MARITIME LABOR ORGANIZATIONS OF CALIFORNIA.

All branches of labor employed on American vessels in Pacific waters, both in the coastwise trade and in trade to Australia, China, South and Central America, and the Hawaiian and South Sea islands, are organized, either on the purely trade-union principle, as in the case of sailors, firemen, etc., or in the ostensibly beneficial and fraternal form, as in the case of masters, pilots, mates, etc. Exclusive of shipmasters, the total number of men employed on these vessels, as shown by the report of the Bureau of Navigation ("List of Merchant Vessels of the United States," 1903), is estimated at 16,720. The total membership of the organizations representing the respective classes to which these men belong, as covered by the present report, is 12,122. The remaining 4,000 men may be regarded as comprising deck officers of vessels, who, although organized, are not included in this estimate, and the crews of whalers and of inland-water craft plying exclusively in localities outside the boundaries of California. For all practical purposes, therefore, it may be assumed that the membership of the organizations herein reported upon comprises the total of crews engaged in the coastwise and offshore trade on the Pacific Ocean.

The total number of registered, enrolled, and licensed vessels documented in Pacific Coast ports is 2,575, having a gross tonnage of 775,859, of which 930 vessels of 417,120 gross tons, or considerably more than one half, are documented in California. Of the latter, 850 vessels, of 403,120 gross tons, are documented in San Francisco. ("Report of Commissioner of Navigation," 1903.) The figures of San Francisco tonnage do not include the vessels of the Pacific Mail Steamship Company, registered in New York, numbering 18 vessels of 117,533 gross tons.

In other terms, the shipping of San Francisco carries two thirds of the import and one half of the export trade of the Pacific Coast. ("Report of the U. S. Bureau of Statistics" for the year ending June 30, 1904.)

These figures illustrate the predominant position of California as compared with other Pacific Coast States, and of San Francisco as compared with other ports of California, in all matters affecting the shipping industry.

San Francisco, being the center of Pacific shipping, is also the center of organization among the various branches of labor employed in con

nection with that industry. These branches include sailors, firemen, cooks, stewards and waiters, bay and river men, fishermen, engineers and masters, mates and pilots.

Practically all the organizations representing these crafts maintain branches in the larger ports on the Coast; but the headquarters in each case is located in San Francisco. It may therefore be said that the report of the conditions of maritime labor in California embraces that question as it exists throughout the entire length of the Pacific Coast, subject, of course, to the few exceptions of purely inland-water trade in the adjoining States.

GENERAL REVIEW OF ORGANIZATIONS.

A general review of the special characteristics and objects of each organization will facilitate an understanding of the details hereafter presented.

ence.

The Sailors' Union of the Pacific was organized March 6, 1885. Originally this body was known as the "Coast Seamen's Union," and comprised only men employed on deck (that is, men before the mast) on sailing vessels and steam-schooners or other steam craft engaged exclusively, or practically so, in the lumber, coal, and freight trades. In 1886 the men employed in a similar capacity on passenger steamers formed a union, known as the "Steamship Sailors' Protection Union." For a number of years these organizations maintained a separate existIn 1891, owing to a growing realization of mutual interest on the part of both, an amalgamation was effected, under the present name. Since that time the Sailors' Union of the Pacific has represented all the men employed on deck in sea-going craft, the deckhands on bay, river, and other inland-water craft being organized separately. The general purposes of this organization are the same as those of all like bodies, namely, to regulate wages, hours, and working conditions, to establish benefit features, etc. Specifically, the efforts of the union have been directed toward the abolition of the crimping system, under which the seamen have been robbed of a large part of their earnings in the form of compulsory "shipping fees," as a condition of securing employment; to establish a system of direct negotiation between seamen and shipowner or shipmaster; to safeguard the interests of its members and of the craft at large in all matters of litigation, and to secure desirable changes in the maritime laws of the United States, in so far as seamen are affected thereby.

The present membership of the union is 4,222. The union maintains branches at Tacoma, Seattle, Port Townsend, and Aberdeen, Wash.; Portland, Or.; Eureka and San Pedro, Cal.; and Honolulu, H. I.

In 1887 the union established an official paper, the "Coast Seamen's

Journal," which has since been issued weekly at San Francisco, as the official publication of all the organizations represented in the International Seamen's Union of America.

The Pacific Coast Marine Firemen's Union was organized in 1883 and incorporated under State law in 1885. The membership of this body comprises the principal classes of labor employed in the firerooms of steam vessels (including tugboats and ferryboats), namely, firemen proper and coalpassers. In general purpose the scope of this body is the same as that of the ordinary trade-union; in particular, its objects are largely those noted in the case of the Sailors' Union. The present membership of the Firemen's Union is 1,200. A branch is maintained at Seattle, Wash.

The Marine Cooks and Stewards' Association of the Pacific was organized in 1901. In this body are represented all classes of labor employed in the "steward's department" (that is, in the cabin and galley) on vessels of all classes. The special objects of the association are the substitution of white for Chinese and Japanese labor of the respective classes, the abolition of the "tipping" system, and the restriction of the hours of labor within certain definite limits. The membership of the association is 1,300. Branches are maintained at Seattle and Aberdeen, Wash., and at San Pedro, Cal.

The Bay and River Steamboatmen's Union of California was organized in 1902. This body represents the deckhands and firemen employed on the steam craft plying on the inland waters of the State, chiefly on San Francisco Bay and the Sacramento and San Joaquin rivers. The principal object of this body consists in the regulation of night, holiday, and overtime work. The present membership is 800. A branch is maintained at Sacramento, Cal.

The Fishermen's Protective Union of the Pacific Coast and Alaska was organized in 1902. The scope of this body is designed to extend jurisdiction over all fishermen, in inland waters, on the Coast and in Alaska. As yet, however, the membership of the union consists chiefly of Alaska fishermen, although the organizing work now being carried on among the fishermen on inland waters, particularly on the Columbia River and Puget Sound, gives promise that in the near future the membership will be extended to include the greater part of the estimated total of 15,000 men now engaged in all branches of the fishing industry. As at present compared, the membership of this body is employed for but five or six months in each year, leaving San Francisco, Portland, and Seattle for the Alaskan fishing-grounds about March and returning about September, two months of that period being occupied on the voyage to and from the point of actual fishing operations. Specifically, the union seeks to regulate the amount of compensation, usually fixed

upon the basis of the catch. Efforts are also being directed along legislative lines, with the object of prohibiting the use of fish traps and other stationary fishing gear, thus preventing the waste and final extermination of the fish. The present membership of the union is 3,400.

A branch is maintained at Seattle, Wash.

The Marine Engineers' Beneficial Association, No. 35 (National Association of Marine Engineers) was organized in 1882, and incorporated under State law in the same year. This body is composed exclusively of licensed men, that is, of men licensed under Federal law, the latter requirement being obligatory upon all members of the calling. In respect to its purposes, the association was formed primarily, or at least to a great extent, for fraternal and social ends. In recent years, however, the tendency toward the industrial system and methods of organization has shown a marked development. Much attention has also been given to the laws and departmental regulations governing the issuance and revocation of licenses, with the view of conserving the right of the engineer to quit his employment while in port without being subject to the loss of his license. The present membership of the association is 1,200.

The masters, mates, and pilots are organized under the name of American Association of Masters, Mates, and Pilots of Steam Vessels. Two "harbors" representing these branches are located at San Francisco. California Harbor, No. 15, represents the masters, mates, and pilots employed on sea-going steam craft, while Golden Gate Harbor, No. 40, represents the men of similar capacity employed on bay and river steamers in the vicinity of San Francisco. These organizations disclaim any identity with the other bodies of maritime workers or with organized labor in general. The wages of masters vary from $125 to $250 per month, according to the class of vessel. The monthly wage rate of mates is more uniform, averaging as follows: First mate, $90; second mate, $75; third mate, $50 to $55. Organization among ships' officers employed on sailing vessels is still in its incipiency. Monthly wages of these classes average as follows: Master, $100; first mate, $60; second mate, $50.

The following tables show the particulars of the organizations herein named:

TABLE No. 1.

Showing Rates of Wages, Period of Employment, Hours of Labor, etc., of Members of Maritime Labor Organizations in California.

Sailors' Union of the
Pacific.

Bay and River Steamboatmen's Union of California.

Fisherman's Protective
Union of the Pacific<
Coast and Alaska.

Marine Engineers'
Beneficial Association
No. 35 (National Ass'n'
of Marine Engineers).