PORTSMOUTH, Va. — The four marine terminals that make up the Port of Virginia could potentially experience a shutdown as soon as Oct. 1, which could affect the availability of retail goods.
This is because of a potential strike by International Longshoremen's Union workers that would impact ports along the East and Gulf Coasts. If there is a strike, it would be the first to impact Virginia ports since 1977.
This week, the Virginia Port Authority announced plans to stop cargo operations beginning Monday, Sept. 30, if the International Longshoremen's Union and the United States Maritime Alliance are not able to come to terms.
"My hunch is both sides don't want that," said retired TCC business professor Peter Shaw. "If the ports go down for an extended of period time, that will have an effect on our economy."
A potential strike would impact tens of thousands of workers, and past a certain point, may also impact consumers.
However, local economists say it's too early to determine how everyday goods may be impacted by the strike and port closures.
"The best news is there are supply chain professionals working on the back end to ensure that we have enough inventory on hand in most of these industries, to ensure that the show must go on," said Kuntal Bhattacharyya, director at ODU's School of Supply Chain, Logistics & Maritime Operations.
Shaw estimated the strike would not last too long.
"I'm convinced that the strike is somewhere from no more than a week to no more than a month," he said. "My hunch is there is enough stockpile that will get us through that without much price increase to the consumer. If we get beyond a month, then we are in new territory."