Ian Jamieson, Fremantle
Most days, you will find Chris Cain, state secretary of the Western Australian branch of the Maritime Union of Australia, behind his desk with a landline phone in one ear, a mobile in the other, a pile of messages building up, at least one MUA member in his office and a queue outside.
That is, of course, if he is not down on the waterfront, or visiting mass meetings at regional ports or listening and acting on the concerns of seafarers, divers and waterside and port workers.
A hectic schedule is perhaps not uncommon for a dedicated union official, but there is particular interest in Cain and his assistant secretary Ian Bray. It seems everyone from union members and officials to employers and governments are looking at the "runs on the board" that the WA MUA has achieved in the past six months — and drawing conclusions from them. Cain and Bray won two of the three official positions in a heated election campaign in June last year. They stood at the head of a Rank and File Committee determined to put the union back into the hands of its members. The committee, based among wharfies and seafarers, was determined to end the erosion of working conditions that has been building since the Patrick's dispute in 1998.
Seven months after the new team was elected, the overwhelming conclusion of members of the MUA is that there is palpable change. Jack McCabe, a seafarer for over 20 years, emphasised the positive air in the union to Green Left Weekly.
"I've seen the achievements created on the job and the respect that is again growing among the membership. There has been a turnaround that even I thought wasn't possible a year ago", he said.
McCabe also believes that this is just the beginning and there is a need to involve more members in the activity of the union but "this is the light at the end of the tunnel".
The achievements of the WA branch have been considerable, despite an entrenched hostility from employers and anti-union laws enacted by the federal government. Jobs have been held up, ships tied-up, principally over safety concerns. There have been fights over the sacking of delegates and maintaining conditions and earnings. Mass meetings on the job have guided the union officials in taking action.
This has been a change in direction for the WA branch, because in the past officials would plead the case for restraint in the face of anti-union legislation.
Cain explained to GLW that while every attempt has been made to work inside the legal framework "we are not frightened by the Workplace Relations Act" or any other laws that put unions at a disadvantage.
"We have been served with a number of Section 127 orders so far for acting on behalf of the members. But on each occasion, we have won [the dispute]. We think each issue through, we are mindful of possible outcomes but in the end there comes a time when bad laws are there to be broken."
"If the membership decide to have a go then we are there to help them."
Everyone would agree that there are good runs on the board for the WA branch, but there is much more to be achieved. Cain believes the state conference will be a platform to address members concerns on a range of issues, particularly on creating permanent jobs in the industry.
Sam Wainwright, a casual wharfie working for P&O, agrees. Wainwright, along with Cain, is a member of the Socialist Alliance. Speaking to GLW, Wainwright argued that ending the current system of employing casuals in the shipping and stevedoring industries is a burning issue for all MUA members.
"The union is on track despite the heavy workload Chris and Ian have taken on. We are in a position at the state conference to get more members involved in union activities. We can show them that we can take on casualisation and other issues effectively when there is mass involvement.
"Training more delegates, increasing the confidence of members in our union, setting up democratic structures and returning to the militant traditions of the MUA have to be the result of the state conference."
Wainwright also pointed to other areas the MUA has to be involved in that are important for the union movement as a whole. "While our union here in WA is becoming stronger, we are still relatively small. We saw in the Patricks fight we needed solid support from other unions and the community at large.
"We have to respond to this by campaigning to support all those under attack by state and federal governments. Supporting other unions, the weak and vulnerable and responding to the global attacks of capital can only strengthen our union and weaken attempts by governments and employers to break us. Ultimately, we cannot do this alone."
Cain is confident that members of the MUA throughout Australia also appreciate the achievements of the Western Australian branch. An MUA national conference is to be held in mid-March and resolutions from the state conference will be presented.
"We will be encouraging all MUA members to take up the issues our branch will present to the national conference. Casualisation is of concern to everyone and we hope to unite the MUA nationally oppose it. We hope others take on board our efforts in WA, follow the same type of tactics we employ on the job."
The new leadership of the Western Australian branch has generated a lot of discussion in the labour movement. Many are excited by the possibilities for revitalising membership control of unions, of building a working-class current intent on taking employers to task. Some, however, hope for the demise of union militancy.
The WA MUA leadership and members have responded well to the tasks, and see it only as the beginning. Another waterside worker from P&O, Mick Crisp, summed up his assessment for GLW.
"The new leadership has created a better atmosphere in the WA branch. It is refreshing to see a shift in attitude in the workforce. Everyone is looking forward to the immediate future of the union and conditions on the wharves. There is a much more positive atmosphere."
From Green Left Weekly, February 11, 2004.
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