A district court has granted a request to deny additional liability payments to a company that provides stevedoring services to cruise ships on the Port of New Orleans.
U.S. District Judge for the Eastern District of Louisiana Jay C. Zainey on Jan. 28 granted a motion for summary judgment filed by the New Orleans Employers International Longshoremen's Association. Maritime Security, Inc. (MSI) and Advance Marine Services, Inc. (AMS) had initially requested to recover withdrawal liability based on the 1974 Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA). Judge Zainey denied Maritime's request for summary judgment.
According to court filings, the association "is a multi-employer pension plan under ERISA, established and maintained for the purpose of providing retirement and related benefits to eligible participants and beneficiaries."
MSI and AMS both provided stevedoring services to the cruise line industry at the Port of New Orleans. AMS employed longshoremen and cleaning crews, and MSI employed the porters or “seacaps” who assisted cruise passengers with boarding and the handling of their luggage, court filings state. In 2003, both groups elected to be represented by two local unions.
In 2009, the group and the union entered into a collective bargaining agreement that was to be effective in October 2004 and extended thereafter. Under the agreement, a trust was to allow the New Orleans Employers International Longshoremen’s Association, AFL-CIO Pension Fund to collect contributions on behalf of the covered union employees.
In December 2015, Carnival Cruise Lines terminated its agreement with the groups for services and awarded United Stevedoring of America "the contract to perform stevedoring services for Carnival at the Port of New Orleans," court papers state.
Estimated withdrawal liability was calculated to be $1,455,942 in September 2016 by a consulting firm for MSI, to be payable in 80 quarterly payments of $34,632. The company also calculated withdrawal liability for AMS to be $1,439,000, payable in 80 quarterly payments of $34,229, court documents state.
In July 2017 the groups ceased sending any further withdrawal liability payments and a notice of default was subsequently sent.