LONG BEACH, Calif. -- Cargo handling at West Coast ports ground to a halt during Thursday's day shift as members of the International Longshore and Warehouse Union made good on their promise to shut the ports down in order to protest the war in Iraq.

Employers expressed deep disappointment over the work stoppage and indicated it sets the wrong tone for negotiations that have been under way since March for a new waterfront contract.

The impact of Thursday's work stoppage is not expected to last long. Employers in Los Angeles-Long Beach anticipate that workers will return to their jobs for Thursday's second shift, with flex gates opening at 5 p.m. and normal second-shift operations resuming at 6 p.m.

Furthermore, cargo volumes have been unusually light this year because of the weak U.S. economy. Imports through West Coast ports were down in the first quarter compared to the same period in 2007. Also, West Coast ports have lost about 1.4 percent market share in imports from Northeast Asia as retailers and large shippers make greater use of all-water services to the East Coast.

ILWU President Bob McEllrath described Thursday's job action as a movement by the union's rank and file to exercise its First Amendment rights to free speech. "Longshore workers are standing down on the job and standing up for America. We're supporting the troops and telling politicians in Washington it's time to end the war in Iraq," McEllrath stated in a press release.

Employers, represented by the Pacific Maritime Association, said the ILWU and its leadership violated two rulings by the jointly approved coast arbitrator to make Thursday a normal workday. John Kagel on Wednesday ruled for a second time that ILWU international officers were required to inform the union's locals that a work stoppage on Thursday would violate the terms of the waterfront contract.

The PMA said in a press release that the union leaders and membership disregarded Kagel's order. "The facts show a coordinated effort by the union to shut down West Coast ports," the release stated. In fact, the president of ILWU Local 13 in Southern California, the union's largest local, on Wednesday sent a recorded message to members stating that the "the entire longshore division will not work the day-side on Thursday, May 1," according to the PMA release.

Steve Getzug, a PMA spokesman, said employers are especially concerned about the impact of the work stoppage on contract negotiations, with the current waterfront contract set to expire on July 1. The ILWU has taken unauthorized actions during past contract negotiations in order to gain leverage, but union leaders had indicated those days were over, Getzug said.

He noted that McEllrath had stated publicly that the ILWU was committed to good-faith negotiations "without transportation disruptions from either side."

By: Bill Mongelluzzo