The Seamen's Union of Australia (SUA) was the principal

trade union A trade union (labor union in American English), often simply referred to as a union, is an organization of workers intent on "maintaining or improving the conditions of their employment", ch. I such as attaining better wages and benefits ( ...

for merchant seamen in

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

from 1876 to 1991. The SUA developed a reputation as one of the most militant trade unions in Australia and was closely associated with the communist movement in Australia. The SUA merged in 1993 with the

Waterside Workers' Federation The Waterside Workers' Federation of Australia (WWF) was an Australian trade union that existed from 1902 to 1993. After a period of negotiations between other Australian maritime unions, it was federated in 1902 and first federally registered ...

to become the

Maritime Union of Australia The Maritime Union of Australia (MUA) was a union which covered waterside workers, seafarers, port workers, professional divers, and office workers associated with Australian ports. The MUA was formed in 1993 with merger of the Seamen's Union ...

(MUA).

History

Background

Australian seamen were forerunners of maritime trade unionism. Efforts to form trade unions amongst merchant seamen trading out of Australian ports can be traced back to 1874, with the formation of the Sydney Seamen's Union and Melbourne Seamen's Union. The trade unions of this period inspired, among others, J. Havelock Wilson of the British

National Union of Seamen The National Union of Seamen (NUS) was the principal trade union of merchant seafarers in the United Kingdom from the late 1880s to 1990. In 1990, the union amalgamated with the National Union of Railwaymen to form the National Union of Rail, ...

, who served on Australian coasting vessels for a period in the late 1870s. By 1890, a number of these unions had come together to form a loose federation called the Federated Seamen's Union of Australasia, which included

New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...

until the Federation of Australia in 1901 which did include New Zealand, and adopted the name Seamen's Union of Australia (SUA) in 1906. For nearly eighty years the SUA successfully improved the wages and conditions of its members by negotiations with employers and governments or by taking militant industrial action.

Campaigning

Following

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

the SUA gained a reputation as a militant union, under the leadership of socialist-inclined Tom Walsh. During the

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

it was instrumental in ensuring the supply of civilian seafarers for the war effort. The SUA also took part in a wide range of social and political issues over the years, for example campaigning for Aboriginal rights, opposing apartheid in South Africa, opposing the Vietnam War, and participating in the

nuclear disarmament movement Nuclear may refer to: Physics Relating to the Atomic nucleus, nucleus of the atom: *Nuclear engineering *Nuclear physics *Nuclear power *Nuclear reactor *Nuclear weapon *Nuclear medicine *Radiation therapy *Nuclear warfare Mathematics *Nuclear ...

.Huntley, Pat. (1985). "''Inside Australia's Top 100 Trade Unions''". Northbridge:Ian Huntley Pty. Ltd. The SUA also took part in the black bans and boycotts of Dutch shipping, where the union movement of Australia worked to aid the nascent

Indonesian Republic Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania between the Indian and Pacific oceans. It consists of over 17,000 islands, including Sumatra, Java, Sulawesi, and parts of Borneo and New Guinea. Ind ...

, in particular, ensuring that no tugs towed Dutch ships. These bans commenced in September 1945, and continued through to 1949. The union's longest serving leader was Eliot V. Elliott who led the SUA from 1941–1978. During the 1970s and 80s the union was strongly active in campaigns to address the decline of the Australian shipping industry, as alternative transport modes became more prevalent, and shipowners used

flag of convenience Flag of convenience (FOC) is a business practice whereby a ship's owners register a merchant ship in a ship register of a country other than that of the ship's owners, and the ship flies the civil ensign of that country, called the flag state ...

ships to reduce costs. Reduced manning levels aboard ships also negatively impacted union members, and the union negotiated with companies to maintain the job security of Australian maritime workers.

Amalgamation

During its long history the SUA underwent several amalgamations to increase its coverage of maritime workers, particularly as the size of the workforce decreased due to automation and the use of flag of convenience vessels. The

Marine Cooks Bakers and Butchers Association Marine Cooks, Bakers and Butchers' Association of Australasia was an Australian trade union. It was formed in Melbourne in August 1907 as a breakaway group from the Federated Stewards and Cooks' Union of Australia and was registered under the '' ...

(formed in 1908) amalgamated with the Seamen's Union of Australia in 1983, and the

Federated Marine Stewards and Pantrymen's Association Federated Marine Stewards and Pantrymen's Association of Australasia was an Australian trade union established in 1884, Kirkby, Diane. (2008). "''Voices from the ships: Australia's seafarers and their union''". Sydney: University of New South Wal ...

merged in 1988. In 1991 the Professional Divers' Association also amalgamated with the SUA, before it joined with the

to become the

(MUA) in 1993.

Federal Secretaries

* Arthur Cooper 1906–1918 * Tom Walsh 1918–1922 * William Raeburn 1922–1926 * Jacob Johnson 1926–1937 (imprisoned for 4 months for inciting a 1922 strike) * W. J. Daley 1937–1941 * Eliot V. Elliott 1941–1978 * Patrick Geraghty 1978–1991

References