Shipping company Pasha Hawaii says theres been a work stoppage at Honolulu Harbor by its stevedores.

But the company tells us it has chartered special barges to ease concerns over shipments to the neighbor islands.

The container ship Pacific Horizon arrived from the mainland Wednesdayand satidle at Pier 51. None of the goods wereunloaded.

A crew was supposed to start unloading it at 6 p.m. Wednesday, but no one showed up. The morning shift did the same thing.

Late Thursday afternoon, we got word from the companys spokeswoman that workers arrived at around 2:30 p.m.

The ship carries all types of household goods, produce, and meats to major retailers.The company issued a statement saying container availability and barge connections will be delayed due to labor shortages.

Weve learned Costco Wholesale is one of the biggest companies shipping its goods from the West Coast to Hawaii aboard Pashas ships, so any work stoppage at our ports is a concern for the big-box retailer, as well as for the truck drivers who regularly bring their goods here.

Nothing is moving in the pier, nothings coming out. The stores have got tobe stocked somehow, said truck driver Clyde Peters.

Management at theCostco inIwilei saysits not a problem so far for the stores on Oahu, but it could create some problems for neighbor island stores.

Mike Hansen, president of the Hawaii Shippers Council, says a one-day delay at Honolulu ports means a two- to three-day delay for the neighbor islands. Once the goods are unloaded in Honolulu, they are then taken to a barge operated by Young Brothers to the neighbor island ports, and those barges have set schedules of departures.

If theres been a delay and they miss the Young Brothers barge sailing to a neighbor island port, then they have to wait to until the next sailing, and so therell be a delay of a day, two days, three days depending upon which island port youre talking about, Hansen explained.

We checked with the Costco stores on Kauai, Maui, and Hawaii Island, buthave not heard back from management.

Pasha says it has secured special charter barges to the neighbor island ports to help offset the delays.

Hansensaysits rare for unionized dock workers to organize a work stoppage unless they were negotiating for a new contract. The union ILWU and the maritime companies agreed on a five-year contract two years ago.Hansensaysthe work stoppage is a violation of the contract, so the company could take the union to arbitration to recoverrevenues lost.

We went to the union to find out why the workers did not show up, and were told no one was available to talk.

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Work stoppage at Honolulu Harbor delays shipments to neighbor islands - KHON2