Hampton Roads Shipping Association

The Hampton Roads Shipping Association (HRSA) is a non-profit, civic, and trade organization founded in 1971 to promote the interests of the Port of Hampton Roads and to further the common interests of business establishments within the Port, particularly those who hire waterfront labor. The Association assists the membership in the solution of maritime problems; maintains harmony between management and labor; fosters just and equitable principles and practices between labor and management; promotes safety; and works for the betterment, expansion, and prosperity of the port with an emphasis in the field of labor relations. With the cooperation of labor partners in the International Longshoremen’s Association (ILA), HRSA has accelerated the implementation of their electronic hiring system, PortMaster. PortMaster is a custom workforce management, labor scheduling, dispatching and timekeeping system designed specifically for the needs of our port community. Each day HRSA employers post their work orders and ILA members are dispatched from their homes and on their phones to go directly to their job. This has greatly reduced the number of in-person contacts, reducing the risk of spreading COVID-19, while improving the competitiveness of the port and the quality of life for our waterfront labor. The region’s economic prosperity is closely tied to the competitiveness of the port. The HRSA is pleased to work with their ILA partners to create and maintain a labor environment that has allowed for past and future port growth.