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.

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.

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.

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

The nation's consumer supply chain faces severe disruptions in a matter of days.That’s if dock workers go on strike at ports along the east and gulf coast.A dea