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[chatter] pres. biden: thank you. good afternoon, everyone. i know you are hearing a lot about something called supply chains, and how hard it is to get a range of things from the toaster sneakers, bicycles, bedroom furniture. that's why back in february, i signed a piece of legislation, an executive order on supply chains and why we had to move on it. with the holidays coming up, you might be wondering if the gifts you plan to buy will arrive on time. let me explain. supply chains essentially mean how we make things and how material and parts get delivered

to a factory so that we can manufacture things. and manufacture them here. how we move things. how a finished product moves from a factory to a store to your home. and today we have an important announcement that will get things you buy two you, to the shelves faster. i am joined by the executive director of the ports of los angeles and long beach -- executive directors of the ports of los angeles and long beach. and the president of the international longshoremen's union. they are home to two of the largest ports in america, some of the largest in the world. the best way to make that point is that 40% of shipping containers that we import into this country come through these two ports. and today we have some good news

. we are going to help speed up the delivery of goods all across america. after weeks of negotiation and working with my team and with the major union retailers and freight movers, the port of los angeles announced today that it will begin operating 24 hours a day, seven days a week. this follows the port of long beach's commitment that it announced just weeks ago. 24-7 system, what most of the leading countries in the world already operate on now, except as -- until now. this is the first step to moving our entire freight, transportation and logistical supply chain nationwide to a 24-7 system. and here is why it matters. traditionally, however ports have only been open during the week, monday through friday, and they are generally closed down during the nights and weekends.

by staying open seven days a week, through the night and through the weekends, the port of los angeles will open 60 extra hours a week. in total, that would double the number of hours that the port is open for business from earlier this year. that means an increase in the hours for workers to be moving cargo off ships onto trucks and railcars to get to their destination. and more than that, the night hours are critical for increasing the movement of goods because highways, highways are less crowded in the evening and at night. in fact, it during off-peak hours in los angeles, cargo leaves the port at a 25% faster pace than during the day shift. by increasing the number of late-night hours of operation and opening up for less crowded hours when the goods can move faster, today's announcement has the potential to be a game changer. i say potential, because all

these goods will not move by themselves. for the positive impact to be felt all across the country and by all of you at home, we need major retailers who ordered the goods, and the freight movers who take the goods from the ships to the factories and to the stores, to step up as well. these private sector companies are the ones that hire the tracks and the railcars and the goods. on this score, we have some good news to report as well. today, walmart, our nation's largest retailer, is committed to go all in on moving its products 24-7 from the ports, to their stores nationwide. specifically, walmart is committing as much as a 50% increase in the use of off-peak hours over the next several weeks. additionally, fedex and ups, two of our nation's biggest freight movers, are committing today to significantly increase the

amount of goods they are moving at night. fedex and ups are the shippers for some of our nation's largest stores but they also ship for tens of thousands of small businesses all across america. their commitment to go all in on 24-7 operations means that businesses of all sizes will get their goods on shelves faster and more reliably. according to one estimate, together, fedex and ups alone, move up to 40% of packages in america. up to 40%. other countries are stepping up as well. they include target, home depot, and samsung, that have all committed to ramp up their activities and utilize off-peak hours at the ports. so the commitments being made today are a sign of major progress in moving goods from manufacturers to a store or to your front door. i want to thank my supply chain

disruption task force which we set up in june, led by secretaries buttigeig, raimondo, and vilsack, and my director of national council, brian deese. i want to thank them for their leadership. i especially want to thank joe. he has done one heckuva of a job, my special envoy on ports, who has been working this issue with all of the stakeholders for the past several weeks. i also want to think the port directors. i want to thank jean and mario again. the mayors of los angeles and long beach, mayor garcetti and mayor garcia, for their leadership. and the private companies that are stepping up, i want to thank them. but i particularly want to thank labor. willie adams of the longshoremen of warehouses union who is here today, the teamsters, the real unions from the brotherhood of real world single men, and the

international association of machinists, to the american-trained dispatchers association, to the sheet-metal, air and rail and transportation workers union known as smart. i want to be clear that this is across the board commitment to going to 24-7. this is a big first step in speeding up the movement of materials and goods through our supply chain. now, we need the rest of the private sector supply chain to step up as well. this is not called a supply chain for nothing. this means that terminal operators, railways, trucking companies, shippers, and other retailers as well. strengthening our supply chain will continue to be my team's focus. if federal support is needed, i will direct all appropriate action. for the private sector, we will call them out and ask them to act. our goal is not only to get through this immediate bottleneck, but to address the long-standing weaknesses in our

supply chain that this pandemic has exposed. i might add that one of the reasons why i think it's very important that we get the infrastructure plan passed. my infrastructure plan. that supply chain system, is almost entirely in the hands of private business. the world has changed. prior to the crisis, we cheered the focus on lean efficient , supply chains. leaving no buffer or margin for error when it comes to certain parts arriving just in time that are needed to make the final product. our administration, barack, and ours, that is just in time with the focus. we didn't have a pandemic and other things at the time. we need to take a longer view , though. greater resilience to withstand the kind of shocks we have seen over and over, you're in and year out. whether it is the pandemic, extreme weather, climate change,

cyber attacks, or other disruptions. in fact, research tells us that a company can expect to lose over 40% of one year's earnings every 10 years due to supply chain disruptions. a longer term view means that we invest in systems that have more time built in, and our ability to produce, innovate, and partner with our allies. it also means that companies throughout the supply chain, like airfreight and maritime and trucking companies reduce their , carbon emissions and help to meet our climate change goals. also, it means creating and supporting good paying jobs. so that folks can want to stay in these jobs. they can build a skill and career and make a decent living. it means that more opportunities to join a union, especially for truckers. these steps are critical. they allow companies to pivot quickly when a disruption hits because they've invested in their workers.

their workers' skills, and training upfront to be able to adapt. we need to invest in making more of our products right here in the united states. never again should our country and our economy be unable to make critical products we need because we don't have access to materials to make that product. never again should we have to rely too heavily on one company or one country or one person in the world, particularly when countries don't share our values when it comes to labor and environmental standards. i've said before, we are in the competition for the 21st century. we are america. we still have the most productive workers and the most innovative minds in the world. but the rest of the world is closing in, and we risk losing our edge if we don't step up. in order to be globally competitive, we need to improve our capacity to make things in america while also moving finish ed products across the country and around the world. we need to think big and bold.

that's why i'm pushing for once a once in a generation investment in no infrastructure and our people in my infrastructure bill and my build back better act. these appeals will transform our ports. there is billions of dollars for ports, highways, and rail systems that sorely need upgrading. and will bring products faster and more efficiently from the factories, to the stores, to your house. let me be clear. we are proposing to make the biggest investment in ports, in our history. the bill would also make investments in our supply change -- in our supply chain's and manufacturers, to strengthen our ability to make more goods from the beginning to end right here in america. the bottom line, we've seen the cost of inaction in the pandemic and in the delay and the congestion that affects every american. it is fully within our capacity to act, to make sure it never happens again.

it's going to take a little time. we have unlocked the full might and dynamism of our economy and our people. that is what we are going to do. god bless you all, and may god bless the longshoremen, the real workers, truckers, and all the workers keeping our economy going. may god protect our troops. thank you all so much. [reporters asking questions] [indiscernible] >> a new mobile video app from c-span, c-span now. download today. ♪ >> weekends on c-span2 bring you the best in american history and nonfiction books.

saturday on american history tv at 2:00 p.m. eastern on "the presidency," a look at the legacy of president woodrow wilson with representatives of the woodrow wilson presidential library, the president wilson house, and the woodrow wilson international center for scholars. and in "lectures in history," the reconstruction era in america. first, a former charleston south carolina mayor, and a professor, teaching fourth ticket look at why the new international african-american museum museum is being built. join professor henry louis gates junior to talk about his work on the pbs documentary "reconstruction: america after the civil war," then at 8:50 p.m. eastern, a professor from brandeis teaches a class on african americans during the reconstruction era, and how former slaves struggled for full rights and citizenship,

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hear argument fith