THE International Longshoremen's Association (ILA) has announced the suspension of talks with the United States Maritime Alliance (USMX) scheduled for Tuesday.

This decision arises amid ongoing negotiations of local agreements under the coast-wide Master Contract, set to expire on September 30.

The ILA cancelled Master Contract talks with USMX after discovering that APM Terminals and Maersk Line are utilising an Auto Gate system, which autonomously processes trucks without ILA labour. This system, initially identified at the Port of Mobile, Alabama, is reportedly being used in other ports as well.

Said an ILA spokesman: "Here we go again! This is another example of USMX members unilaterally circumventing our coast-wide Master Contract. This is a clear violation of our agreement with USMX, and we will not tolerate it any longer."

"There's no point trying to negotiate a new agreement with USMX when one of its major companies continues to violate our current agreement with the sole aim of eliminating ILA jobs through automation," said international president Harold Daggett, who serves as chief negotiator for the union.

The ILA will not meet with USMX until the Auto Gate issue is resolved. Additionally, the union is still awaiting results from an audit for the jobs created out of new technology, a report they have been anticipating for almost two contract periods.