NLRB slams union for protest tactics at Longview port

LONGVIEW, Wash. – A longshore union has used death threats and physical assaults during protests at a new grain terminal at the Port of Longview, according to federal officials.

The National Labor Relations Board said in a complaint last week that picketers with the International Longshore and Warehouse Union have used unfair labor practices. The board wants the union to write a formal letter saying that it will not block rail shipments to the facility managed by EGT Development.

“Part of what is alleged here is that the union has been engaged in a variety of misconduct,” said Richard Ahearn, regional director of the NLRB. An October hearing is scheduled on the matter.

Members of ILWU Local 21 want EGT to use their workers, claiming they are entitled to the work through a contract with the Port of Longview and union jurisdiction. EGT has signed an agreement with another company, General Construction Co., which is staffing the terminal with other workers from a different union.

Protests have interrupted rail shipments at the new $200 million export terminal. The dispute has continued to escalate, with authorities arresting aggressive protesters.

The new NLRB documents describe a July 11 incident in which the union tore down a gate, trespassed onto EGT property, pushed railcars out of a shed and climbed on them. The protesters physically and verbally assaulted employees at the site, according to the complaint.

A couple weeks later, on July 25, protesters spit on vehicles of General Construction workers and threatened them with death. They also were involved with placing plastic bags filled with feces outside the administration building of the EGT facility, according to the complaint.

That same day, protesters allegedly assaulted the shop steward from Operating Engineers International Union Local 701, which is now handling the work at the terminal.

An ILWU spokesman did not immediately provide a comment on the accusations.