Even if the dispute between the ILA and USMX is resolved quickly, the battle over automation at U.S. ports is set to rage on for a good long while to come.

Alternative East Coast ports — including Montreal, where half of the terminals are shut down by a strike — will not be able to handle large scale diversions.

The union recently claimed that carriers "are gouging their customers," alleging that it now costs $30,000 to ship a single container. Not so, says freight rate analytics company, Xeneta.

The strike affects ports with the combined capacity to handle as much as half of all U.S. trade volumes.

The three-day strike started at 7 a.m. EST on September 30 at the Port of Montreal's Viau and Maisonneuve Termont terminals.

Key industry and government officials are urging U.S. dockworkers and their employers to avoid a strike at East and Gulf coast ports this week.

Several terminals at the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach remained closed on September 27, after a tractor-trailer overturned on a vital artery for cargo.

The ILA halted negotiations with the USMX in June, after discovering that a handful of ports were using automated systems to check in trucks.

This comes a week after the DOJ filed a $100 million claim against the Singapore-based companies that own and manage the Dali container ship. 

The deal was first announced on September 22, with CMA CGM aiming to pay 6.3 billion reais ($1.13 billion) up front to buy a 47.6% stake in Santos Brasil.