Labor Strikes Throwing Curveballs Why aren’t baseball players huge fans of labor unions? Because they don’t like to be called out on strikes! Now that we’ve “Cracker Jacked” that joke, let us take you out to the ballgame… If you haven’t checked the scoreboard lately, then you’ll be surprised to learn that the number of […]

After resuming strikes in British Columbia yesterday, ILWU workers are once again back at work today (July 20th) after a ruling from the Canada Industrial Relations Board ordered dockworkers back for failing to provide a 72-hour strike notice. The ILWU is expected to resume its strike on Saturday, July 22nd. Shapiro will continue to monitor […]

Last week, Canada’s Minister of Labour, Seamus O’Regan, and Minister of Transport, Omar Alghabra, issued a joint statement advising that the British Columbia Maritime Employers Association (BCMEA) had accepted a joint deal with the International Longshore and Warehouse Union (ILWU). However, the leadership of the ILWU has now suggested that their members vote the recommended terms down. The leadership cited […]

Last night, the International Longshore and Warehouse Union (ILWU) and the Pacific Maritime Association (PMA) revealed they had finally reached a tentative contract agreement after 13 long months of tumultuous and turbulent negotiations. According to the announcement, both sides have informally agreed to a six-year contract that covers all 29 West Coast ports. Although the […]

The Court of International Trade (CIT) released an initial ruling in 2022 that indicated that the U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) did in fact have the authority to impose Section 301 tariffs on Chinese goods. After careful deliberation, the CIT has determined that these duties placed on Chinese goods were appropriately implemented and supported. Some of […]

With consideration to the production capacity of the United States, and the country’s continuing efforts to combat COVID, the United States Trade Representative (USTR) announced that it would extend Section 301 tariff exclusions on 81 medical products used to treat COVID-19 until May 15, 2023.  These exclusions were formerly scheduled to expire on February 28, […]

As you may already be aware, in November 2022, the Office of the US Trade Representative (USTR) announced that it would extend Section 301 tariff exclusions on medical products used to treat COVID-19 for an additional 90 days. With the exclusions set to expire on February 28th, the USTR announced they are seeking public comments […]

Today, the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) announced that it will extend Section 301 tariff exclusions on 352 products from China for an additional nine-months. The exclusions were previously set to expire on December 31, 2022. The exclusions from Section 301 tariffs include: The extensions announced in this notice will apply as of […]

Today, President Joe Biden signed legislation—originally approved in Congress earlier this week—to prevent a massive rail strike from devastating the US economy. The bill passed in the House (290-137) on Wednesday (November 30); and was approved by the Senate (80-15) on Thursday. Biden had been urging lawmakers to pass the bill after railway workers announced […]

Today, the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) announced that it will extend Section 301 tariff exclusions on medical products used to treat COVID-19 for an additional 90 days. The 81 exclusions were originally set to expire on November 30, 2022; however, the exclusions will now apply to products meeting the specified criteria until […]

As you may already be aware, in May 2022, the Office of the US Trade Representative (USTR) began an initial review to determine whether Section 301 tariffs should continue to be imposed on products from China—the four year anniversary of the enactment of the duties. Last month, after receiving more than 400 requests for continuation […]

On Friday, September 2, the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) announced that Section 301 tariffs would continue for List 1 and 2 products from China. The decision follows a May announcement from the USTR that informed companies that have benefited from Section 301 tariffs of the possible termination of the duties; it also […]