that he is deeply worried about the lockout and was closely monitoring the situation but he refused comment on whether he would invoke the Taft Hartley Act which gives him the ability to declare an 80-day cooling off period.
The five-month-long contract talks have deadlocked mainly on the issue of implementing new technology on the docks, which the union, one of the best paid and most powerful in the nation, says would cost it jobs. Port employers see new technology as the key to remaining competitive....

 

Helmets? Wheels? Headers?

WE NEED FOOKING TOILET PAPER HERE IN HAWAII!!!

 

i need TP for my bunghole!!!!!!

sorry, couldn't pass that 1 up

 

Update

Hong Kong, Oct. 4 (Bloomberg) -- Toyota Motor Corp. and Hyundai Motor Co., the top automakers in Japan and South Korea, airlifted parts to U.S. factories as analysts said a West Coast port shutdown may curb Asian economic growth.

Korea's Asiana Airlines Inc. and Taiwan's China Airlines reported rising demand for air cargo space. Shares of Yusen Air & Sea Service Co., a Japanese air freight forwarder, leaped almost 10 percent on prospects it may gain revenue as the port stoppage heads into a second week.

Talks to resolve the labor dispute that closed the ports were due to resume on Friday in San Francisco. Asian exporters face lost business or extra costs from rerouting goods to their biggest market, jeopardizing growth in countries such as Japan, Hong Kong and Singapore that have barely emerged from a slump.

"If the shutdown lasts for more than a month, East Asia would be in recession,'' Andy Xie, a Morgan Stanley economist in Hong Kong, said in a research note. "The consequences for the global economy are horrendous.''

Side Note: people blame Bush for our sh!tty economy...maybe u'll realize now y he ISN'T to blame...first technology bubble bursts, then inventory worries throughout the tech sector, then conspiracy among companies/brokerage houses, now this...tell me how the economy is gonna recover and tell me how Bush was responsible for the collapse of the economy