U.S. dockworkers who embarked on a strike early Tuesday are the latest unionized group to demonstrate their value to both the national economy and their employers' bottom line by taking a stand for better contracts.

Labor unions representing automobile workers , performers, hotel staff and aircraft manufacturing workers all initiated strikes in the past year, asserting their collective bargaining power. Union members argued that they had endured sacrifices at the behest of their companies during the pandemic and difficult economic periods, and now it's time for compensation, particularly given the extended period of high inflation.

Between 2022 and 2023, the number of work stoppages increased by 9% to 466 strikes and four lockouts, according to data compiled by Cornell University’s IRL School. However, the number of workers participating in work stoppages, approximately 539,000, more than doubled compared to the previous year, according to the school's research.

A database maintained by Cornell and the School of Labor and Employment Relations at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign reported 250 strikes and other labor actions in 2024 as of Monday.

Here is a review of some recent confrontations between companies and organized labor

Dockworkers at 36 ports from Maine to Texas started a strike early Tuesday, their first in decades, due to disagreements over wages and automation despite reported progress in contract discussions. The agreement between the ports and about 45,000 members of the International Longshoremen’s Association expired at midnight.

The alliance stated that it had raised its offer to a 50% increase in wages over a six-year period and pledged to maintain existing restrictions on automation from the previous agreement. The alliance also indicated that its offer tripled employer contributions to retirement plans and strengthened healthcare benefits. In an early Tuesday statement, the union declared that it rejected the alliance's most recent proposal because it “fell short of what ILA rank-and-file members are seeking in wages and safeguards against automation.” Formal negotiations between the two sides had not occurred since June.

Workers at the Port of Philadelphia staged a demonstration, walking in a circle outside the port and chanting “No work without a fair contract.” The union, engaging in their first strike since 1977, displayed messages on a truck that read: “Automation Hurts Families: ILA Stands For Job Protection.”

If prolonged, the strike will force businesses to bear the cost of shipping delays, resulting in late deliveries during the peak holiday shopping season, potentially disrupting the delivery of everything from toys and Christmas decorations to vehicles, beverages, and produce.

Aircraft assembly workers staged a walkout at Boeing manufacturing facilities near Seattle and other locations on September 12, following an overwhelming union vote to reject a proposed contract and proceed with a strike. Boeing and representatives from the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers have convened three bargaining sessions with federal mediators. The company submitted a revised contract last week, but the union declined to present it for a vote after surveying its members, who deemed it insufficient to meet their demands for wage and pension benefits.

Earlier this month video game actors reached agreements with 80 individual game developers who have signed interim or tiered budget agreements with the performers’ union and accepted the artificial intelligence provisions they have been advocating for.

The performers had been striking for over a month.

Members of the Screen Actors Guild-American Federation of Television and Radio Artists embarked on a strike in July after negotiations with video game industry giants, initiated over a year and a half ago, stalled over disagreements regarding AI protections.

The interim agreement guarantees wage increases, safeguards against “exploitative uses” of artificial intelligence and safety measures that address the physical and vocal strain of performances. The tiered budget agreement aims to make working with union talent more accessible for independent game developers or smaller-budget projects while also providing performers the protections outlined in the interim agreement.

Last month, thousands of hospitality union workers on the Las Vegas Strip reached a tentative agreement with the Venetian and Palazzo resorts , a first for employees at the expansive Italian-inspired complex that opened 25 years ago.

The Culinary Workers Union announced on the social platform X that the deal was reached after a year of negotiations. It covers over 4,000 hotel and casino workers, from housekeepers and cocktail servers to bartenders and porters.

Bethany Khan, a union spokesperson, stated that the deal mirrors the significant victories achieved in recent contracts awarded to 40,000 hospitality workers at 18 Strip properties owned or operated by casino giants MGM Resorts International, Caesars Entertainment and Wynn Resorts .

These wins included a 32% pay increase over five years, reduced housekeeping workloads, and improved job security amid advances in technology and artificial intelligence.

The pay increase under these contracts will average $35 per hour by the end of their terms, according to the union. Workers at these properties were earning approximately $26 per hour with benefits before securing their latest contracts in November.

Over 10,000 workers at 25 hotels across the U.S. engaged in a Labor Day weekend strike to demand higher pay, fairer workloads, and the reversal of COVID-era cuts. Most of the striking housekeepers and other hospitality workers represented by the UNITE HERE union were off the job for a few days. On Sept. 24, approximately 2,000 unionized workers at Hawaii’s largest resort, the Hilton Hawaiian Village Waikiki Beach Resort, joined thousands of other hotel workers who remained on strike at Hilton, Hyatt, and Marriott hotels in Honolulu, San Diego, and San Francisco, according to the union.

Unions representing 85,000 healthcare workers reached a tentative agreement with industry giant Kaiser Permanente in October 2023 following a strike over wages and staffing levels.

The deal included establishing minimum hourly wages at $25 in California, where most of Kaiser’s facilities are located, and $23 in other states. Workers would also receive a 21% wage increase over four years.

The negotiations leading up to the agreement included a three-day strike involving 75,000 workers in multiple states.

The agreement also includes provisions protecting against subcontracting and outsourcing, as well as initiatives to invest in the current workforce and address a staffing shortage.

Towards the end of last year, the United Auto Workers union ratified new contracts with Ford and Stellantis, along with a similar agreement with General Motors, which would increase wages across the industry and require automakers to shoulder higher costs.

The agreements, extending until April 2028, concluded contentious negotiations that commenced in the summer of 2022 and culminated in six-week-long strikes across all three automakers.

The new contract agreements were widely seen as a win for the UAW, although Ford's top executive stated that the company will re-evaluate where it will build cars in the future. The companies committed to significantly raise pay for top-tier assembly plant workers, with increases and cost-of-living adjustments that would amount to 33% wage gains.

Top assembly plant workers were set to receive immediate 11% salary increases, bringing their hourly earnings to approximately $42 when the contracts expire in April 2028.

These agreements also eliminated many of the multiple wage tiers that the automakers had previously used to compensate different workers. Additionally, they agreed in principle to include new electric-vehicle battery plants in the national union contract.

UPS workers, members of the Teamsters union, approved a tentative contract with the delivery giant last year, but only after hitting the picket lines as they had vowed to do. The path to agreement was not smooth, marked by challenging labor negotiations that threatened to disrupt package deliveries for millions of businesses and households nationwide.

After negotiations reached an impasse in early July 2023, the Atlanta company reached a tentative contract agreement with the Teamsters just days before an August 1 deadline.

At the time the agreement was reached, full- and part-time union workers were set to receive $2.75 more per hour in 2023, and a total increase of $7.50 by the end of the five-year contract. The starting hourly pay for part-time employees was also raised to $21, but some workers expressed that this fell short of their expectations.

UPS stated that by the end of the new contract, the average UPS full-time driver would earn approximately $170,000 annually in salary and benefits. The specific proportion of benefits within this figure was not clarified.

The agreement also includes provisions for the delivery company to make Martin Luther King Jr. Day a full holiday, eliminate forced overtime on drivers' days off, and discontinue the use of driver-facing cameras in cabs, among other significant changes. The deal eliminates a two-tier wage system for drivers and includes tentative agreements on safety issues, such as equipping more trucks with air conditioning.

In December 2023, Hollywood actors voted to approve a deal with studios, bringing their strike to an end after nearly four months. This marked the conclusion of a labor dispute that had significantly disrupted the entertainment industry for most of the previous year.

Members of the Screen Actors Guild-American Federation of Television and Radio Artists ratified a three-year contract.

Control over the use of artificial intelligence was the most contentious issue during the lengthy and detailed negotiations. The contract stipulated a 7% general pay increase, with further raises scheduled for the second and third years of the agreement.

The agreement also included a hard-fought provision that temporarily stalled negotiations: the creation of a fund to compensate performers for future viewings of their work on streaming services, in addition to traditional residuals paid for the showing of movies or series.