Representatives from the Pacific Maritime Association (PMA), representing the port employers on the US West Coast, and the International Longshore and Warehouse Union (ILWU), representing the employees in the US West Coast ports, met yesterday in San Francisco to discuss a possible extension of their current contract, which covers 20,000 members of the ILWU Longshore Division who work at 29 West Coast ports and is set to expire on June 30, 2019.Both parties advised that no additional comments will be made prior to the next meeting date by either party.The negotiations for the current contract lasted from March 12, 2014 until February 20, 2015 when the current contract details were agreed to. ILWU members ratified the agreement on May 22, 2015, nearly a year after the previous contract had expired.During the contract negotiations employers accused the union of creating work slowdowns while the union accused employers of withholding labor and shortening hours. In the meantime cargo piled up at the docks and dozens of ships were anchored outside West Coast ports, unable to berth to discharge and load cargo.