(Radio Iowa) – Iowa Congresswoman Ashley Hinson says President Biden should use his influence to bring an end to the union strike at ports along the East Coast and Gulf of Mexico, but Hinson is not calling on Biden to use his authority to force workers back on the job.

Hinson, a Republican from Marion, says farmers in her congressional district tell her they’re worried about the impact on ag exports. The National Retail Federation and the National Association of Manufacturers have urged Biden to seek a court order that forces striking dock workers back on the job for 90 days, while negotiations continue. Hinson stopped short of joining that call during her weekly news conference with Iowa reporters.

Biden has said he believes in collective bargaining and does not intend to invoke the 1947 law that would force the Longshoremen to return to the docks. The union that represents dockworkers is seeking a five dollar an hour pay raise in each year of the six-year contract, as well as protections from automation that would eliminate jobs.