UNITED STATES – After the partial shutdown of 29 West Coast ports over the weekend, the country’s top labor official is now working to solve this stalemate between dockworkers and their employers.

The Associated Press is reporting the U.S. Secretary of Labor, Thomas Perez, flew to San Francisco yesterday and plans to meet with negotiators from the International Longshore and Warehouse Union (ILWU) and the Pacific Maritime Association (PMA) as early as today.

Both sides have been meeting since May of last year with no success. Their recent disagreements have led to debilitating problems moving cargo through 29 seaports from Southern California to Seattle.

As we previously reported, the California Citrus Mutual predicted that these port problems could cause up to $500 million in export losses to the citrus industry. Freska’s Gary Clevenger also told AndNowUKnow that the slowdowns were creating a vacuum in the West Coast market causing millions of dollars of damages to both importers and exporters alike.

On Friday, President Barack Obama said that Perez would engage in the talks that a federal mediator has overseen since early January.

NBC News is reporting that as of yesterday, 33 “congestion vessels” off of the coast of Los Angeles and Long Beach were awaiting space at the docks. According to the Marine Exchange of Southern California, this is a new high since this round of disruptions began.

The PMA and the ILWU have been publicly mudslinging in the 9 months since the dockworkers began working without a contract. It is unclear when negotiations will be held, but Secretary Perez has been in contact with both sides.

Stay tuned to AndNowUKnow for the latest breaking news on this ongoing situation.