Leaders from the International Longshoremen's Association (ILA) and the United States Maritime Alliance, Ltd. (USMX) have officially signed a new six-year labour deal, extending their Master Contract that will be effective October 1, 2024, through September 30, 2030.

The two sides hailed the new agreement as a "win-win" for both the ILA and USMX as it "protects current jobs and establishes a framework for implementing technologies that will create more jobs while modernizing East and Gulf Coast ports."

ILA International President Harold Daggett described the new agreement as "by far the best package ever" for port workers, with a 62% increase in wages, full protection against automation, accelerated wage raises for new workers, full container royalty funds returned to the ILA, among others.

USMX Executive Vice President and Chief Operation Officer and lead negotiator Paul De Maria said the agreement received unanimous support from USMX membership and furthers our mission to create modern and safe working conditions across the industry while continuing to focus on enhancing strong and efficient supply chains to ensure American companies can access the global marketplace.

"The ILA and USMX expressed optimism for their collective futures with labor peace now guaranteed for the next six years," the joint statement said.

Earlier, the ILA said the "landmark agreement" is a contract package with a conservative estimated cost of US$35 billion.

ILA and the USMX ratified the new deal on February 26.

Around 45,000 members of the ILA staged labour actions for three days in October last year, affecting 36 ports from Maine to Texas after their previous contract with USMX, representing port operators, terminal operators, and ocean carriers, expired on October 1.

The port strike concluded shortly after, as union dock workers and port operators reached a tentative agreement that would put an immediate end to the labour actions, easing mounting concerns about delays and further supply chain disruptions at a time when the industry was already contending with ongoing conflicts in the Red Sea and other geopolitical tensions.

JP Morgan analysts estimated then that the port strike could cost the US economy somewhere around US$5 billion a day.