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No, this is not the likely root cause for reasons another commenter notes. But I want to point something out: ports and logistics infrastructure are the most u
by qeternity 5y ago
No, this is not the likely root cause for reasons another commenter notes.
But I want to point something out: ports and logistics infrastructure are the most unionized, protected industries that exist. The truckers may not be, but the rest of the value chain is, often resulting in huge inefficiencies.
You note something like truckers waiting in lines for hours but only getting paid when they move the goods. 1) they are waiting in line for hours because unions strictly control the amount of labor in ports (these manual labor jobs often pay low-mid six figures) and 2) driver’s simply factor these types of costs and many others into their prices. Owner operators aren’t paid hourly, like millions of other business owners.
This is absolutely not where the current issues lie.
- jljljl 5y agoI don't think this matches what the thread is saying. Longshoremen are highly unionized, but they are not the bottleneck -- they are blocked because they have nowhere to put the containers they unload. Fixing the problem requires identifying somewhere to place the empty containers, and arranging transport to move those containers out as quickly as possible
- qeternity 5y agoI’m not saying it’s the problem now. I’m saying it’s been a problem in the last. But the current problem is absolutely not due to truckers being non union.
- fieldcny 5y agoSeems like your comment was just an attempt to dunk on a group of people you seem to believe are over paid. You have no real facts or information about how much port workers make and you present no evidence that rules that you may deem to be “inefficient” aren’t in place for safety reasons. You also seem to ignore the fact that most manual labor jobs have to provide enough income for a worker while they are able to physically engage in the work to provide for the significantly longer period of time their bodies won’t be able to do the work. Everyone in this country seems to think they know exactly how much everyone else should make and surprisingly they always think others are over paid. It’s especially comical when it’s coming from tech folks where an L7 sitting at FB can be pulling down seven figures and could sit in their aeron chairs working till they are 80, we should all recognize the privilege we have in that regard
- ta988 5y agoI don't think FB will last that long. I believe they reached high tide, same as Google and probably Amazon...
- qeternity 5y ago> Seems like your comment was just an attempt to dunk on a group of people you seem to believe are over paid. I was responding to a comment that argued they weren’t paid enough, and I was just making the counterpoint. So no, if anyone has an axe to grind, it would be you.
- Spooky23 5y agoEvery system has a downside. Container freight is awesome, but it creates systems that have to constantly move. When the systems stop you get whiptail effects that can cascade. Ports are natural chokepoints. Just like Apple or Google or Facebook extracts a toll, so too do the ports, longshoremen, port truckers, etc. Their rent seeking is baked into the system.
- farrarstan 5y agoclassic dumb guy here