Dockworkers at the Port of Seattle are facing one of the most prolonged and painful downturns in work availability since the Great Recession, as tariffs and shifting global trade patterns sharply reduce vessel calls. For members of the International Longshore and Warehouse Union, especially entry-level “casual” workers, the decline has turned what was once a reliable path to a middle-class career into years of uncertainty. Senior A-level workers retain guaranteed wages, but overtime and specialty work have dried up, while newer workers often go weeks or months without a single shift. Dispatchers like Sarah Esch now routinely face mornings where a few dozen jobs must be spread among hundreds of workers. With container volumes down sharply since late summer and no traditional pre-holiday surge, many longshoremen fear that tariffs, automation, and a broader erosion of U.S. shipping competitiveness are combining to threaten the long-term viability of dock work as a stable profession. While cruise traffic offers seasonal relief, it does little to help casuals advance, leaving many to question whether the next generation will ever reach the security that once defined West Coast longshoring.