<o:smarttagtype namespaceuri=“urn:schemas-microsoft-com<img src=” images="" smilies="" redface.gif="" border=“0” alt="" title=“Embarrassment” smilieid=“2” class=“inlineimg”></o:smarttagtype> [FONT=Arial]All,[/FONT]
Came upon this Holland America site seeking mariners for Alaska.
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[FONT=Arial]I am new to the list, a lurker and a maritime retread. Still have a MMD & now have a TWIC.<o></o>[/FONT]
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[FONT=Arial]I sailed deep sea, steward’s <st1:address w:st=“on”><st1:street w:st=“on”>dept 1967</st1:street> –</st1:address> 1969 on NMU crewed pax ships, <st1:city w:st=“on”><st1>INDEPENDENCE</st1></st1:city>, UNITED STATES, etc and from reading the post here, nothing much has changed. It’s the same paper chase with USCG & the companies, only the acronyms have changed.<o></o>[/FONT]
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[FONT=Arial]I got my first Z card in June 1966 and registered with SIU Baltimore as a “c-card”, then got to sit in the union hall for 90 days, during which time, to my knowledge, not one “c” card shipped stewards…not a snowball’s chance in hell of getting an entry level berth. Went back to college for the winter.<o></o>[/FONT]
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[FONT=Arial]Summer of 67, my father pulled some strings with the NMU New York and I sailed on American Export’s INDEPENDENCE, 24 June for the Med. As a crew porter, rerated to tourist class waiter after 2 days at sea. Was aboard for three 21 day trips as crew porter, always rerated to waiter @ sea. End of my 3<sup>rd</sup>, the union got wise and I was booted off so a Group 1 mariner could fill the berth. Tried to ship again, no go, so back to school, but much wiser in union hiring practices.<o></o>>[/FONT]
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[FONT=Arial]In spring 68, I registered @ Savannah and by summer I had a killer card, which I used at NYC to get on <st1:city w:st=“on”><st1>INDEPENDENCE</st1></st1:city> until early August, one weekers to San Juan/St Thomas…Then bang, I was to be booted again by NMU seniority or lack thereof. On arrival, Pier 84, saw that the UNITED STATES was @ Pier 86 and was to sail c. noon.
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[FONT=Arial]Taxied to NMU and got a pierhead jump to the Big U as a bell boy and got to the ship as the gangway was being pulled. On return to NYC, booted again…packed it in and back to school [/FONT][FONT=Arial]
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[FONT=Arial] Then came the announcement that AEIL was withdrawing INDEPENDENCE & CONSTITUTION, not good news for the industry…congress in its pinheaded wisdom had cut the subsidies for the ships at the same time DOD had decided that all military transferees, a good portion of the pax trade then, would go by air.<o></o>[/FONT]
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[FONT=Arial]In spring 69 I registered for shipping in NMU’s <st1:city w:st=“on”><st1>Baltimore</st1></st1:city> hall…not much chance of a job, but it started the clock ticking on my union Group 2 card. Came June I Iucked out (very very lucked out!) with a pier head jump to MooreMac’s SS BRASIL, one weekers to Bermuda & the <st1:country-region w:st=“on”><st1>Bahamas</st1></st1:country-region>. 3 trips again, and booted, as BRASIL was to go c/wise to NYC and then transatlantic to the North Cape & Leningrad…the steadies wanted their jobs back. <o></o>[/FONT]
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[FONT=Arial]Registered immediately @ NYC and gave the union patrolman $50 for the fighting fund stamps that were used ostensibly for PAC pressure on Congress. A good investment, as the 10 little stamps were pasted next to my shipping card…any ties would go to the one with the most stamps. Shipping was slow, no more AEIL liners and the BIG U had just sailed so I was going to head home to <st1><st1:city w:st=“on”>Washington</st1:city>, <st1:state w:st=“on”>DC</st1:state></st1>. The agent, John (whose last name I do not recall now had seen me buy the fighting fund stamps) called me aside and told me to be in the hall that Sat or Sunday AM ( Don’t recall which) if I wanted a ship…showed up as directed and was the only stewards dept mariner in the hall when one waiter job, medical relief, was called for Grace’s SANTA MERCEDES, 100 pax combo, to <st1><st1:city w:st=“on”>Guyaquil</st1:city>, <st1:country-region w:st=“on”>Ecuador</st1:country-region></st1>, 30 days. I got the job and off to Port Newark, another pierhead jump. 30 days later, mid August, the steadyman was healed and I was ashore, but the Big U was in port. For reasons unknown to me, USL emptied the hall by hiring 30 plus galley utilities, probably for cleanup as she was due to go into the yard c. late September. As luck would have it I was rerated to First Class purser’s bells, great voyage in an office, but very rough weather w/b, with green seas over the bow. On return to NYC, Labor Day weekend, I paid off and (unknown at that time) I would never sail as crew again.<o></o>[/FONT][FONT=Arial]<o></o>
[/FONT] [FONT=Arial]In Nov, UNITED STATES was laid up and the bottom fell out of shipping…she was the NMU’s pressure relief valve, she always needed stewards dept crew.<o></o>[/FONT]
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[FONT=Arial]Within a decade AEIL was to croak, Grace Lines gave up the ghost, MooreMac foundered and USL lines hemorrhaged money until the mid 80’s, killed by its fast container ships which were fuel guzzlers, the stupidity of their senior management, and the failure of leadership by the NMU.<o></o>[/FONT]
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[FONT=Arial]Hindsight…the late 60s were not the time to begin a career under the <st1:country-region w:st=“on”><st1>US</st1></st1:country-region> flag. WWII had seen a lot of young men make master or other senior ratings and they were still around. I remember one old bosun, shipping in that rate, who had a master’s ticket and could not find a ship as master…he was shipping as boats until he was pension eligible.<o></o>[/FONT]
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[FONT=Arial]Very similar is going on today, too many US mariners for the industry to support (partially due to the open door policy, i.e. pay the govt fee and get a MMD—when I shipped you had to have pull to get a document) not enough ships under the US flag, and many US held companies flagging their vessels overseas…case in point Carnival.<o></o>[/FONT]
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[FONT=Arial]But it was fun while it lasted, Northern Europe, the UK, the Med, Caribbean, Panama Canal, west coast South America, Caribbean, places for which I would shell out a lot of money today…saw them all for free and was paid to do so. Would I do it again…you bet cha’.[/FONT]
Happy New Year to all.
Guampaul