The Port of Wilmington has released a contingency plan ahead of a possible strike.

Contract negotiations are ongoing between the International Longshoremen’s Association and the United States Maritime Alliance Ltd., an entity representing the management of ports, terminals and shipping lines. The current contract is set to expire at midnight on Sept. 30 and union members have said they plan to strike at ports on the East and Gulf coasts if a new contract isn’t reached.

In anticipation of the possible work stoppage, North Carolina Ports has developed a contingency plan for the Port of Wilmington. According to a news release, North Carolina Ports will recognize any and all work stoppages.

The container gate at Wilmington’s port will operate under extended hours on Sept. 28 from 8 a.m. to noon and 1 p.m. to 5 p.m. and will operate under normal hours on Sept. 30. If there is a work stoppage on Oct. 1, the  Port of Wilmington’s South (Container) Gate will be closed.

According to the contingency plan, all vessels must complete work and vacate the berth at the Port of Wilmington by 11:59 p.m. on Sept. 30. After a work stoppage, if a vessel does not have prior approval, it will not be brought alongside the berth at the Port of Wilmington. 

No impacted carrier’s rail or intermodal cargo will be worked on or off the rail at the Port of Wilmington, and all import cargo at the Port of Wilmington should be delivered before Oct. 1. No cargo will be delivered from the Port of Wilmington once a work stoppage begins.

There are no restrictions on the receipt of export cargo, according to the plan. Export cargo will be received while gates at the Port of Wilmington are open. NC Ports will not be liable for any damage to or loss of cargo that remains on the terminal at the Port of Wilmington during the work stoppage.

Wilmington's port serves as the “heartbeat of the city” because it moves goods and services throughout the region and the world, said Mouhcine Guettabi, a regional economist and associate professor of economics at the University of North Carolina Wilmington.

A potential strike would have a direct impact on those who work at the port and broader regional impacts on the individuals and businesses that rely the goods and services that move through Wilmington's port. 

“The port plays a nonnegligible role in the Wilmington economy, and it has tentacles that reach well beyond what we think of as transportation and warehousing,” Guettabi said. "The reverberation of the effects can touch construction, can touch your local grocery store and can touch businesses that are connected to other parts of the country or the world.”