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News :: Peace |
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Seattle Based Company Gets In On Rape Of Iraq |
Current rating: 0 |
by Outrage
(No verified email address) |
25 Mar 2003
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Stevedoring Services of America contact info: E-mail: webmail (at) ssofa.com, (800) 422-3505 Toll Free, (206) 623-0304 Phone, (206) 623-0179 (Fax). Ed DeNike, Chief Operating Officer: (206) 623.0304 |
By JOHN COOK
SEATTLE POST-INTELLIGENCER REPORTER
Stevedoring Services of America, which oversees cargo administration at the Port of Seattle and 150 other locations worldwide, has won a $4.8 million contract to oversee the Iraqi port of Umm Qasr once it is completely secured by military forces.
Seattle-based Stevedoring Services will be responsible for the operation of the port, allowing food, medicine and other reconstruction materials into the channel at the southern portion of Iraq. The contract was awarded by the U.S. Agency for International Development, which is handing out eight contracts to rebuild Iraq's infrastructure after the war.
"It is a nice piece of business, and we are excited about it," said Bob Watters, vice president of the company's Asian operations. "But the real thrill for us is to be able to bring aid cargo into Iraq and supporting our military people."
The company sent 12 employees to Fort Benning, Ga., this week to receive security training. It plans to have about 15 employees, including civil engineers, in Iraq by April 2 to begin assessing the port's facilities.
That assessment period will last three weeks. Afterward, the company will operate the port for one year with a chance to win one-year contracts for the following two years.
Watters, whose firm operates ports in Egypt, South Africa and Vietnam, said the port at Umm Qasr has 23 berths where ships can tie up.
Although Umm Qasr is the largest port city in Iraq, Watters said it may pose some challenges logistically. He said the channel most likely will require dredging. Also, three wrecked ships that predate the U.S.-led attack this month are blocking access.
In addition, he said that it may be difficult to find the skilled labor necessary to load and unload cargo ships.
The company, which was founded in 1949 and employs about 12,000 people, has never operated in a war zone before.
"We are pretty well-versed around the world, but never have we done anything in a war-type environment," Watters said. "It is a very unique situation for us."
Asked about specific challenges of operating in a war zone, Watters said, "I don't know yet."
Ellen Yount, a spokeswoman for USAID, declined to comment on how many companies bid for the work. Stevedoring Services was chosen through a formal bidding process, she said.
"We anticipate that they will be positioning themselves in the region immediately, so once the port is secure, they are able to go in and begin assessing the process," Yount said. "We are not at that point yet."
Umm Qasr has been the scene of intense fighting. Yesterday, coalition troops were still encountering pockets of resistance, including some members of Saddam Hussein's paramilitary organization. In some cases, these forces were dressed in civilian clothes.
Securing the city is an important step in establishing relief efforts in Iraq. The reconstruction plan for Iraq, a nation about the size of France with 24 million people, will take about 18 months, USAID records showed.
The contract, which could be extended through 2006, covers improvements to the port, unloading and storing cargo, managing customs, handling security, coordinating with the Navy to mark several wrecked ships, and working with a separate USAID contractor that will dredge the port. USAID's separate capital construction contract likely will be the largest at up to $600 million for 21 months. A spokesman for the organization said it will be awarded this week.
Other contracts covering education, public health, local government and logistics such as trucking, warehousing and managing the country's airports may be awarded next week.
P-I reporter John Cook can be reached at 206-448-8075 or johncook (at) seattlepi.com This report includes information from Bloomberg News. |
See also:
http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/business/114007_stevedoring25.shtml
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Comments
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From The Portland [Oregon] Labor/Peace |
by via SF-Talk
(No verified email address) |
Current rating: 0
25 Mar 2003
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According to Reuters, the White House today awarded a $4.8 million contract to Stevedoring Services of America (SSA) to manage the Iraqi port of Umm Qasr. SSA is a notoriously anti-union company that has led efforts to break longshore unions around the world. Last year's lockout of West Coast longshore workers was driven in large part by SSA. International Longshore and Warehouse Union president James Spinosa termed SSA "the primary roadblock to an effective West Coast longshore contract settlement," and accused them of "undermining negotiations, because their primary interests are in breaking the union."
Even before the West Coast lockout -- which was prompted by SSA demands that the Pacific Maritime Association crack down on workers -- the company had already moved 150 union jobs from the Los Angeles port to a non-union logistics location in Utah. In the late 1990s, SSA was part of an effort to break the Australian dock unions. Most recently, SSA pressured the government of Bangladesh to let it open a private port that would compete with or replace a government-owned port and its unionized workforce. Despite having the support of the US ambassador to Bangladesh, SSA's proposal was ruled illegal by the Bangladesh High Court in November 2002.
Perhaps unsurprisingly, the shipping industry gave 68% of its $4.3M in campaign contributions to Republicans in the 2000 election cycle. SSA CEO Jon Hemingway personally gave three-quarters of his nearly $10,000 in personal political contributions over the past three years to Republicans. It is hard to overstate how repulsive it is that a company which has made a career of attacking unions and undermining job standards around the world is now going to make money off the blood spilled in Iraq.
All I can say is, I pray to God that no longshore workers, and no children of longshore workers, lost their lives in the battles that led to this contract.
Source:
http://laborpeace.shacknet.nu/mailman/listinfo/laborpeace |
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Cheney's Million $ A Year Pay From Halliburton Appears Secure For Now |
by TMF
(No verified email address) |
Current rating: 0
25 Mar 2003
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Halliburton Charges Into Iraq
The Motley Fool Take
By Jeff Fischer (TMF Jeff)
March 25, 2003
A division of Halliburton (NYSE: HAL) named Kellogg Brown & Root (KBR) has been awarded a contract from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to work in Iraq. The size of the contract was not disclosed, but estimates put it near $1 billion.
For now, Halliburton's KBR unit will douse oil fires in Iraq and repair the country's weakened or damaged oil production infrastructure, where possible. Responsibilities after the war are yet to be divvied out. Halliburton is also working with the U.S. government in Afghanistan, Uzbekistan, Jordan, and other countries under a 10-year contract from the Pentagon awarded in December 2001.
Halliburton is the first of many U.S. corporations that will surely be asked to help, and profit from, the rebuilding of Iraq. It is an especially conspicuous first awardee, however, because Dick Cheney was CEO of Halliburton until 2000. Upon entering the vice president's office, Cheney divested himself of his holdings, although he reportedly still receives about $1 million a year in compensation from the company.
Halliburton claims to have won the first Iraq contract because it was the only firm able to launch its services on short notice. Rebuilding Iraq will eventually result in government contracts for a diverse group of U.S. companies, including those in building and highway construction, water, electricity, health, transportation, farming, and food. But the oil industry stands to benefit most.
With 112 billion proven barrels, Iraq has more known oil reserves than any other country in the world, aside from Saudi Arabia. Plus, 90% of the war-torn country has not yet been explored for oil. The oil belongs to the Iraqis, as Bush states, but U.S. companies are likely to be awarded contracts to make the industry "go" again. |
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