VOA慢速英语2015 美国西海岸港口恢复运作

 

US West Coast Ports Working Again 美国西海岸港口恢复运作

Most West Coast ports in the United States have been busy since Friday. That is when negotiators reached a tentative settlement in a nine-month labor¹ dispute and work slowdown. Now that goods again are being unloaded the dockworkers and employers say they can talk about long-term problems.

美国西海岸大部分港口从周五开始一直非常繁忙。这是为期九个月的劳资争端和怠工后谈判人员达成的尝试性解决方案。现在，货物已经被卸下，码头工人和雇员表示，他们已经可以着手讨论长期问题。

Many ships have been docked or have been waiting offshore² at 29 West Coast ports. Port officials say it will take months to process all the cargo³.  Most dockworkers have returned to work. But they still must vote on a tentative five-year contract.

许多船只已经进入码头，或者在29个西海岸港口近海等待。港口官员表示，处理所有货物将需要几个月的时间。大部分码头工人已经重返工作岗位。但是他们仍然必须就尝试性的五年合同进行投票。

U.S. Secretary of Labor Thomas Perez went to San Francisco to urge both sides to settle their differences quickly. Craig Merrilees is with the International Longshore and Warehouse⁴ Union. He said the negotiations⁵ have been difficult.

美国劳工部长托马斯·佩雷斯(Thomas Perez)前往旧金山，敦促双方迅速解决分歧。Craig Merrilees在国际码头及仓库工会工作。他表示，谈判一度非常困难。

“You know, there are a lot of tough issues in this process that lasted over nine months, and some of them are the kinds of issues that are affecting all workers.  That includes the outsourcing of good jobs.”

“你知道，持续了超过九个月的过程中出现了很多棘手的问题，其中一些问题影响到所有工人，包括将好的工作机会外包。”

Workers say administrative⁶ jobs at the port have been moving to other states and other countries.  Workers say they also worry about increasing automation of port operations, reducing the need for workers.

工人们表示，港口的行政工作流向其他州和其他国家。工人们说，他们还担心港口操作工作越来越自动化，减少对工人的需求。

Those who move goods in and out of the country include the San Francisco coffee company, Ritual Coffee Roasters. Eileen Rinaldi is the owner.

向国内外运输货物的公司包括旧金山咖啡公司Ritual Coffee Roasters。Eileen Rinaldi是这家公司的老板。

“We are reliant on constant arrivals of coffee in order to have a fresh supply.”

“为了保证新鲜咖啡的供应，我们非常依赖新鲜咖啡的频繁到来。”

Many other businesses depend on goods passing through the ports, such as beer makers⁷ that use imported hops⁸, farmers with crops to ship. One California children's clothing company has been waiting for its products trapped in ships near the Port of Oakland.

还有许多其他企业依赖港口运输的货物，比如使用进口原材料的啤酒制造商，以及需要运输农作物的农场主。加利福尼亚一家童装公司一直等待被困在奥克兰港口船只上的货物。

Tom O’Brien is a transportation expert at California State University, Long Beach. He says long-term problems at the ports must be addressed. Mr. O’Brien also says not only the port but roads, bridges and railways need to be upgraded.

Tom O'Brien是长滩市加利福尼亚州立大学一名交通运输专家。他说，港口面临的长期问题必须得到解决。他还表示，不仅港口，道路，桥梁和铁路都需要升级。

“The fact that we have larger ships coming now, that is creating peak demand for labor and for equipment is putting a lot of pressure on our infrastructure⁹, not only the ports, but the road network, rail capacity, distribution center and warehousing.”

“到达港口的船只越来越大，对劳工和对设备的需求达到高峰，导致我们的基础设施面临很大压力，不仅仅是港口，还有公路网络，铁路运能，物流中心和仓库。”

The labor dispute began in July when a labor agreement ended. The work stoppage has affected¹⁰ 29 West Coast ports for months and slowed U.S. trade with Asia.  Those ports process more than 25 percent of all U.S. maritime¹¹ trade and more than 70 percent of the nation's imports from Asia.

当7月份劳工协议结束后，劳资纠纷开始凸显。停工斗争影响29个西海岸港口数月时间，阻滞了美国与亚洲的贸易。这些港口处理超过四分之一的美国海上贸易和来自亚洲的超过70%的进口货物。

Words in This Story

tentative – adj. not definite: still able to be changed

cargo – n. something that is carried from one place to another by boat, airplane, etc.

address – v. to give attention to (something): to deal with (a matter, issue, problem, etc.)

1 labor   

n.劳动，努力，工作，劳工；分娩；vi.劳动，努力，苦干；vt.详细分析；麻烦

参考例句：

• We are never late in satisfying him for his labor.我们从不延误付给他劳动报酬。
• He was completely spent after two weeks of hard labor.艰苦劳动两周后，他已经疲惫不堪了。

2 offshore   

adj.海面的，吹向海面的；adv.向海面

参考例句：

• A big program of oil exploration has begun offshore.一个大规模的石油勘探计划正在近海展开。
• A gentle current carried them slowly offshore.和缓的潮流慢慢地把他们带离了海岸。

3 cargo   

n.(一只船或一架飞机运载的)货物

参考例句：

• The ship has a cargo of about 200 ton.这条船大约有200吨的货物。
• A lot of people discharged the cargo from a ship.许多人从船上卸下货物。

4 warehouse   

n.仓库；vt.存入仓库

参考例句：

• We freighted the goods to the warehouse by truck.我们用卡车把货物运到仓库。
• The manager wants to clear off the old stocks in the warehouse.经理想把仓库里积压的存货处理掉。

5 negotiations   

协商( negotiation的名词复数 )； 谈判； 完成（难事）； 通过

参考例句：

• negotiations for a durable peace 为持久和平而进行的谈判
• Negotiations have failed to establish any middle ground. 谈判未能达成任何妥协。

6 administrative   

adj.行政的，管理的

参考例句：

• The administrative burden must be lifted from local government.必须解除地方政府的行政负担。
• He regarded all these administrative details as beneath his notice.他认为行政管理上的这些琐事都不值一顾。

7 makers   

n.制造者，制造商（maker的复数形式）

参考例句：

• The makers of the product assured us that there had been no sacrifice of quality. 这一产品的制造商向我们保证说他们没有牺牲质量。
• The makers are about to launch out a new product. 制造商们马上要生产一种新产品。 来自《简明英汉词典》

8 hops   

跳上[下]( hop的第三人称单数 )； 单足蹦跳； 齐足（或双足）跳行； 摘葎草花

参考例句：

• The sparrow crossed the lawn in a series of hops. 那麻雀一蹦一跳地穿过草坪。
• It is brewed from malt and hops. 它用麦精和蛇麻草酿成。

9 infrastructure   

n.下部构造，下部组织，基础结构，基础设施

参考例句：

• We should step up the development of infrastructure for research.加强科学基础设施建设。
• We should strengthen cultural infrastructure and boost various types of popular culture.加强文化基础设施建设，发展各类群众文化。

10 affected   

adj.不自然的，假装的

参考例句：

• She showed an affected interest in our subject.她假装对我们的课题感到兴趣。
• His manners are affected.他的态度不自然。

11 maritime   

adj.海的，海事的，航海的，近海的，沿海的

参考例句：

• Many maritime people are fishermen.许多居于海滨的人是渔夫。
• The temperature change in winter is less in maritime areas.冬季沿海的温差较小。