Dockworkers on the East and Gulf Coasts have agreed to suspend the strike after reaching a deal for better pay

• The International Longshoremen’s Association and the United States Maritime Alliance reached a deal.
• Port employers and striking dockworkers reached a tentative agreement on wages, according to a joint statement.
• The strike will be suspended until January to allow time to work out the specifics of a new contract.

More than 45,000 striking port workers at docks from Maine to Texas are expected to suspend the strike until January 15 of next year and return to work on Friday while negotiations continue, CNN and the Associated Press reported Thursday, citing sources.

The International Longshoremen’s Association and the United States Maritime Alliance confirmed the breakthrough in a joint statement, saying the two sides reached a tentative agreement on wages and had “agreed to extend the Master Contract” until January 15 of next year. Both sides will return to the bargaining table to hash out “all other outstanding issues,” the statement said.

Port employers offered workers a 62% wage increase over the next six years, The Wall Street Journal reported, leading to the first movement in months.

Members of the International Longshoremen’s Association walked off the job on Tuesday after failing to come to an agreement with the management group that represents shipping lines and port authorities.

The two sides agreed Thursday that workers will suspend their strike until January to allow time to work out the specifics of a new contract, the outlets reported. The contract that expired will be extended in the meantime, CNN reported.

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