Why dockworkers are idle

It's one of those depends-on-who-you-ask situations. The International Longshore and Warehouse Union claims that its membership has taken the day off up and down the West Coast to protest the war in Iraq. But shippers suspect it was a negotiating tactic. The union and the Pacific Maritime Association, which represents ocean carriers and terminal operators, have been working on a new contract for a month or two. Whatever the motivations, the work stoppage defies an order by an independent arbitrator that the dockworkers report for work. The union had asked employers to clear the way for members to take the day off, but the employers refused. A one-day work stoppage isn't that big a deal - work is expected to resume for the 6 p.m. shift and they can play catch-up fairly easily. But it does point to the kind of solidarity that gave the shipping industry fits back in 2002 when a labor dispute kept the L.A. and Long Beach ports idle for 10 days. That was a big deal. (CalTrade, LAT)