The Mechanization and Modernization Agreement brought surprises all around. The initial result, predictably, was a wave of retirements. With incentives encouraging older longshoremen to leave the workforce, the number over age 65 fell from 831 in 1960 to 321 in 1964, and the number between 60 and 65 dropped by one-fifth. Contrary to expectations on both sides, though, income guarantees for active dockers proved unnecessary. Rather than a labor surplus, the docks experienced a labor shortage thanks to an increasing flow of cargo. Large numbers of B-men were admitted as A-men for the first time
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