For the first time since 1977, East Coast port workers are on the verge of a strike. Here's what's at stake, for both workers and consumers.

LOS ANGELES/NEW YORK, Sept 25 (Reuters) - U.S. companies that rely on East and Gulf Coast seaports have been importing early, shifting goods to the West Coast, and even putting cargo on pricey flights to hedge against a threatened Oct. 1 strike that could jam supply chains and reignite inflation ahead of the U.S. presidential election.

A strike at U.S. East Coast and Gulf ports would be ill-timed for the holiday season and could cause a spike in rail congestion, but the disruption could spell opportunities for some companies.

Businesses are preparing for a strike by dockworkers on the East and Gulf Coasts, which could begin Oct. 1 if negotiations don’t yield a new contract.

The union, which represents dockworkers across 36 ports on the U.S. East Coast and the Gulf of Mexico, threatens to strike on Oct. 1. If its members walk off the job at ports stretching from Maine to Texas,

A government task force is ready to help minimize supply-chain disruptions in case of a prolonged East Coast port strike, Biden administration says

For the first time in decades, the largest union of maritime workers in North America is planning to go on strike, potentially disrupting supply chains and pushing the container trade into “chaos,” according to the CEO of Container xChange.