A massive shutdown of America’s supply chain is now in
progress because of a labor dispute between dockworkers and their
employers. The average dock worker, according to Zero Hedge, makes
about $145,000 per year plus some $80,000 per year in benefits, but
apparently their overtime pay is insufficient, which has led to widespread
strikes at the nation’s busiest ports in Los Angeles and Long Beach.
The ports are now being partially shut down for at least the next four
days, but the months-long dispute has already led to hundreds of container
ships and tractor-trailers being left in limbo (see pictures below).
Though the strike has been off the radar for most, analysts suggest that
the dispute is so severe that it could lead to widespread shortages of
imported goods and mass layoffs in periphery industries, especially retail
chains which will have limited amounts of goods to sell until a resolution is
found.
The Retail Industry Leaders Association who, realizing that failure
to reach an agreement between the dockworker union and their bosses, the
Pacific Maritime Association representing port management would lead to
devastating consequences for the US retail industry, had several very damning
soundbites:
- “a work slowdown during contract negotiations over
the past seven months has already created logistic nightmares for
American exporters, manufacturers and retailers dependent on an
efficient supply chain. A complete shutdown would
be catastrophic, with hundreds of thousands of jobs at risk if America’s
supply chain grinds to a halt.“
- “A west coast port shutdown would be an economic
disaster.”
- “A shutdown would not only impact the hundreds of
thousands of jobs working directly in America’s transportation supply
chain, but the reality is the entire economy would be impacted as
exports sit on docks and imports sit in the harbor waiting for
manufacturers to build products and retailers to stock shelves.”
And the punchline: “The slowdown is already making life
difficult, but a shutdown could derail the economy completely.“
Full analysis
The situation, according to the Retail Industry Leaders Association, is
dire:
“A work slowdown during contract negotiations over the past seven months
has already created logistic nightmares for American exporters, manufacturers
and retailers dependent on an efficient supply chain. A complete
shutdown would be catastrophic, with hundreds of thousands of jobs at risk if
America’s supply chain grinds to a halt.”
The shutdown is a sight to behold. Hundreds of transport ships with
thousands of containers of cargo are not being allowed into ports to unload
their goods.
Cargoes from around the world are backed up as evidenced by the
following aerial photos from Mike Kelley:
It was one of the most exciting experiences I’ve had doing aerial
photography – being that far out at sea, with the huge swells underneath you,
and these massive, massive container ships everywhere was
like living a scene out of Walter Mitty’s life.
The labor union and employers will eventually come to an agreement,
perhaps with Presidential involvement, but a prolonged strike will, as noted
above, have a disastrous impact on the economy.
We’re written before about what life will look like in the event of a
transportation shutdown in Just In Time: When The Trucks Stop, America Stops. As we
noted then, a transportation shutdown can lead to nearly immediate and
catastrophic consequences.
It appears that this is what is happening now and the effects on a
consumer-based economy could be devastating across the board.
We’ve often recommended to readers that they stock up on emergency
supplies simply because sometimes unplanned events happen. The current port
shutdown is a limited event, but given that even this could lead to serious
economic problems and job losses, it’s not a stretch of the imagination to
suggest that in a real emergency the shutdown of transportation systems on a
national level would lead to a total breakdown and panic within days, perhaps even a few hours.
The reality is that 99% of Americans are not prepared for a sustained
shutdown of transportation systems and supply lines. There would be no food
or gas to be had. As The
Prepper’s Blueprint author Tess Pennington highlights in Anatomy of a Breakdown, once peaceful streets and
neighborhoods would quickly be besieged by looters looking for resources.
When the needs of the population cannot be met in an allotted time frame,
a phenomena occurs and the mindset shifts in people. They begin to act
without thinking and respond to changes in their environment in an
emotionally-based manner, thus leading to chaos, instability and a breakdown
in our social paradigm.
It is for these unforeseen circumstances that we urge Americans to prepare for the worst. The last thing you want to be
doing is looking for food and other essential supplies after a supply shutdown has
occurred.
Related:
Preparedness 101
Food Preparedness and Storage
Emergency Checklists