Governor Kathy Hochul said on Monday that state agencies have been preparing in case of a potential strike beginning Tuesday by dockworkers at ports stretching from Maine to Texas.
Workers began walking picket lines early Tuesday in a strike over wages and automation even though progress had been reported in contract talks. The contract between the ports and about 45,000 members of the International Longshoremen’s Association expired at midnight.
Hochul told reporters on Monday that the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey is preparing for the potential strike, but she wanted to assure all New Yorkers there is not a concern right now of any major food shortages due to a walkout.
“We don’t anticipate shortages of essential goods anytime soon,” said Hochul. “So, for example, people do not need to rush out to the grocery store and stockpile goods like they did during the pandemic. I want to be very clear about that. We do not want to see people reach that level of anxiety, because we are not there.
Jackie Bray, the Commissioner of the New York State Division of Homeland Security and Emergency Services, said that New Yorkers don’t have to worry about losing access to important medical products if there is an extended strike.
“We have stockpiled, particularly medical consumables, and so we'll be opening up those warehouses if this strike were to continue to make sure that there's no disruption whatsoever for our hospitals and our nursing homes and our other critical care facilities,” Bray said.
In a statement released early Tuesday morning, Hochul again said New York “has been working around the clock to ensure that “our grocery stores and medical facilities have the essential products they need.”
The governor also called on the two sides in the labor dispute “to reach a fair agreement soon that respects workers and ensures a flow of commerce through our ports.”
This story includes reporting by the Associated Press.
