250 Guards Threaten Strike That Could Affect Terminals Handling 85% of Long Beach Shipments
Key Facts
The International Longshore and Warehouse Union Local 26 has authorized a strike by about 250 security guards at the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach, which could begin at 5 p.m. Pacific time on Sunday, November 1, if the dispute is not resolved. The deadline puts the largest U.S. container port complex at risk of disruption at some of its facilities as the holiday shipping season approaches. The Pacific Maritime Association, which represents employers, said it expects other union members to honor picket lines. That could halt vessel, yard and truck gate operations at affected terminals. The threat concerns terminal guards and the potential consequences if picketing spreads; the source does not establish that Union Pacific or BNSF services would be directly disrupted.
The limited number of guards is not commensurate with the range of cargo that could be affected if the stoppage spreads to other workers. The guards account for about 2% of union workers at the two ports, but the terminals where they work handle about 85% of Long Beach shipments and 33% of Los Angeles shipments. FreightWaves said that share of shipments makes the workplaces of a small group of workers operationally significant. This means the potential scope of the risk depends on terminal locations and how other workers respond, not on the number of guards alone. These percentages describe the share of shipments moving through the terminals in question; they are not estimates of how much cargo would actually stop if a strike takes place.
Operational concerns are rooted in an existing bottleneck in moving containers inland: the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach are already facing a buildup of containers awaiting rail transport. FreightWaves also reported terminal congestion and difficulty securing enough rail equipment in Southern California. If vessel, yard or truck gate operations at affected terminals stop, that could add potential pressure to cargo movement at a complex already facing these challenges. But the source does not report a shutdown of national rail lines, nor does it establish a direct strike impact on Union Pacific or BNSF. The existing buildup involves containers awaiting rail transport, while the labor threat concerns terminal operations where the guards work.
The potential risks come as the Port of Los Angeles recorded a record level of cargo handling. The port handled 1,042,652 twenty-foot equivalent units in September, its highest monthly volume in its 118-year history, according to a port statement. The figure provides context for the scale of activity at one of the two ports involved, but it is not a combined figure for both ports and does not measure the impact of a strike that has not begun. September’s broad cargo activity coincided with a buildup of containers awaiting inland rail transport. As the potential action deadline of November 1 approaches, the next step depends on resolving the dispute or picket lines spreading to other workers.
The guards’ previous contract expired in July 2025, while workers continued performing their duties under contract extensions during negotiations. Talks lasted more than a year, and the latest extension ends Sunday, FreightWaves reported. The employers’ association said its offer includes wage increases and pension improvements, while the two sides remain divided. The association said full-time guards earn average wages of more than $170,000 a year, in addition to employer-paid health care and pensions. Those figures and benefits were cited by the association in describing its offer, while the contract dispute remains unresolved ahead of the potential strike deadline.
The negotiations concern an agreement separate from the broader coastwide deal covering maritime cargo workers and office clerks in the International Longshore and Warehouse Union, which runs through 2028. That distinction means the current dispute concerns the guards’ contract, not the expiration of the agreement covering those two groups on the West Coast. In the stock market, Union Pacific shares closed at $297.8 on October 28, according to EL7 data. The data do not link that closing price to the strike threat, nor do they provide evidence that the company’s operations would stop if a strike takes place. The looming November 1 deadline and the state of negotiations remain decisive in determining whether the threat turns into a stoppage at affected terminals.