Experts say disputes in labor negotiations between the International Longshoreman and Warehouse Union and its employer, the Pacific Maritime Association, could be based on a plethora of issues including changes in the global shipping industry, health care policy and growth of the U.S. trade economy.

Last week, disputes between the two parties in contract negotiations caused each to send out press releases blaming the other for negotiation issues.

The he-said, she-said disputes in turn caused more than 100 organizations to send a letter to President Barack Obama, governors of West Coast states and federal agencies pleading for federal intervention in the labor negotiations.

Because the details of contract negotiations are not publicly disclosed, the press releases last week struck fear in organizations and associations that depend on ports all along the West Coast for international and domestic trade.

Negotiations between the PMA and ILWU began in May before their labor agreement dissolved on July 1. The contract lasted six years.

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