For the first time in almost 50 years, dockworkers went on strike early Tuesday at more than a dozen ports along the East and Gulf coasts.
About 45,000 members of the International Longshoremen's Association began the strike after the union's contract agreement with the ports ended at midnight.
The union wants a 77% pay raise over six years and "certain reassurances that technology and automation won't be used to improve the efficiency of the ports and potentially take their jobs," said William Sawaya, an associate professor of supply chain management at Bowling Green State University.
The ILA strike does not impact local ports, but depending on how long it lasts, there could be long-term impacts on manufacturing and what we see at the store. Sawaya says people should not expect to see noticeable impacts soon, though.
"This is something that was planned in advance and so companies could buy ahead," he said. "So very few companies will run out of anything in the short term because they should have stocked up. There might be exceptions though; maybe they did try to stock up and it didn't come in in time."
Businesses and consumers may see impacts on fresh produce, for example, because it is transported right before hitting shelves.
"Only 40% of containerized goods come through the East Coast and Gulf ports, which means a lot of it comes in other ways," Sawaya said. "From California and companies can also ship through Canada or Mexico."
The strike should not completely stop the flow of items, Sawaya added, but it could slow things down.
As for prices, Sawaya said short-term there should not be any increases at the store. But if the strike lasts for weeks or even months, prices could start to climb.
He said businesses and manufacturers will likely feel the impacts of the strike first, and then it could trickle down to consumers.
Stellantis provided the following statement to WTOL 11 in response to the strike.
"...The Company is taking the necessary actions to mitigate any potential impact to production or our ability to deliver vehicles to our customers. There has been no impact to our operations at this time."
As people begin holiday shopping, Sawaya said it is hard to know what impact the strike will have.
"My suspicion is that many of the goods that people might be looking to purchase over the holidays are already in warehouses and already in route," he said. "But I would also guess that not all of it has been received yet."
Sawaya added it is not necessary for people to go out to stores and stock up or panic buy items, though.