Logistics Plus, based in Erie's Union Station building at 14th and Peach Street is known as a global leader in logistics, freight brokering, warehousing and supply chain solutions.
But formulating those solutions is pretty tough at the moment, now that the strike by 45,000 Longshoremen has stopped goods from moving in or out of 36 east coast and gulf ports from Maine to Texas.
Logistics Plus Customs Brokerage Manager Gretchen Blough says even a short strike will cause a bottle neck at the ports as we saw during the COVID-19 pandemic.
A long work stoppage could be a costly and crushing blow for a fragile cargo system.
Union dock workers are making it clear that the want a bigger piece of the port pie, seeking a 77% wage increase. Industry experts say all of us are likely to feel the impact of their stand.
"It's going to be an impact for the Christmas shopping season," Blough said. "Because even if the strike is short there's going to be a bottleneck in the port so it will slow everything down and things will not be in inventory that were maybe expected in time."
If the strike last for more than a week, Logistics Plus may have to help their customers get their goods via a different route, possibly through Canada. "If it lasts beyond a week things will need to be rerouted," Blough said. "Canada isn't a great option but it's one option, they just don't have the infrastructure to handle everything from the east and the and the Gulf Coast up in Montreal, so we just kind of have to take a wait and see attitude to see how long it's going to take."