The U.S. Coast Guard on October 18 announced publication of changes to five Navigation and Vessel Inspection Circulars (NVICs). The agency last month publicized modifications to three of the documents (04-14, 08-14 and 09-14) (see related post HERE). The October 18 communication appears below and includes links to all five…
Oct 18
Oct 17
The SIU is mourning the death of U.S. Rep. Elijah Cummings (D-Maryland), a longtime backer of workers’ rights and an unwavering supporter of the U.S. Merchant Marine. Cummings, who spoke at the 2007 convention of the Seafarers International Union of North America, passed away Oct. 17 at age 68. His…
Oct 17
The U.S. Department of Defense has issued the following news item, which is available on DOD website HERE The vessel will be crewed by SIU CIVMARS. Navy to Christen Expeditionary Sea Base USNS Miguel Keith (ESB 5) The Navy will christen the Expeditionary Sea Base USNS Miguel Keith (ESB 5)…
Oct 17
The AFL-CIO's Maritime Trades Department, to which the SIU is affiliated, has posted the following news item. To access the story on the MTD website, click HERE. Peter Demchuk is at the helm of the Baltimore Port Maritime…
Oct 11
With more than 48,000 UAW members on strike at General Motors (GM) fighting for fair wages, affordable health care, dignity, respect and the security they deserve, the AFL-CIO has launched a digital ad campaign blanketing 10 markets covering 15 cities. The ads will run on Facebook, Twitter,…
Oct 10
TRANSCOM Conducts Large-Scale Sealift Readiness Exercise When the United States Transportation Command (TRANSCOM) called with an unprecedented assignment, the SIU answered in a big way. TRANSCOM in mid-September launched the largest-ever sealift readiness exercise as part of its “Turbo Activation” series, ordering dozens of ships to sea. [caption id="attachment_20591" align="alignright"…
Oct 09
U.S. Secretary of Transportation Elaine L. Chao recently reiterated the department’s strong support of American maritime. Speaking Oct. 8 at the National Defense Transportation Association’s fall meeting in St. Louis, Secretary Chao noted the importance of the Jones Act, the U.S. Maritime Security Program, the Ready Reserve Force (RRF) and…
Oct 07
SIU mariners aboard the Maersk Montana recently sprang into action to save a boater whose vessel was sinking. While the Montana was en route to Antwerp, the ship diverted to answer a distress call. The…
Oct 07
Philly Shipyard, a union facility, recently issued the following news item. To access the story on the shipyard's website, click HERE Philly Shipyard Awarded Pollux Dry Docking Contract Philly Shipyard, Inc., the sole operating subsidiary of Philly Shipyard ASA (Oslo: PHLY), has been awarded a dry docking contract for the…
Sep 24
The SIU and its affiliated Paul Hall Center for Maritime Training and Education applaud several recent changes announced by the U.S. Coast Guard’s Office of Merchant Mariner Credentialing. Specifically, the agency on Sept. 23 publicized changes to three Navigation and Vessel Inspection Circulars (NVICs) pertaining to qualification for certain STCW…