Ship’s Crew Ends Strike
The crew of a cargo ship anchored in the Port of Long Beach has agreed to accept $227,000 in unpaid wages to settle a four-day strike that halted the vessel’s loading.
Officials for the International Transport Workers’ Federation, a global union that represents seafarers, said the 17-member crew of the Endless voted Monday evening to accept the owner’s back-pay offer.
Under the agreement, the Greek owner, Sea Justice S.A., also will repatriate the Filipino crew at company expense, comply with federation contracts, and indemnify the mariners against legal actions and discipline by the company or its agents.
“The crew agreed to the settlement. They are happy and preparing to go home,” said Stefan Mueller-Dombois, a federation inspector in the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach.
Union officials had contended that Sea Justice owed the crew $366,000 in wages, federation penalties and repatriation expenses. The owner, however, contended that the crew was entitled to $227,000 in back pay, plus repatriation costs as required in their employment contracts.
Frank Brucculeri, an attorney for the owner, could not be reached for comment Tuesday.
Brucculeri said last week that the crew worked under a Philippine union contract required by the Philippine government and supplemental transport federation agreements obtained through a Greek seafarers’ union.
The owner, Brucculeri said, thought that he could pay the crew under the Philippine contract, which offered wages that were considerably less than the transport federation agreements.
Under current federation contracts, an able-bodied seaman should make about $1,550 a month, including wages, overtime and vacation allowances.
Federation officials began investigating the wage dispute early last week after an inspection of the vessel. Crew members went on strike Thursday evening and formed a picket line at the top of the ship’s gangway.
Their action halted the loading of the vessel with a shipment of petroleum coke bound for Japan. Petroleum coke, a byproduct of the refining process, is used as a fuel in Asia.
Mueller-Dombois said the owner has hired another crew and plans to resume loading the vessel.
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