The maritime industry is constantly changing, and being able to adapt is one way the Seafarers International Union is not merely surviving but flourishing.
Of the 11 Seafarers who recently completed the bosun recertification program at the Paul Hall Center for Maritime Training and Education in Piney Point, Md., some already have seen many of the changes that have occurred since they first started sailing. During the month-long course, they and their fellow classmates learned more in depth about the industry in which they work, and all are now well equipped to assume leadership roles by taking this knowledge back to their shipmates at the hiring halls and aboard individual vessels.
The course included a mixture of classroom and practical training as well as visits to the headquarters building in Camp Springs to meet with representatives of the various departments and to the Maritime Trades Department at the AFL-CIO building in Washington, D.C.
After being presented with their graduation certificates during the November membership meeting at Piney Point, the recertified bosuns approached the podium to address the officials, members and guests in attendance. All gave a few words of thanks for the opportunities they were given at the school and imparted a few personal words of wisdom to the unlicensed apprentices who are following in their footsteps.
Completing the recertification program were Anthony Carvalho, Brian Corbett, Morris Foster, Peter Frigoletti, James Joyce, Christopher Kicey, John Lamprecht, Jesse Natividad Jr., Dana Naze, Frank Thompson and Salvador Villareal.
This is the third time back at the school for Villareal, who joined the union in 1994 in Hawaii and now sails from Tacoma, Wash. He expressed his appreciation for being given the opportunity to attend the recertification class and noted that being a member of the SIU has afforded him a good living and a comfortable lifestyle.
Throughout his month-long studies, he enhanced his knowledge about how contracts are negotiated and how being informed about the shipping rules can help him, as a ship’s chairman, communicate better with his crew.
He also spoke about the importance of contributing to SPAD. He said that the results of SPAD donations may not be immediately visible, but that in the long run it is an important tool to help the union remain strong.
Thompson has been sailing with the SIU since 1960 and has seen many changes over the years. The recertified bosun, whose home port is Jacksonville, said that the industry has provided his livelihood and, unlike many of his friends, he has never had to go out and look for a job; the union has always had one for him.
He told the assembled crowd that the course helped him gain a greater understanding of the relationship between the union, the companies, crews and laws that govern them. He now sees that the show of the union’s strength is through the politics of job performance and personal responsibility, and he stressed to the unlicensed apprentices in the audience to come together and help keep the union strong.
Frigoletti began sailing 32 years ago on board almost every type of ship in the MSTU and NMU fleets. After learning a great deal about how the union operates in the political and maritime arenas, he stated he is proud to be a member of the SIU.
He encouraged the trainees to take advantage of the opportunities offered to them at the Paul Hall Center and upgrade their skills as often as possible.
Kicey, who began sailing in 1990 from the port of Seattle, feels very fortunate to belong to the SIU. He has traveled to the Far East, Middle East, Europe, Africa and Antarctica, and for the last five years has worked on the West Coast aboard tankers carrying crude oil.
Kicey said he learned a lot about the political and inner workings of the union during the course and believes the changes that have been made to the trainee and upgrading programs will help supply the most qualified mariners that are needed aboard the ships of today and tomorrow.
Sailing from the port of New Orleans for the past 10 years—first as an OS and AB and then as a bosun—Foster thanked the union leadership for the opportunity to complete the bosun recertification program. He stated that there’s a lot of misinformation being spread aboard ship about the maritime industry, and he was happy to be able to communicate directly with the union officials and learn the truth about how the organization is run.
Foster spoke to the trainees about the importance of upgrading and contributing to SPAD. He advised them to “stay on course” by listening to their supervisors when they go aboard ship and to learn all they can.
Corbett came to the SIU as a result of the merger with the NMU. He sailed first as an OS and AB and, for the past 18 years, as a bosun. During those years, he has worked on just about every type of ship and has been fortunate to see most of the world.
“Shipping has been great to me,” he told those present at the meeting. “I have friendships with wonderful people, financial security, enjoyable and ample time off, so many things you may not be able to obtain in the normal eight-to-five grind.”
Corbett, who has upgraded his skills at the school a number of times, noted that he has learned some very valuable tools this time around that he can take with him for the rest of his life—not only on ships, but in everyday activities.
Two of the most important things the recertified bosun said he learned were (1) how vital SPAD is to the survival of the U.S. Merchant Marine fleet, and (2) that there are no bigger advocates of the U.S. Merchant Marine than SIU President Mike Sacco and his team of officials.
He directed some comments to the unlicensed apprentices, urging them to keep an open mind when they board a ship. He told them that knowledge is power, and that if they seriously want to make the maritime industry their chosen career, they should work hard and never stop learning. “The only thing that can stop you from getting to the top is you!” When aboard a ship, he continued, “be where you are supposed to be, when you are supposed to be there, and doing what you are supposed to be doing.”
Corbett concluded by saying that now that the course is over, his real job has just begun—going out into the industry and passing on what he has learned. “That’s what it’s all about.”
It has been 15 years since Natividad came to the Paul Hall Center as a trainee. Now sailing from the port of San Francisco, the recertified bosun has returned to the school four times to enhance his maritime education.
“What I’ve seen from the time I started is the increased numbers of trainees coming through the ranks, from a class every few months to a class every month. Apparently, we’re doing something right,” he stated.
He thanked the union officials as well as the staff at the school for giving him the opportunity to complete the recertification course.
As an added piece of advice to the trainees, he told them never to be afraid to ask questions. “It helps us help you.”
Lamprecht also started his seafaring career as a trainee at Piney Point and has returned a number of times to upgrade his skills.
Now sailing from the port of New York, Lamprecht found the month-long course was able to provide him with a lot of information that can help him do a better job aboard ship, particularly with respect to answering questions about how contracts work and how the SIU is staying competitive in an ever-changing industry.
He noted that Seafarers have a first-class facility at their disposal as well as a first-rate rehabilitation facility—“which I am glad to say turned my life around.”
He told the trainees to “keep a good attitude and good things will happen.”
Carvalho has been going to sea some 31 years, the last 15 of which have been with the SIU. Having spent the first half of his seagoing career in non-union jobs, Carvalho said he was grateful “to stand before you today as a member of this great union.”
Sailing from the port of Tacoma, Carvalho has circumnavigated the globe six times and visited countries he had never heard of before.
“The SIU and this school have helped me to not only better focus on my seagoing career, but also given me financial security, lasting friendships and more life experiences than landsmen may have in many life spans,” he stated.
Turning his attention to the trainees, Carvalho said for them to think of themselves as ambassadors of the SIU and conduct themselves in a positive manner, be good shipmates, do their duties thoroughly and cheerfully and keep their skills up to date by returning to the school for upgrading classes.
Now sailing from the port of New York, Joyce joined the NMU in Boston in March 1990. He has sailed aboard all NMU-contracted ships and said he was extremely impressed with how the NMU members have been welcomed into the SIU.
Joyce spoke about his positive experiences at the school, visiting the headquarters building in Camp Springs and meeting face to face with many of the officials and department heads.
Proud to be an SIU member and a recertified bosun, Joyce told the unlicensed apprentices to be good to each other, always be ready to give somebody a helping hand, and take advantage of all the opportunities they have been given to better themselves.
Naze began sailing inland in 1984 from the port of Mobile, Ala. In 1988, he switched over to the deep sea division and has never looked back, working aboard ships that have taken him all around the world. Antarctica, he noted, was the most fascinating of the destinations to which he has sailed.
The recertification course proved to be extremely beneficial to Naze, who said he, as a ship’s chairman, is often asked questions he just wasn’t informed enough to answer. With this course under his belt, he now believes he can be more effective as a communicator aboard ship.
He told the trainees to study hard, listen and always ask questions, particularly when they board a ship for the first time.
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