Occupying Ports

Shipping businesses all around the United States are starting to get nervous about the new Occupy movement which is rumored to infect the West Coast ports this month. With the possibility of starting December 12, this could be a struggle for the holiday season. Port operators are committed to keep everything running as normally as possible, but with the holidays arriving and companies already short-staffed, it could be harder than they think. If nothing else, the congestion at the ports is always tough this time of year. Any additional people or vehicles will definitely be a hindrance. One good part of this proposed plan is that starting so late will be after the holiday rush so the problem will not be with additional cargo. Nevertheless, it is still a cause for concern among importers and exporters. Sometimes even a day can cost companies a lot of money. Fortunately, this type of movement will be extremely hard to accomplish given that the organizers will need not only a lot of contacts within the ports and unions associated with the ports, but serious knowledge of port operations. It almost seems like the bark will be bigger than the bite. Let's hope so. If for some reason, this really does become a larger movement, it will more than likely cost businesses as well as taxpayers millions of dollars as it did when the Occupy movement started on the east coast in lower Manhattan. Even if just in Long Beach, the results could be catastrophic.