A ship captain’s unwillingness to listen to his crew’s suggestions to change course from the path of a raging hurricane; A weak corporate safety culture that left crewmembers ill-prepared to deal with heavy weather; An old ship with outdated lifeboats, open to the elements are factors that contributed to the sinking of the El Faro in the fury of Hurricane Joaquin on October 1, 2015.
West Coast Sailors
Congressman John Rutherford (R-Florida) and Ranking Member Peter DeFazio (D-Oregon) highlight the importance of American maritime for Puerto Rico’s recovery and the capacity and capability of Jones Act vessels to meet Puerto Rico’s present and future needs.
Every time a natural disaster in the United States requires the assistance of U.S.-flag shipping, the rats who shill for foreign interests swarm out of the sewers to call for the waiver or repeal of the Jones Act.
The U.S. Government Accountability Office heightened growing concern over the alarming conditions of government-owned standby cargo ships intended for surge sealift service in national security emergencies.
The SUP, MFOW, SIU-AGLIW, AMO, MEBA and MM&P on July 28, sent strong recommendations and comments to the Maritime Administration’s Maritime Workforce Working Group regarding the state of the U.S. Merchant Marine.
After two weeks of contentious bargaining, the SUP, MFOW and SIU-Marine Cooks, which comprise the SIU-Pacific District, reached a concession-free agreement with Matson Navigation Company on June 30, averting a potential strike
This month the membership of the SUP voted overwhelmingly in favor of the following resolution, at all regularly scheduled Union meetings:
Pres. Trump signed a $1.1 trillion spending bill that will fund the government through September 30, of this year. The legislation fully funds the Maritime Security Program (MSP) at the authorized level for Fiscal Year 2017 and sustains other programs crucial to the U.S.-flag maritime industry.
In an effort to maintain its U.S.-flag monopoly in the Guam trade, Matson is attempting to make legislative changes to the Maritime Security Program (MSP) to force American President Lines out of that service.
In 2016, over $475 billion worth of American exports were transported overseas by ship.
Among the Union's objectives is "to support a journal which shall voice the sentiments of the seafaring class, and through its columns seek to maintain the knowledge of and interest in maritime affairs." The first issue of the West Coast Sailors, in June of 1937, noted that "Common sense, fearlessly applied, brings success to a Union."