Calls to vaccinate California port workers to prevent shutdown

Vessel Mgr. Pier 400 LSA with a specially painted vehicle to promote safety.

If things weren’t difficult enough at the Los Angeles/Long Beach container hub gateway, what with soaring levels of congestion and some 30-plus box ships at any given time waiting at anchor to berth, rampant Covid-19 infection rates in California threaten to deplete the number of dockers available to work, LA port director Gene Seroka estimates that up to 1,800 dockers may already be on coronavirus-related sick leave, according to Maritime Executive. “Los Angeles health officials are sympathetic to the concerns… and also acknowledge the essential nature of the work performed by the port employees to maintain commerce across the region, but their hands are largely tied. Like many parts of the country, Los Angeles is facing a shortage of the vaccine calling on the federal government to increase distribution to the hard-hit areas.”