Automation was at the center of a long-running labor dispute that threatened to close East and Gulf Coast ports.

A new six-year contract sets a 62% pay increase along with tougher standards for adding robotics to the docks.

The United States Maritime Alliance and the International Longshoremen's Association reached a deal on a contract Wednesday night, avoiding a strike that could have closed ports up and down the East Coast and crippled the U.S. economy.