Union Accuses Tugboat Firm of Unfair Actions

Labor tensions flared in the county’s busy ports Wednesday as union representatives for the majority of tugboat crews charged that one of the largest providers of tug service in the harbor is trying to eliminate their bargaining power amid negotiations.

The Inlandboatmen’s Union of the Pacific, which represents about 250 tugboat personnel in the ports of Long Beach and Los Angeles, has filed an unfair labor practices complaint with federal authorities against Gulf Caribe Maritime Inc., a buoy tending service based in Redondo Beach.

The action sets the stage for what could become an expensive new round of labor unrest in a harbor that has increasingly become one of the nation’s economic powerhouses. Commerce in the port heavily depends on tugs helping cargo ships reach their berths.

Documents filed with the National Labor Relations Board allege that Gulf Caribe is trying to coerce about 10 deckhands and boat operators into joining the Seafarers International Union, headquartered in Maryland.

Under federal labor law, employees have a right to hold union elections to determine whether they want a union and, if so, which union they will join.

Officials for Inlandboatmen said the development is significant because Gulf Caribe is owned by Foss Maritime Co. of Seattle, which operates 11 tugs in Long Beach and Los Angeles. The boatmen’s union is now in the middle of contract talks for crews on most of the company’s local vessels.

Jerry Millican, a regional director for Inlandboatmen, contends that if action has to be taken against Foss, including a strike, the company might use members of Seafarers International to crew its tugs under that union’s Gulf Caribe agreement.

“This really concerns us,” Millican said. “If we try to shut ‘em down, they could come in with a company and SIU crews to do the work.”

Gulf Caribe representatives declined to comment Wednesday.

A Foss spokesman said the company wants to maintain what he called a tradition of cooperation with its employees.

“Unions in general have used whatever pressure they can to get things their way,” said Mark Cohen, manager of the company’s Pacific Southwest Operations unit in Long Beach. “Our intent is to minimize any impact on our employees.”

A key issue under discussion is a proposal to have crews live aboard Foss tugs for up to five days at a time, instead of going home after each shift. The measure would reduce crew size and labor costs for the company.

Union officials said they strongly oppose the idea because of potential safety and fatigue problems, as well as the disruption of crew members’ family life. They contend that six people--not four, as Foss would like--are necessary to operate a tug for 24 hours.

The live-aboard idea is also opposed by the Marine Engineers Beneficial Assn., which is part of the current round of contract talks with Foss. Locally, the association represents about 40 to 50 marine engineers who work on harbor tugs.

“This is a big issue,” said Duncan Ballenger, a branch agent for the association. “I believe that if crews have to work long hours, it could lead to a dangerous situation.”

Foss contends that Crowley Marine Services, based in Long Beach, has had a live-aboard requirement, giving it a competitive advantage, for several years. In addition, Foss has a similar policy for tug crews in the Pacific Northwest.

“We want to reach an agreement with the [unions],” Cohen said. “They have been doing work on our tugs for many years. We expect to conclude with a contract that will be favorable to all parties over the long term.”

No agreement has been reached on the live-aboard issue, although contract talks have been under way since October. The next round of discussions is set for March 31.

In the complaint, Millican asked the National Labor Relations Board to determine whether Gulf Caribe is coercing employees into joining Seafarers International and to order a union election to determine which organization should represent the company’s workers.

Seafarers International is a federation of 20 unions that represents about 85,000 merchant sailors, industrial workers and government employees worldwide.

The boatmen’s union, which has about 4,000 members on the West Coast, alleges that officials for Seafarers International approached Gulf Caribe’s employees one by one two weeks ago. Millican alleges that employees were told by Gulf Caribe that they would have to join Seafarers International whether they liked it or not.

If an election is held, Millican said, the boatmen’s union would compete to represent Gulf Caribe’s deckhands and boat operators in Southern California.