Protect the Working Waterfront & Save Longshore Jobs! Vote No on Portland Cruise Ship Referendum (Citizen Initiative E)

On November 8, voters in the City of Portland will vote on a measure that would eliminate union jobs and threaten the future of Portland’s working waterfront. Ballot Question E, a citizen’s initiative, proposes to limit the number of passengers who can disembark from a cruiseship to 1,000 per day. 

However, Portland Longshoremen (ILA Local 861), whose members work on the waterfront and serve cruise ships, estimates that the poorly crafted referendum would cost its members 30 percent of their income and their well-paying jobs that start at $34 a hour plus excellent benefits.

"If the referendum were to pass, these ships would just go somewhere else,” Local 861 leader Jack Humenniuk told WMTW, noting that 90 large cruise ships are already booked to dock in Portland next year. "Probably 90 percent of them would not be able to call the port, and most of our calls are the bigger ships, and the reason for that is, we're the only port north of Boston that has fixed piers and facilities that can handle them.”

Humeniuk added that if the referendum passes, the revenue from the few ships that would be left “would not be enough to pay the electrical bill down here. So, my fear is that the terminal would have to close."

Fortunately, Maine Democratic Socialists of America, the group that sponsored the referendum, has withdrawn its support for the ballot measure and reached a compromisewith the Portland Longshoremen (ILA) Local 861 and the Maine Building and Construction Trades Council that will reduce environmental impacts while also saving union jobs.

The compromise titled “An Act to Reduce Cruise Ship Carbon Emissions and Expand Good Paying Jobs on the Working Waterfront,” will require the installation of shoreside power stations for all cruise ships by 2028, built by workers under a Project Labor Agreement, which  will establish wage and labor standards for all contractors on the project. The ships would be charged a $2.50 per passenger surcharge on top of the $12 passenger fee they already pay the city. Additionally, all future shoreside work to ensure the ships and passengers dock safely will be performed by City Licensed Stevedoring Terminal Operators. 

“We appreciate Maine DSA coming to the table with labor to work with us on an alternative to the ballot initiative. We were concerned that the original initiative, while well-intended and well-focused on reducing climate change, could have hurt some workers,” said Jack Humenniuk of ILA 861. “This compromise achieves everyone’s goal of reducing carbon emissions in our city, while actually expanding high-road jobs on the waterfront to those most qualified to protect the public and build our infrastructure while ensuring a livable wage.”

Jason J. Shedlock, President of the Maine State Building & Construction Trades Council and Regional Organizer with the Laborers’ International Union, also praised the proposal calling it a "strong step forward" for workers in the region.

Andrew Zarro, District Four Councilor and Chair of the Sustainability and Transportation Committee, said in a statement that he would propose the plan to his committee with the goal of holding a public hearing on the proposals later this fall.

However, the  cruiseship ballot question is still set to be on the November ballot in Portland, so if you live there, PLEASE VOTE NO on Citizen Initiative E!