Labor/Employment

Your morning transportation speed-read:

Denver International Airport has an apparent rabbit problem.

Philadelphia International Airport is getting a $734 million makeover.

Land has not been purchased for a controversial high-speed rail proposal in California that is supposed to begin construction this year.

Transportation workers in Greece have gone on strike.

Federal mediators called in to resolve a labor dispute involving East and Gulf Coast ports said Thursday that dockworkers and management were making “progress” in their talks.

The statement, from the Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service (FMCS), comes at the conclusion of three days of negotiations between the U.S. Maritime Alliance (USMX) and the AFL-CIO-affiliated International Longshoremen's Association (ILA).

The groups had nearly reached an impasse at the end of last year that would have resulted in a massive work stoppage that would have shut down 14 ports, to the dismay of business groups in Washington.

USMX and ILA agreed instead to resume talks under the supervision of the federal mediation service this month.

Your morning transportation speed-read:

San Francisco is considering renaming its airport after one of the first openly gay politicians in the U.S., who was killed while he was a member of the city's Board of Supervisors.

Washington Gov. Chris Gregoire (D), who has been mentioned as a potential replacement for Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood, called for her state to focus on transportation funding and education in her final speech.

Massachusetts Gov. Deval Patrick (D) is pushing for a tax increase to pay for transportation projects.

Customer service agents at American Airlines voted against joining the Communication Workers of America union.

Transportation employment decreased by 1,000 jobs in December as the U.S. unemployment rate ticked up slightly.

Statistics released Friday by the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) showed the national unemployment rate rose from 7.7 percent in November to 7.8 in December, despite an increase of 151,000 jobs in the month.

The BLS report showed employment in the transportation sector decreased from 4,4067,500 in November to 4,406,900 last month. 

Unionized dockworkers and their employers reached a deal Friday to avert a strike that could have cost the economy billions.

Federal mediators will attempt to resolve a strike that has halted shipments at West Coast ports, the Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service Tuesday.

FMCS Director George Cohen said the service will mediate talks between the AFL-CIO-affiliated International Longshoremen and Warehouse Union (ILWU) and the Los Angeles/Long Beach Harbor Employers Association group that represents port managers in southern California.

Negotiations between the union and the ports on a new labor contract have stalled, resulting in a week-long strike port officials say has closed 10 of 14 terminals in the Los Angeles and Long Beach ports.

Cohen said the federal mediation was sought by both sides.

"Based on a joint request from the parties, negotiations between the International Longshoremen and Warehouse Union Office Clerical Workers and the Harbor Employers Association will be conducted under FMCS auspices," he said in a statement. "I and Deputy Director Scot L. Beckenbaugh will convene the parties for an initial meeting at a date and location to be determined."

The National Retail Federation is calling for President Obama to get involved in a labor dispute at West Coast ports that has resulted in a work stoppage.

Negotiations between the AFL-CIO-affiliated International Longshoremen and Warehouse Union (ILWU) and the Los Angeles/Long Beach Harbor Employers Association group that represents port managers in southern California have broken down to the point of the union moving to strike, the NRF said in a letter of Obama.

The Washington, D.C.-based retail association wants Obama to step in to resolve the impasse because "a prolonged strike at the nation’s largest ports would have a devastating impact on the U.S. economy."

"A 10-day lockout at the West Coast ports as a result of stalled negotiations in 2002 led to lingering supply chain disruptions and cost the U.S. economy $1 billion for each day of the lockout," NRF President Matthew Shay wrote to Obama on Thursday.

On eve of the election, a prominent union official echoed warnings from Mitt Romney about Rust Belt job losses.

Transportation employment increased by 2,000 jobs in October as the U.S. unemployment rate ticked up slightly in the final jobs report before Tuesday’s election.

Statistics released Friday by the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) showed an increase of 171,000 jobs in October, increasing the national unemployment rate to 7.9 percent from a 7.8 percent mark last month.

The BLS report showed employment in the transportation sector increased from 4,400,000 in October to 4,397,800 last month. 

The pilots union on Tuesday said a labor agreement with American Airlines that includes an ownership stake in the company is still possible, according to The Associated Press.

The Allied Pilots Association (APA) and American Airlines have been involved in a labor dispute since shortly after AMR Corp., the company that owns the airline, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy last November. American Airlines offered the union a deal that included a 13.5 percent stake in AMR, which the pilots rejected.

American Airlines had said that offer was final, but the union said there’s still hope for an agreement that includes an ownership stake.