Dockers power

[j.sabourn]

Did the milkman get the sack ? JS

[Tony Taylor]

Discharging a relatively small cargo of lube oil into road tankers and 200odd 40gall. drums in Wellington, just the hint of rain would signal knock off. Great for us, good run ashore just walk out the dock gate and straight into pub, draught Bass and cheap grub if you wanted it, brilliant.

[Allen James Jones]

Peter, in Sydney there was one powerful incentive to get the dockers (wharfies) to comply with the rules. The "Pillage Squad". NSW Wharf Police. In the 1960s-70s these guys where the ultimate terrorist as far as the wharfies were concerned. No prisoners taken. Any wharfie found to be responsible for bringing these monsters to the ship or changing room would lose his tally medal (no work without medal) quick smart. I saw them in action a few times and it was quite impressive how the union reps and the workers tugged their forelocks to the coppers.

[j.sabourn]

Similar in Quebec, we occasionally carried containers down the hold and saw a couple of them breaking into a container, was about to go down the hold when the hatchman said quietly to me , don’t go down there or you might not come out again , he said I am an undercover RCMP officer and they will be picked up going ashore. Sure enough they were.The old saying the Mounties always get their man is sure enough , if their boarding squads came aboard looking for contraband they would never leave empty handed no matter how trivial the case was. Cheers JS.

[j.sabourn]

#12 what year was that Tony. I did a relatively short time on the NZ coast in the early 70’s but were only allowed 3 months at a time before leaving and going back for a further 3 months because were foreign vessel ( British) the other two vessels were one Greek and the other NZ which obviously had no restrictions. Running from Whangherie as far as Bluff and most ports in between. Were you doing similar ? The vessel I was on was the Laurelwood and had a Chinese crew. Cheers JS.

[happy daze john in oz]

Australian dockers and painters were amongst the worlds worst back in the 60's
Strike for no reason if it suited them.
One lot asked for embarrassment monies as they were unloading new toilets.
Working cold holds they had special warm suits to wear, but had to be a clean one each day.
Laundry on strike so no new ones, no work done until the laundry strike was over.


There was to be a test match Rugby, between Oz and NZ, day time one.
Sydney dockers asked for the arvo off to go to the match.
Shiping companies said NO!!
So go on strike, an alternative arrived at.
Speakers all around the dock so they could listen while the worked.
Come staring time, down tools, out with the booze and sit on quay side and listen.

[Tony Taylor]

#12 what year was that Tony. I did a relatively short time on the NZ coast in the early 70’s but were only allowed 3 months at a time before leaving and going back for a further 3 months because were foreign vessel ( British) the other two vessels were one Greek and the other NZ which obviously had no restrictions. Running from Whangherie as far as Bluff and most ports in between. Were you doing similar ? The vessel I was on was the Laurelwood and had a Chinese crew. Cheers JS.

1975 John, I think we had about 13 or so grades, I joined in Stanlow where we started loading followed by Fawley, Stanlow,Rotterdam and finally Curacao where we loaded last grade plus drums. Discharge, Cartagena, Cairns, Sydney, Melbourne, Geelong, and finally New Zealand could it be Scarborough? not sure, then finally Wellington. After a week or so there we sat offshore down the coast waiting for orders for about a week or more, then back to Curacao (did a quick circuit round Pitcairn Island). Loaded Curacao, Corpus Christie, Port Arthur, New Orleans then back to Thameshaven and pay off.

[j.sabourn]

#17 .. No different job altogether Tony , we were purely on the coast , from the oil refinery at Whangerai to all the ports down to Bluff. Just petroleum for the garages. No tank cleaning in between cargoes as was all the same grade apart from the paraffin tanks . The Laurelwood was a clean products carrier with the usual 26 tanks and two pump rooms . Know most of the golf courses in NZ especially their 19th holes. Previous to that was on the Hollywood a sister ship running from Iran with Naptha for Japan , and we all know where that finished up. Cheers JS.

[j.sabourn]

#17 Thinking back to earlier times on passage Panama to NZ we always did a slight deviation to see if the Pitcairn Islanders were all ok. Think if passing at night the order of the day was they lit a beacon , at day they would send a boat out. Can’t ever remember them doing so though. Cheers JS

[Ivan Cloherty]

My first visit to Pitcairn Island was at 0600 hours on 1st January 1956, we 'Salinas' were on charter to Shaw Saville and Albion and the 'Gothic' was due that day also, SSA instructed us to let 'Gothic' arrive first, our Master, Capt Litherland, was having none of it and ensured we arrived first, as we later sailed away after presenting PSNC shields and flags to the islanders we saw the 'Gothic's masts looming on the horizon. We made headlines in all the Wellington newspapers, still have the cuttings. "Salinas beats Gothic to Pitcairn on New Years Day" No doubt there would have been some recerpusions higher up the chain. Capt Litherland a thorough gentlemen in all respects and a role model to aspire to, not like some I sailed with, who shall remain nameless but well remembered!