Los Angeles port sees a sharp drop in job opportunities due to Washington’s elevated tariffs: media report

媒体报道：由于华盛顿提高关税，洛杉矶港就业机会锐减

Trucks and containers are pictured at the Port of Los Angeles, California, the United States, on April 29, 2025. (Photo/Xinhua)

2025年4月29日，在美国加利福尼亚州洛杉矶港拍摄的卡车和集装箱。（图/新华社）

The Port of Los Angeles, the largest and busiest container port in the US, has seen job opportunities drop sharply due to the US government's hefty tariffs imposed on the world, according to a report from chinanews.com on Sunday.

据中新网周日报道，由于美国政府对全球征收高额关税，美国最大、最繁忙的集装箱港口洛杉矶港就业机会锐减。

The report quoted Gene Seroka, executive director of the LA port, who said during a recent interview with the Los Angeles Times that nearly half of the longshoremen who support operations at the port went without work from the end of May to early June.

报道援引洛杉矶港执行董事吉恩·塞罗卡（Gene Seroka）最近在接受《洛杉矶时报》采访时表示，从5月底到6月初，一直在港口工作的码头工人中有近一半失业。

According to the Los Angeles Times report, Seroka said that the LA port processed 25 percent less cargo than forecast for the month of May.

据《洛杉矶时报》报道，塞罗卡表示，洛杉矶港口5月份货物处理量比预期减少了25%。

"They haven't been laid off, but they're not working nearly as much as they did previously," Seroka told the newspaper. "Since the tariffs went into place and in May specifically, we've really seen the work go off on the downside."

塞罗卡告诉该报：“他们没有被解雇，但他们的工作量远没有以前那么大了。”“自从关税实施以来，特别是五月份，我们确实看到生意在走下坡路。”

US government's imposing steep tariffs on imports have drastically stemmed the flow of goods into the US, driving down activity at the ports of LA and Long Beach, which collectively processed more than 20 million 20-foot-long cargo containers last year. The two ports are the largest in the US and provide jobs for thousands of dockworkers, heavy equipment operators and truck drivers, the Los Angeles Times reported.

美国政府对进口产品征收高额关税，极大地阻止了货物流入美国，导致洛杉矶和长滩港口的活动减少，这两个港口去年总共处理了超过2000万个20英尺长的集装箱。据《洛杉矶时报》报道，这两个港口是美国最大的港口，为数千名码头工人、重型设备操作员和卡车司机提供了就业机会。

Seroka attributed the drop in jobs to significantly reduced cargo volumes processed at the LA port.

塞罗卡将就业岗位的减少归因于洛杉矶港口处理的货物量大幅减少。

Seroka noted that an average of 733 job orders was posted per shift over the past 25 shifts (about two weeks). Ordinarily, between 1,700 and 2,000 job orders are posted during a typical day shift, and between 1,100 and 1,400 are posted during a standard night shift, according to Seroka.

Seroka指出，在过去的25个班次（大约两周）中，平均每班发布733个工作订单。Seroka表示，通常情况下，典型的白班期间会发布1,700至2,000份工作订单，标准夜班期间会发布1,100至1,400份工作订单。

"The June numbers that we're projecting right now are nowhere near where they traditionally should be," Seroka said, adding that conditions are not expected to significantly improve anytime soon.

塞罗卡表示：“我们目前预测的6月份数据与传统上应该达到的水平相去甚远。”他补充说，预计短期内情况不会得到改善。

In early May, the inbound cargo volume at the LA Port fell by 30 percent. The port serves as a major entry point for Asian exports to the US mainland, with around 45 percent originating from China.

5月初，洛杉矶港的入境货运量下降了30%。该港口是亚洲向美国大陆出口的主要入口，约45%来自中国。

The shipping slowdown has triggered broad ripple effects. The slowdown in activity at the two ports of LA and Long Beach has spread into surrounding communities. "We're starting to hear from small businesses and restaurants in the harbor area that their customer patronage is trending downward," Seroka said.

航运放缓引发了广泛的连锁反应。洛杉矶和长滩两个港口的活动放缓已经蔓延到周边社区。塞罗卡说：“我们开始从港口地区的小企业和餐馆那里听说，他们的顾客流量呈下降趋势。”

In response to a media question about attitude toward the reduction in bilateral tariffs between China and the US in May, Los Angeles Port executive director Gene Serokasaid in a statement sent to the Global Times that "the 90-day pause and reduction of tariffs between the US and China is welcome news for consumers, American businesses, workers and the supply chain. Even with this announcement, tariffs remain elevated compared to April 1," Gene Seroka said then.

在回答媒体关于对5月份中美双边关税降低的态度的问题时，洛杉矶港执行董事吉恩·塞罗卡在发给《环球时报》的一份声明中表示，“美国和中国之间90天的关税暂停和降低对消费者、美国企业、工人和供应链来说是个好消息。即使有了这一宣布，与4月1日相比，关税仍然很高，”吉恩·塞罗卡当时表示。

"To avoid further uncertainty and disruption of trade, both sides should work together swiftly toward a long-term agreement. Additionally, it's important for the US to work with other nations to reduce existing tariffs," according to the port's statement.

该港口的声明称：“为了避免进一步的不确定性和贸易中断，双方应迅速共同努力达成长期协议。此外，美国与其他国家合作降低现有关税也很重要。”

Port cargo throughput is a major indicator of economic health. The US tariffs will only serve to disrupt the logistics of the US, hurt port operations, and hurt the interests of American people, a Chinese expert noted, adding that this will exacerbate US economic woes while inhibiting the world economy.

港口货物吞吐量是衡量经济健康状况的主要指标。一位中国专家指出，美国的关税只会扰乱美国的物流，损害港口的运营，损害美国人民的利益，并补充说，这将加剧美国经济困境，同时抑制世界经济。

The LA port is just one of many major US ports affected by the US-initiated tariffs war. Data from the Northwest Seaport Alliance showed that in the first week of May, the inbound cargo volume at the ports of Seattle and Tacoma fell by 23 percent compared to the average weekly level this year, according to CMG reports.

洛杉矶港只是受美国发起的关税战影响的众多美国主要港口之一。据CMG报道，西北海港联盟的数据显示，5月第一周，西雅图和塔科马港口的入境货运量较今年周平均水平下降了23%。

At the Port of Seattle, decline in work opportunities has also made workers increasingly worried about their livelihood.

在西雅图港，工作机会的减少也让工人们越来越担心自己的生计。

Kesa Stein's family has been working at the Seattle port for decades. At 39 years old, Stein, a third-generation dockworker at the port said that the current situation has impacted the livelihood of the workers and left them feeling uncertain about the future

凯萨·斯坦的家人已经在西雅图港工作了几十年。39岁的斯坦是该港口的第三代码头工人，他说，目前的形势影响了工人的生计，让他们对未来感到迷茫

If the situation does not improve, Stein stated, port workers including dockworkers, truck drivers and logistics personnel could face increasingly tough challenges, including the risk of unemployment, per the CMG.

斯坦表示，如果情况没有改善，包括码头工人、卡车司机和物流人员在内的港口工人可能会面临越来越严峻的挑战，包括失业风险，CMG报道。

Since implementing its unilateral tariffs, the US has not resolved any of its own problems. "Instead, the levies have seriously disrupted the order of the international economy and trade, and severely interfered with business operations and people's consumption," a Chinese Commerce Ministry spokesperson said on May 29.

自实施单边关税以来，美国没有解决任何自身问题。中国商务部发言人5月29日表示：“相反，这些征税严重扰乱了国际经贸秩序，严重干扰了企业经营和人民消费。”

The spokesperson emphasized that the US' elevated tariffs have harmed others without benefiting the US itself, and that they have triggered significant domestic opposition within the US too.

这位发言人强调，美国提高关税损人不利己，也引发了美国国内的强烈反对。