OAKLAND (KCBS RADIO) – The bustling Port of Oakland has come to a standstill as truckers have waged a protest against a state law that affects independent contractors.
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The demonstration began Monday and is still going strong on Thursday.
It's unclear when the protest might end.
This comes as the port, and many other hubs like it have struggled over the last two years as COVID-19 affected supply chains worldwide. A shortage of workers and storage containers has led to frequent incidents of operations getting backed up and delayed.
They are blocking the entrances to the container terminal at the port, which will have a huge impact on shipping operations.
"The shutdown will further exacerbate the congestion of containers," according to a port statement provided to The Associated Press, and officials emphasized the need for operations to resume as soon as possible.
The bill at the center of this protest is AB 5, a state law passed in 2019 that requires independent truck drivers to form their own corporations or become employees of trucking companies. While intended to prevent companies from taking advantage of independent contractors, the truckers protesting the law feel it limits their freedom.
"This is going to affect everyone, not just truckers," one such trucker, Victor Iniguez, told KCBS Radio. "Everything you see, especially in the Ports of Oakland, along the beach, everything is moved by independent contractors."
The law was being contested by the California Trucking Association but last month the U.S. Supreme Court declined to review the case, according to The Associated Press.
But the battle is still ongoing in lower courts, making it still unclear when the new law might be enforced, the outlet reported.
Some 70,000 truck drivers could be affected by the new law. The group of protestors is demanding an exemption to AB 5, but so far all the state is offering resources to help truckers comply with the law.
The Port of Oakland did not respond to KCBS Radio's request at the time of publication.
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