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.

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.

Thousands of East and Gulf Coast port workers are ready to walk off the job on October 1. Here's what's at stake.

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,

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.

With only days before a planned strike, labor talks between longshoremen's union and port operators are at a standstill.

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