Los Angeles and Long Beach port strike threat deferred again

The union representing about 250 security workers at the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach agreed to extend contract talks by two weeks, through November 20, deferring a strike threat at the busiest US port complex.

Why it matters: The two ports handle about a third of US seaborne containerised goods at record volumes, and the employers say a stoppage by the security workers could affect roughly 85 percent of Long Beach cargo and a third of Los Angeles cargo if other dockworkers honour the picket.

Data as of Bloomberg report of November 7, 2026, via gCaptain, read in full; the extension and cargo exposure figures are the Pacific Maritime Association's, as reported. Developing item.

The International Longshore and Warehouse Union Local 26, which represents about 250 security workers at six container terminals in Los Angeles and Long Beach, agreed to keep negotiating a new contract for two more weeks, the Pacific Maritime Association said. The extension runs through November 20 and is the third deferral of a strike deadline, after earlier extensions from November 1 to November 4 and then to midnight on Friday.

The previous contract expired in July 2025, and the two sides have been meeting with the help of the Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service since the union authorised a strike. The PMA, which represents terminals and ocean carriers, warned on October 27 that dockworkers and marine clerks, who work under separate contracts, were expected to stand with the security workers in a stoppage, putting roughly 85 percent of Long Beach cargo and a third of Los Angeles cargo at risk. The ports reported record cargo volumes last month, driven in part by goods supplying the AI buildout.

Los Angeles and Long Beach port strike threat deferred again

Sources