Crane operators tagged by truckers for slow service at California port

 Washington Examiner:

Lazy crane operators making $250,000 a year exacerbating port crisis, truckers say

...

 “What you are talking about is perfectly described behavior,” Tessier said of the crane operators. “This is all a reflection of the management they have down there, the inmates run the asylum. The managers are all afraid to say anything because the operators are so powerful they get management fired if they don’t like them.”

Most truckers are independent contractors who are paid per container delivery and make a fraction of a crane operator's salary. They only arrive at the docks after receiving notification that the cargo is ready for pickup. Waiting hours for shipping containers to be loaded onto their trucks is frustrating, and those who have complained were swiftly dealt with, they say.

“They’ll go get the police and kick you out and tell you to leave,” said trucker Chris. “Then, you get banned from coming back in there.”

Or sometimes, the crane operator will mete out punishment by skipping the trucker and working on someone else, exacerbating the wait.

While three-hour waits are common, some truckers have been at the port for days.

“They will wait there all day and then come back the next day,” Chris said. “I know someone who kept coming back, and eventually, [the terminal] will charge you a storage fee if you don’t get the container out of there.”

...

one of the things that makes this story credible is that you do not see the same delays at Texas ports or Florida ports.  It looks like a shakedown operation if true.   California officials appear indifferent to the problem.