The International Longshoremen’s Association (ILA) and US Maritime Alliance (USMX) have negotiated a tentative agreement for a new six-year master contract, averting a potential port strike during what the American Apparel & Footwear Association (AAFA) says is a "critical time" for apparel supply chains.

The union representing 45,000 dock workers on the U.S. East and Gulf Coasts and their employers on Wednesday said they reached a tentative deal on a new six-year contract, averting further strikes that could have snarled supply chains and taken a toll on the U.

A tentative labor deal forestalled potentially damaging trade disruptions at three-dozen U.S. East Coast and Gulf of Mexico ports, with both sides in the talks crediting President-elect Donald Trump for clearing the way for them to hammer out a deal on automation.