Pamalicious
08-20-2004, 11:48 AM
Union, Ports Conduct Job Lottery in Calif.
Thu Aug 19, 9:52 PM ET Add Business - AP to My Yahoo!
By ALEX VEIGA, AP Business Writer
LOS ANGELES - Longshore union and port shipping officials sifted through 300,000 applications Thursday submitted as part of a special lottery for 3,000 lucrative temporary dockworker jobs at the nation's largest port complex.
The cattle call for workers — a rare occurrence in the shipping industry — drew an overwhelming response since the union began accepting cards last week. It comes in the wake of a crush of cargo from the Far East, which has created a dire need for more dockworkers at the twin ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach.
"This is by far the largest turnout we've ever had," said Jim McKenna, president and chief executive of the Pacific Maritime Association.
The drawing, conducted under the supervision of five arbitrators, lasted about seven hours, PMA spokesman Steve Sugarman said.
Outside the Port of Los Angeles building where the drawing was taking place, signs told applicants to look on the Internet for results of the drawing. Several police officers were on hand to discourage applicants from gathering, but none had shown up as of midmorning.
Postcards mailed in by jobseekers filled nearly a third of a metal container the size of a small car.
Arbitrator Jan Holmes stepped through a side opening into the large mesh container and scooped up an armful of cards, walking on top of the stack. Several dozen union and shipping company employees sorted them before putting the cards into counting machines.
By midmorning, some 5,000 cards had been sorted. Arbitrators intended to select roughly 8,880 cards and mixed them with an equal amount of cards sent in by workers already affiliated with the port industry.
The final 3,000 were to be randomly hand-picked by arbitrators from a combined pool of roughly 18,000 cards, McKenna said.
"I really hope to get the job, but I know it's a longshot," Freddie Baker, a school bus driver from Los Angeles, said in a telephone interview.
The 40-year-old father of six said he considered mailing in more than one application card to boost his chances in the job lottery, but ultimately only sent one card, fearing he might be disqualified.
"It's an opportunity of a lifetime to get a job making $100,000," said Baker, who now earns about $40,000 a year. "To make that amount of money would be awesome."
The names of the first 300 people selected in the drawing were posted on a PMA Web site Thursday evening. The rest of the successful applicants were to be selected next week, Sugarman said.
McKenna said that cargo volume from the Far East is "still extremely heavy." "Ships aren't unloaded as soon as they get here and we need more people," he added.
The intense competition for the jobs, which pay between $20 and $28 an hour, had some concerned that the drawing would not be conducted fairly.
"They can still go in the back door, they can still do cronyism or nepotism," said Royce Esters, president of the National Association for Equal Justice in America. Esters said individual members of the union had called on his civil rights group to monitor the drawing.
Port and union leadership, however, were confident the process would be legitimate.
"I believe it's very fair and I'm satisfied," said James Espinosa, president of the International Longshore and Warehouse Union.
Officials said they would post the names on the selected cards on a Web site throughout the day.
In 2003, fully registered longshoremen earned an annual average of $89,484, according to a report by the Pacific Maritime Association, which represents shipping companies. The highest-paid 72 percent averaged $106,520 a year, while the 19.1 percent who clocked the most hours were paid an average of $141,058.
Registered longshoremen also receive free health benefits, pension and employer-sponsored 401(k) plan.
Only two other such application drives have been held in the last 20 years. Both times — 1984 and 1997 — more than 20,000 people applied for a chance to make it onto the casual worker roster.
Thu Aug 19, 9:52 PM ET Add Business - AP to My Yahoo!
By ALEX VEIGA, AP Business Writer
LOS ANGELES - Longshore union and port shipping officials sifted through 300,000 applications Thursday submitted as part of a special lottery for 3,000 lucrative temporary dockworker jobs at the nation's largest port complex.
The cattle call for workers — a rare occurrence in the shipping industry — drew an overwhelming response since the union began accepting cards last week. It comes in the wake of a crush of cargo from the Far East, which has created a dire need for more dockworkers at the twin ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach.
"This is by far the largest turnout we've ever had," said Jim McKenna, president and chief executive of the Pacific Maritime Association.
The drawing, conducted under the supervision of five arbitrators, lasted about seven hours, PMA spokesman Steve Sugarman said.
Outside the Port of Los Angeles building where the drawing was taking place, signs told applicants to look on the Internet for results of the drawing. Several police officers were on hand to discourage applicants from gathering, but none had shown up as of midmorning.
Postcards mailed in by jobseekers filled nearly a third of a metal container the size of a small car.
Arbitrator Jan Holmes stepped through a side opening into the large mesh container and scooped up an armful of cards, walking on top of the stack. Several dozen union and shipping company employees sorted them before putting the cards into counting machines.
By midmorning, some 5,000 cards had been sorted. Arbitrators intended to select roughly 8,880 cards and mixed them with an equal amount of cards sent in by workers already affiliated with the port industry.
The final 3,000 were to be randomly hand-picked by arbitrators from a combined pool of roughly 18,000 cards, McKenna said.
"I really hope to get the job, but I know it's a longshot," Freddie Baker, a school bus driver from Los Angeles, said in a telephone interview.
The 40-year-old father of six said he considered mailing in more than one application card to boost his chances in the job lottery, but ultimately only sent one card, fearing he might be disqualified.
"It's an opportunity of a lifetime to get a job making $100,000," said Baker, who now earns about $40,000 a year. "To make that amount of money would be awesome."
The names of the first 300 people selected in the drawing were posted on a PMA Web site Thursday evening. The rest of the successful applicants were to be selected next week, Sugarman said.
McKenna said that cargo volume from the Far East is "still extremely heavy." "Ships aren't unloaded as soon as they get here and we need more people," he added.
The intense competition for the jobs, which pay between $20 and $28 an hour, had some concerned that the drawing would not be conducted fairly.
"They can still go in the back door, they can still do cronyism or nepotism," said Royce Esters, president of the National Association for Equal Justice in America. Esters said individual members of the union had called on his civil rights group to monitor the drawing.
Port and union leadership, however, were confident the process would be legitimate.
"I believe it's very fair and I'm satisfied," said James Espinosa, president of the International Longshore and Warehouse Union.
Officials said they would post the names on the selected cards on a Web site throughout the day.
In 2003, fully registered longshoremen earned an annual average of $89,484, according to a report by the Pacific Maritime Association, which represents shipping companies. The highest-paid 72 percent averaged $106,520 a year, while the 19.1 percent who clocked the most hours were paid an average of $141,058.
Registered longshoremen also receive free health benefits, pension and employer-sponsored 401(k) plan.
Only two other such application drives have been held in the last 20 years. Both times — 1984 and 1997 — more than 20,000 people applied for a chance to make it onto the casual worker roster.