Del Monte Campaign of 2010

The conflict between Del Monte and the International Longshoremen’s Association (ILA) Local 1291 in 2010 centered on Del Monte’s decision to move its fruit shipping operations from the Camden, NJ terminal, where union workers from Local 1291 were employed, to the non-union Gloucester Terminal, across the river. This move resulted in the loss of around 200 union jobs. The ILA members protested, viewing Del Monte’s actions as union-busting, especially because workers at the Gloucester Terminal were paid significantly lower wages and had fewer benefits compared to the ILA members. The ILA tried to prevent the move by offering Del Monte wage concessions of around $5 million, but the company refused and shifted its operations anyway. This led to large protests, including the famous act of ILA workers dumping pineapples into the Delaware River. The protests escalated into picketing and a two-day strike in September, which briefly shut down operations at the ports in New York, New Jersey, and Philadelphia. Del Monte’s move was part of a larger trend by employers seeking to undermine unionized labor in favor of cheaper alternatives, which the ILA saw as a threat to their members’ livelihoods and the broader labor movement on the East Coast. The ILA responded by calling for a boycott of Del Monte products, and the conflict raised broader concerns about the future of labor rights in the shipping industry. Ultimately, this dispute highlighted ongoing tensions between unionized and non-union labor, especially in industries where cost-cutting by companies has significant implications for workers’ wages and benefits