Original subtitles

(Narrator) 'This is a story simple but dramatic.

'A story about the men who crew our ships, the seafarers.

'Every seafarer will recognise in what follows something of himself.

'Familiar scenes, the faces of the men who share his calling,

'his way of life and maybe something more.

'Call it a dream fulfilled.'

I'm Don Hollenbeck.

Joseph Conrad wrote a lot of things about the sea,

and among other things he wrote this:

"The true piece of God begins at any spot 1,000 miles from land."

Here's something else I came across the other day

that interested me very much.

"Ever since the days of sailing ships,

"seafaring has drawn to it men of many different types,

"and yet they have one thing in common, these men.

"It's the quality that makes men want to live not in a city or in a town,

"but in the world.

"It's a true spirit of independence

"and it's always been deeply rooted in the seafaring tradition."

And now to go on with this little essay,

"Nobody knows better than a seafaring man

"that any man, however independent he is,

"isn't entirely independent.

"He's a member of something larger.

"Of a family, of a community, of a nation.

"Or bring it back to seafaring.

"He's a member of a crew.

"A crew of men like himself,

"banded together for one essential common purpose."

Now, the picture you're going to see now

is the story of men who are banded together

for one essential common purpose.

This is a vital story in their daily lives and their achievements.

It's a proud story made possible by the deeds of seafaring men.

It's the story of the SIU.

(Hollenbeck) 'From Vancouver down the long Pacific coast,

'around the great curve of the Gulf of Mexico,

'up the rim of the Atlantic from Tampa to Halifax,

'in every major north-American port close by the waterfront,

'there is a headquarters of the Seafarers' International Union.

'This is headquarters for the SIU Atlantic and Gulf district.

'More than just a building,

'a solidly impressive symbol of what seafarers have achieved.

'And like every SIU headquarters,

'the heart of this one is its hiring hall,

'run by seafarers for seafarers.'

...one second cook.

Is there any more?

Have a book, group one, April 16th.

Book, group one, April 16th...

(Hollenbeck) 'In this SIU hall, as in others,

'seafarers can pick berths on ships of many types,

'going almost anywhere in the world,

'Antwerp, Cape Town, London, Marseilles or Singapore.

'You name it.

'Picking his destination is the right of every seafarer.

'And sometimes more than a right - a duty.

'In the great seafaring tradition, a duty voluntarily assumed.

'Every true seafarer respects courage,

'the courage of men of all national origins and religions

'that has created seafaring tradition and built the SIU.

'A seafarer coming ashore in any United States' port

'no longer needs to feel cut adrift, as many once did.

'He has a place to go.

'A union hall built by seafarers

'to meet the needs and suit the tastes of seafarers.

'Big, efficient and safeguarding the rights and interests

'of those who go to sea,

'but never forgetting that the machines and the files and the figures

'are there to serve the seafarers and not the other way around.

'Staffed by experts, but under the supervision of men who know what it is

'to top a boom, to batten down a hatch, to weigh an anchor.

'Financial statements posted weekly in every port

'for seafarers to read.

'And a SIU print shop turns out regular bulletins and reports,

'airmailed to seafarers on SIU-contracted ships around the world.

(♪ Music over dialogue)

'A good seafarers' headquarters has to begin where others leave off.

'For seafarers coming ashore in the port away from home,

'it ought to be and is a second home

'where no man off a ship is a stranger to the rest,

'and where the things he needs are close at hand,

'like this SIU cafeteria,

'open to the public but mainly for the convenience of seafarers.

'Lots of space, lots of good, inexpensive food.

(♪ Music over dialogue)

'The galley well stocked and well scrubbed.

'A pleasant sight after any voyage is the SIU barber shop.

'Another of the many conveniences at SIU headquarters.

'The SIU Sea Chest, which supports ship and shore gear.

'Takes orders, makes deliveries from SIU warehouses in SIU trucks,

'maintains this headquarters store for those ashore

'with some refitting to do.

'The SIU's port of call,

'from the figurehead on the ship-shaped bar

'to the faces of men you have shipped with,

'a friendly spot for seafarers ashore

'to spend some time to relax and meet shipmates.

'Or to bring some friends.

(♪ Music over dialogue)

'But the hiring hall through which every job

'on every SIU ship import is filled

'is the centre of it all.

'Here, seafarers get their jobs not as a favour but as a right,

'in the order in which they apply for them.

'When a seafarer registers for a berth, he gets a registration card.

'The card filled out right in front of him

'is stamped with a number marked with the date of his application.

'Then this information,

name, job classification, date and number,

'is typed onto a list, which is posted in full view.'

On the vessel, US petroleum T2 tanker. Going Far East from Boston.

(Hollenbeck) 'When two or more seafarers throw in for the same job,

'the one with the registration card

'showing the earlier date and lower number gets it,

'and any seafarer in the hall can check these for himself.'

And three boats...

Wednesday, April 22nd.

Berth one. Berth group one, April 22nd.

(Hollenbeck) 'What's more, a seafarer can pass up a berth

'because he would rather work another type of ship,

'or one headed for his favourite ports

'without losing his place on top of the list.'

Two-deck maintenance.

Do you want to stay over there?

All right, group one.

April 24th and April 25th.

Berth group one, April 25th.

(Hollenbeck) 'Shipping call is every hour on the hour,

'but there's no standing in line or idling on a sidewalk in between.

'A seafarer waiting for a ship

'doesn't have to kill time in SIU headquarters.

'He can enjoy it.

'He can shoot a game of pool.

'He can shoot the breeze, write a letter, read a book.

'Or play some cards.

'He can try his hand at one of these games.

'Or take a look at works of art

'by fellow seafarers - carvings and paintings done aboard ship.

'Some good enough for any gallery.

'And for those staying ashore awhile, there's an SIU school.'

(Tutor) Well, we've pretty much covered that subject.

All of us have had our say.

And we come to the next question.

That is, what does a union mean to you?

George?

I'd say protection on the job, security.

It means the boss can't shove me around.

Anyone else? Benny?

The big thing is how you take home pay.

Overtime, along with the penalty pay, it buys a load of groceries.

Any other ideas? Yes, Paul.

I look at it this way,

I see other guys doing things together,

I want to be part of it.

(Hollenbeck) 'Being part of its group,

'the SIU provided benefits of many kinds to the seafarer and his family,

'when he is likely to need them most.

'All of them financed by company contributions

'required by SIU contracts

'and costing seafarers not a cent.

'You can sum these benefits up in one word: security.

'The security seafarers gain

'by working together in their common interest.

(♪ Music over dialogue)

'For example, there's the maternity benefit of $200

'to help a seafarer and his family.

(♪ Music over dialogue)

'Plus, a $25 bond for baby.

'And later on, the children of seafarers

'have a chance at SIU college scholarships.

'Seafarers become eligible for vacation pay

'after every 90 days they have worked.

'And in the SIU, as every seafarer knows, there is no red tape.

'This whole operation takes five minutes or a little more.

'The SIU never loses sight of the fact

'that it exists to serve its seafaring members

'in every way it can wherever they may be.

'That is why seafarers created the SIU.

'Every hospitalised seafarer knows, at least once a week,

'an SIU representative will come by to say hello

'to fill personal requests.

(♪ Music over dialogue)

'And pay the SIU's weekly hospital benefit of $15 in cash.

'And this goes on for as long as a seafarer is hospitalised,

'weeks, months or years.

'For disabled seafarers or those too old to go to sea,

'the SIU weekly disability benefit of $25 comes in handy.

'Seafarers' gains through the SIU have been won step by step

'in victories on ships of Isthmian, City Service and other lines,

'through the solidarity of seafarers themselves,

'backed by the SIU.

'Of one SIU victory on a tanker fleet, a senate committee said,

"'It is amazing that any union could survive

"'this heavily financed, lawyer-led attack."

'But winning through the democratic process

'of collective bargaining is an SIU habit,

'as these headlines from its newspaper the "Seafarers' Log" show.

'The "Seafarers' Log", often called the country's best labour paper,

'is airmailed to SIU ships everywhere,

'keeping seafarers informed of SIU progress.

'Progress such as this.

'Shipping lines under contract up from eight to 84.

'SIU assets up from less than $100,000 to close to $3 million.

'Cash benefits to seafarers now running into millions.

'Seafarers' earnings tripled through SIU contracts.

'Impressive, isn't it?

'With the best contracts in the maritime industry,

'the SIU makes sure that seafarers get the full benefit of those contracts.

'An SIU representative goes aboard all incoming ships

'to represent the crew

'in ironing out all grievances, claims and disputes

'before the payoff.

'This SIU representation assures every seafarer

'that he will be paid off in full.

'A seafarers' union, in doing its job,

'must meet and service its members aboard ship.

'The SIU brings its services to its members,

'not waiting for the members to come to it.

'Working on board ship, every seafarer knows that his job,

'his rights on his job and his rights and interests ashore

'are fully protected through his cooperation with other seafarers,

'not only in his crew but in his union.

'This explains why SIU organisers,

'when they approach members of unorganised crews,

'get a friendly welcome.

'And real cooperation in providing SIU support

'for those who want the benefits of SIU membership.

'Membership in the union that represents seafarers effectively,

'because it is controlled by seafarers in the democratic way.

'All officers of the SIU are elected.

'No one can be a candidate for SIU office,

'unless he has spent at least three years at sea,

'a guarantee that he will understand seafarers' problems.

'On ship and on shore,

'all SIU policies are decided by the majority vote of seafarers

'with plenty of time for discussion.

'Every SIU meeting begins with a statement

'reminding seafarers of the rights guaranteed them

'in the SIU Constitution,

'calling on them to exercise those rights.

'The right of any seafarer

'to nominate himself or any other seafarer as a meeting officer,

'or to any committee.

'The right of any seafarer to speak his mind on any issue.

'The right to vote on every issue.

'The right to straight-talk from SIU officers.

'Listen to Paul Hall,

'Secretary Treasurer of the SIU Atlantic and Gulf district.'

Fellow chairmen, officers of the meeting,

fellow seafarers,

you have heard in the previous part of this meeting,

our organiser makes the report,

as we have petitioned a very large unorganised company

for the purpose of representing their employees

for collective bargaining reasons.

You know, as I do,

that the seamen in that particular company

are wont to vote in our favour.

Those men are going to vote in our favour

because they know what kind of a union that we are

in all the things that we represent, in all the things that we want to do.

They know, for example, that in this union

we have the most fair, democratic system of hiring

ever known to any industry.

They know, too,

that we have in this organisation,

the most democratic constitution in the trade union movement,

whereby no decision can be made to affect our people,

unless that decision is made

on the floor of meetings just such as these.

They know, too, that this organisation

has the finest agreements ever negotiated

in the entire maritime history.

They know that the seamen under those agreements

are the highest-paid seamen in the world.

They know, too, of our many broad benefits

that we have in all the payments we make

for hospital benefits, vacation benefits.

They know, too, of disability regardless of age,

when you can't work in this organisation,

you are put on a pension so that you will be taken care of.

They know of all the death benefits. They know the maternity benefits.

They know of the fact that we have scholarship benefits.

The men in that particular fleet also realise

that we have a tremendous economic strength here,

an economic strength that enables us to be protected

against the boss, if such need arises.

They know, too, that while we do possess such large economic strength

that we do not abuse that strength.

(Hollenbeck) 'The SIU's economic strength

'used effectively but without abuse

'has meant much to seafarers,

'security, a higher standard of living,

'a position of respect in their communities.

'Today, every seafarer beginning a voyage

'goes up the gang plank secure in the knowledge

'that he and his family can depend on the protection

'of a great organisation.

'An organisation the seafarers themselves,

'with their own intelligence and effort, have brought into being.'

You've seen the story of how the seafarers,

conscious of their rights and their responsibility,

get together for their common objectives,

dignity, security,

a better way of life for themselves and for their families.

This is the story of the SIU.