This is a repeat in reverse of the same maneuvers conducted between 2022 through 2023 when the contract for the West Coast ports expired.

Major shipping ports along the East Coast could shut down as early as next week due to a labor dispute. Tens of thousands of dockworkers have threatened to go on strike if their union cannot reach a deal to renew their contract with the operators of those ports.

It's increasingly likely that thousands of dockworkers at major ports along the East and Gulf coasts will strike on Oct. 1, those close to the parties tell Axios. Why it matters: Americans would feel this one.

The clock is ticking down to a potential port strike on the East Coast and Gulf of Mexico, where consumers could face product shortages and price spikes just ahead of the holiday season.

All those supplies that are either going into the country or out of the country are going to be sitting in these ships or sitting on the docks waiting to be loaded and backing up,” UNO economist Walter “Dub” Lane said to WWL’s Tommy Tucker.

Dock workers seeking better workplace protections and increased wages are threatening to strike and the outcome could lead to a banana shortage.