2 sides remain 'far apart' nearly 6 months after West Coast dockworkers' contract expired

West Coast dockworkers and their employers don't appear to be close to agreeing on a new contract, nearly six months after their old deal expired.

Longshoremen at 29 ports from San Diego to Seattle that handle billions of dollars of trade with Asia have continued to work without a contract.

The two sides are meeting Thursday in San Francisco.

The Pacific Maritime Association represents oceangoing shipping lines and the operators of cargo terminals at the ports that employ longshoremen. A spokesman for the association says the two sides "remain far apart on several issues."

A spokesman for the dockworkers' union says its negotiators are eagerly awaiting a reply from the association on the union's latest proposal.