Waterfront employers claimed significant progress Thursday in establishing a framework for the implementation of new technology at West Coast ports, but unionized dockworkers played down the advances as minimal.

"We are confident that the two sides have an agreement in principle to a framework that creates the opportunity to implement technology on the waterfront," said Joseph Miniace, president of the Pacific Maritime Association.

"We still have a long way to go to finalize this framework," said ILWU spokesman Matthew Perry. Employers agreed to some points in the framework proposed by the union, and they disagreed with other points, Perry said.

In order to clarify what employers seek in the area of productivity-enhancing technology, the PMA submitted a detailed question-and-answer document that deals with specific issues related to the introduction of technology at marine terminals.

"It is important to provide as much detail and clarity as possible," Miniace said. The ILWU Thursday was studying the proposal, possibly with the intention of returning to the bargaining table with its own proposed question-and-answer document. The ILWU indicated it might need several days to complete its analysis.

This week's events are significant because they deal directly with the main goals of waterfront employers. Computer technology is available to streamline marine terminal operations, eliminate redundancy and reduce the cost of moving cargo from the vessel through the container yard and out the gate.

In fact, terminal operators in Asian ports such as Hong Kong achieve a throughput-per-acre that is at least three times as high as the productivity at West Coast ports. Hong Kong terminal operators utilize the same equipment and cranes employed at West Coast ports. The big difference is that employees there work closely with the computerized yard management system that optimizes operations at the terminals.

However, if the ILWU agrees to cooperate with the technology enhancements available today, the union will lose hundreds of jobs. Terminal engineers estimate that at least 75 percent of the work now performed by ILWU marine clerks is unnecessary.

While the ILWU has made some concessions, such as agreeing to eliminate the requirement that marine clerks re-enter all documentation that is filed electronically to the terminals, the union has countered with requirements that employers view as a step backward even from present conditions.

For example, the union's technology proposal would set manning quotas for specific positions at the terminals. Employers say this would result in the use of unnecessary clerks. The ILWU wants marine clerks to process any changes made to shipping instructions after they are filed to the terminal. Employers say changes are common and the shipping lines or freight forwarders can file that information directly to the terminals without intervention by marine clerks.

Progress was also made this week in establishing a structure for the dispute resolution, or arbitration process, for implementing technology. When an individual employer attempts to implement technology, such as a paperless gate process, the ILWU local often challenges it. Such day-to-day challenges are handled through arbitration, first on the local level and, if there is no resolution, on the coast level.

The PMA had attempted to circumvent the local arbitrator. The local arbitrators in Los Angeles-Long Beach and Seattle-Tacoma are nominated by the ILWU and are often former longshoremen. The arbitrators in San Francisco-Oakland and the Columbia River ports are nominated by the PMA. Employers charge that in Southern California and Puget Sound, which handle more than 80 percent of the container volume on the coast, they are not receiving fair treatment.

However, the PMA this week backed off from its demand and agreed to a process that begins at the local level and then moves to the coast arbitrator, if necessary, for final resolution. In return, the ILWU agreed to specific time frames for handling the disputes so they do not drag on endlessly.

Another issue: Coast arbitrator Sam Kagel, who has held that position for more than 40 years and is highly respected by both sides, is 94 and provisions must be made for an eventual replacement.

Another difficult issue that must be resolved is ILWU jurisdiction over technology jobs. When the union in the late 1990s began to organize office personnel such as vessel planners, many lines moved those positions to distant locations such as Salt Lake City and Boise, Idaho. The union wants those positions returned to the waterfront and ILWU jurisdiction. The PMA said it can not disenfranchise existing workers and return to the waterfront jobs that never belonged to the ILWU in the first place.

The ILWU clearly wants to expand its jurisdiction to any new jobs created by technology. But the PMA said it is not in the business of helping the union expand its jurisdiction.

By Bill Mongelluzzo