The International Mercantile Marine Officers' Association (IMMOA) was a

global union federation A global union federation (GUF) is an international federation of national trade unions organizing in specific industry sectors or occupational groups. Historically, such federations in the social democratic tradition described as international t ...

bringing together

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 ( ...

s representing officers in merchant navies.

History

The federation was established on 16 June 1925, at a meeting attended by representatives of unions from Belgium, Denmark, France, Germany, the Netherlands, Norway, Spain, and the United States. It set up headquarters in

Antwerp Antwerp (; nl, Antwerpen ; french: Anvers ; es, Amberes) is the largest city in Belgium by area at and the capital of Antwerp Province in the Flemish Region. With a population of 520,504,

, and successfully negotiated representation on the Joint Maritime Commission of the

International Labour Organization The International Labour Organization (ILO) is a United Nations agency whose mandate is to advance social and economic justice by setting international labour standards. Founded in October 1919 under the League of Nations, it is the first and o ...

. From the start, it also represented navigators, engineers, and ships' doctors, and the International Federation of Radio Officers soon affiliated to the federation.{{cite news , title=Ships' Officers' International to be dissolved , url=http://library.fes.de/itf/pdf/z9593/1964/z9593_1964_02.pdf , accessdate=24 March 2020 , work=International Transport Workers' Journal , issue=2 , date=February 1964

Omer Becu Omer Liévin Benjamin Becu (21 August 1902 – 9 October 1982) was a Belgian trade unionist, who became General Secretary of the International Confederation of Free Trade Unions. Born in Ostend, Becu trained as a radio operator and joined the ...

became the union's secretary in 1932. In 1940, he escaped to London, moving the IMMOA's headquarters there. The

International Transport Workers' Federation The International Transport Workers' Federation (ITF) is a democratic global union federation of transport workers' trade unions, founded in 1896. In 2017 the ITF had 677 member organizations in 149 countries, representing a combined membership ...

(ITF) had also evacuated to London, and it began working closely with the IMMOA. Becu was seconded to ITF work, and the British Navigators' and Engineering Officers' Union took over the leadership of the federation. By 1946, the federation had decided to fully integrate with the ITF. It recommended that all its affiliates join the ITF, and refocused its activity on promoting friendship and co-operation among ships' officers. It undertook little activity, holding a conference in 1948, and the penultimate meeting of its board of directors in 1951, but remained in existence. In 1964, the federation held one final directors' meeting, recommending that the organisation be wound up, and this was agreed at a final congress, held the following year. The IMMOA's assets were transferred to the ITF's Edo Fimmen Free Trade Union Fund.

Leadership

General Secretaries

:1925: Alex Brandt :1932:

:1940:

Douglas Tennant Charles Douglas Smith Tennant CBE (1906 – 19 November 1985) was a British trade union leader. Tennant came to prominence in 1935, when he helped to found the Navigators' and Engineer Officers' Union (NEOU). This affiliated to the Internati ...

Presidents

:1925: François Mas :1940:

William Harry Coombs William Harry Coombs (15 July 1893 – 23 June 1969) was a British sailor, insurance company founder, barrister and trade union leader. Just 4 feet 10 tall, Coombs trained on '' HMS Conway'', then began his career surveying the Hooghly River. ...

:1948:

Pieter de Vries Pieter de Vries (1897 – November 1975) was a Dutch trade union leader. De Vries became a sailor when he was 18, and joined a trade union two years later. From 1927 to 1931, he worked for the Amsterdam Chamber of Trade in the Dutch East Ind ...

References

Global union federations Maritime officers' trade unions Trade unions established in 1925 Trade unions disestablished in 1965