 |
|
|
 |
|
|
|
Organized labor on the waterwaysThe right of inland mariners to organize has been a hot topic in recent years. Unlike on ocean-going ships and in other sectors of the marine industry, unions are almost non-existent today on the Mississippi River and connecting waterways. Why? The following will attempt to explain both history and current events:
The Pilots Agree movementThis was, or is, an uprising of towboat pilots on the Mississippi River and connecting waterways. It began in 1997, and led to a walk-out by several hundred pilots in the spring of 1998. Read more:
Capt. Dickey's at it againCapt. Dickey Mathes -- the man who started Pilots Agree movement in 1997, the man who had an entire industry wetting its pants, the man who had an Archer Daniels Midland subsidiary on its knees -- well, he's back with another organization for America's inland mariners. It's called the Brown Water Mariners Association. Go to their website for details. The West Coast lock-outGeorge W. Bush is the first U.S. president in a quarter century to invoke the 1947 Taft-Hartley Act, which allows him to intervene in a labor dispute that threatens the economy or national security. Dockworkers from Seattle to San Diego were ordered back to work on 09 October 2002, at least for an 80-day cooling-off period. Read more: U.S. West Coast ports set to reopen Activity sputters at West Coast ports as longshoremen return Opinions:Taft-Hartley is one of the most controversial federal laws affecting working people. Some refer to is as a "slave labor law" used by the establishment against employees. Read these opinion pieces: Taft-Hartley, Bush and the dockworkers Dockworkers and capitalists: Labor lessons of port lock-out See also:Free the ILA Charleston Five Know the difference between rank-and-file workers and "business" unions. Why are Union Leaders So F#!@ing Stupid? The Wheelhouse Report labor links page, where you'll find most of the U.S. maritime labor unions, as well as rank-and-file sites and other related links. |
 Where the River Runs Deep: the story of a Mississippi River pilot by Joy J. Jackson A personal history of Capt. Oliver Jackson, and a chronicle of navigation on the lower Mississippi River - from the 1790s to the 1980s. > More info > Other books available from 
........................... 
|
|
|