VOA慢速英语: 美国西海岸港口恢复运作

US West Coast Ports Busy, Struggling With Backlog

美国西海岸的港口恢复运作

Most West Coast ports in the United States have been busy since Friday. That is when negotiators reached a tentative settlement in a nine-month labor dispute and work slowdown. Now that goods again are being unloaded the dockworkers and employers say they can talk about long-term problems.

自周五以来，美国西海岸的大部分港口一直非常繁忙。九个月的劳动争议和放缓工作后，谈判双方达成暂时的解决方案。现在码头工人开始卸载货物，雇主说他们可能谈论长期的运作问题。

Many ships have been docked or have been waiting offshore at 29 West Coast ports. Port officials say it will take months to process all the cargo. Most dockworkers have returned to work. But they still must vote on a tentative five-year contract.

很多船只已经靠岸或者已经在西海岸的29个海港等待着。港口官员表示需要几个月的时间来处理所有的货物。很多码头工人已经重返工作。但是他们必须得对一份为期5年的劳动合同进行表决。

U.S. Secretary of Labor Thomas Perez went to San Francisco to urge both sides to settle their differences quickly. Craig Merrilees is with the International Longshore and Warehouse Union. He said the negotiations have been difficult.

美国劳工部部长托马斯·皮尔兹前往旧金山敦促双方尽快解决他们的分歧。克雷格·梅里利斯是国际海岸和仓库工会的成员，他表示谈判一直以来都很艰难。

"You know, there are a lot of tough issues in this process that lasted over nine months, and some of them are the kinds of issues that are affecting all workers. That includes the outsourcing of good jobs."

“在过去九个月的谈判过程中，有很多棘手的问题，而有些问题事关到所有的工人，这些问题包括不错工作的外包问题。”

Workers say administrative jobs at the port have been moving to other states and other countries. Workers say they also worry about increasing automation of port operations, reducing the need for workers.

工人们表示港口的行政工作已经搬到其它的州或者其它国家，他们还担心港口自动化的操作，会减少对工人的需求。

Those who move goods in and out of the country include the San Francisco coffee company, Ritual Coffee Roasters. Eileen Rinaldi is the owner.

那些需要进出口货物的公司有旧金山的咖啡公司，Ritual Coffee Roasters，艾琳·里纳尔迪是公司的所有者。

"We are reliant on constant arrivals of coffee in order to have a fresh supply."

“我们依赖于持续不断的咖啡进口，来确保有新鲜的咖啡供应。”

Many other businesses depend on goods passing through the ports, such as beer makers that use imported hops, farmers with crops to ship. One California children's clothing company has been waiting for its products trapped in ships near the Port of Oakland.

其它很多生意也需要通过港口运输，比如：需要采购进口啤酒花的啤酒制造商，农民需要用船运粮食作物。加利福尼亚一家儿童制衣公司一直在等待被困在奥克兰德港口附近船载的产品。

Tom O'Brien is a transportation expert at California State University, Long Beach. He says long-term problems at the ports must be addressed. Mr. O'Brien also says not only the port but roads, bridges and railways need to be upgraded.

汤姆·欧布瑞恩是加利福尼亚州立大学长滩分校的交通运输专家。他称港口长期以来的问题必须得到解决。欧布瑞恩表示不仅仅是港口需要升级更新，公路、桥梁和铁路都需要改善、提高。

"The fact that we have larger ships coming now, that is creating peak demand for labor and for equipment is putting a lot of pressure on our infrastructure, not only the ports, but the road network, rail capacity, distribution center and warehousing."

“实际上，有更大型的船进港，这样创造了劳工和设备需求高峰，给我们的基础设施带来压力，不仅对港口、还有给公路运输网络、铁路运输能力、调配中心和仓库存储都带来压力。”

The labor dispute began in July when a labor agreement ended. The work stoppage has affected 29 West Coast ports for months and slowed U.S. trade with Asia. Those ports process more than 25 percent of all U.S. maritime trade and more than 70 percent of the nation's imports from Asia.

劳工协议结束后，劳工谈判自七月份开始。劳动罢工影响到29个西海岸港口的数月的运作，减缓了美国与亚洲的贸易合作。这些港口的贸易额占美国贸易额的25%，承担超过70%的对亚洲的进口贸易。

I'm Mario Ritter.

我是马里奥·瑞特。

Mike O'Sullivan reported this story from Los Angeles. Mario Ritter wrote it for Learning English. Caty Weaver was the editor.

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Words in This Story

tentative – adj. not definite: still able to be changed

cargo – n. something that is carried from one place to another by boat, airplane, etc.

address – v. to give attention to (something): to deal with (a matter, issue, problem, etc.)