The National Retail Federation (NRF) has asked the Biden Administration to help parties resolve labor issues. Last Thursday, the International Longshore and Warehouse Union announced it would withhold labor at the Ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach.

That resulted in the overnight closure of all terminals, but dockworkers returned to work Friday evening.

Things have been tense for months. Labor contracts expired on July 1, 2022. Last month, the NRF led a group of 238 state, local and federal trade associations in a letter to President Joe Biden calling on the administration to provide support to provide support to help the negotiating parties quickly reach a new agreement.

The groups represented included importers and exporters from coast to coast. The Kansas Chamber, Kansas Motor Carriers Association and Kansas Retail Council were among those represented.

“Retailers throughout the country depend on U.S. ports to support their daily business needs. The West Coast ports, especially those in Los Angeles and Long Beach, are a pivotal entry point to the United States that allow American consumers access to global products and essential goods,” NRF’s Senior Vice President of Government Relations David French stated.

“NRF is closely monitoring the situation in California and has reiterated its concerns to the White House. It is essential that the ongoing labor negotiations between the International Longshore and Warehouse Union and the Pacific Maritime Association are resolved immediately. We again call on the administration to engage and prevent any further disruption to port operations and cargo fluidity.”

Retailers often complain about government intrusion but the real complaint is about policies they don’t want. It is easy to resort to expressions such as “big government” but this labor dispute highlights the complexities of the issue, and how issues that appear far-removed from Kansas can have a direct impact on all of us.