Labor Meets The Port That Works

A port community with all these exceptional benefits and active projects requires skilled and abundant labor. The Port of Brownsville and its 273 tenant companies continue to work with local school districts, colleges, universities, technical schools and workforce development leaders in growing career opportunities for local residents. In 2020, the BND Board of Commissioners established the Port of Brownsville Scholarship Program, aimed at helping deserving high school students pursue a higher education and career dreams. To date, the scholarship program has awarded $64,000 benefiting 64 high school students attending schools within the navigation district.

Brownsville is home to one of the nation’s most youthful populations, where the average age is 29. Educated, technically savvy, adaptable and motivated to succeed, these young people understand the meaning of hard work.

Many of those work for the port’s three skilled stevedoring operations, who collaborated on the movement of 11.6 million short tons of cargo last year: Dix Shipping Company, Schaefer Stevedoring and Gulf Stream Marine are the backbone and muscle of the port that works. Each has distinguished themselves with records of safety and efficiency, serving the focused needs of their clients, resulting in staggering economic impacts.

According to a Martin Associates’ report, cargo activity at the port’s marine terminals and rig repair operations supports $3 billion in total Texas economic results, creating nearly 51,500 jobs. Of those, 8,500 local, regional direct, indirect and induced jobs are generated at the port by marine cargo vessel activity, shipbuilding, rig repair and ship recycling. Those jobs infuse more than $2 billion annually into the regional economy. Martin Associates’ report concludes that $42.6 million of state and local tax revenue is generated by those activities, and another $201 million in state and local taxes are generated due to economic activity of related users of cargo moving through the port’s marine terminals. These impacts distinguish the port as the region’s leading economic driver.

Safety meetings help kickoff the daily activities at the port docking facilities.

Day or night, rain or shine, the movement of goods never stops at Port of Brownsville. Stevedoring operations at the port distinguish themselves with records of safety and efficiency, serving the focused needs of the clients.