AMO Currents - A professional honor to represent AMO membership

AMO Currents - Posted: July 11, 2008

A professional honor to represent AMO membership

By Dan Smith

I had planned to end my official service to American Maritime Officers voluntarily and under significantly different circumstances at the appropriate point, but the voting majority of deep-sea, Great Lakes and inland waters members set the date for me. I was, of course, disappointed by my defeat in the race for national executive vice president in this year’s limited AMO election, but I was also grateful for having had the chance to serve our union in so many ways at so many administrative levels for so long a time.

With nearly 40 years in AMO behind me — as a deck instructor in Toledo, representative, executive board member, Great Lakes vice president and executive vice president — I can say confidently that I did my work to the best of my ability, and I did it honestly.

Having worked with and learned from the late Mel Pelfrey, I can say comfortably that I met Mel’s standard and kept faith with his dedication to making life better for the engineers, mates and stewards who sail the Great Lakes with our great union.

As a longtime trustee of the AMO Medical, Pension, Vacation, Safety and Education and 401(k) Plans, I can say with certainty that I helped secure and enhance benefits for all AMO members and their families.

I am proud of my record, and I am proud of American Maritime Officers.

I lost an election June 24, but I did not lose the strong personal friendships I had developed among the Great Lakes engineers, mates and stewards I was privileged to represent.

Nor did I lose my commitment to AMO as the nation’s largest, strongest and most stable union of merchant marine officers. There is unfinished business to tend to — specifically, the forthcoming trial resulting from our union’s “tortious interference” lawsuit against the Marine Engineers’ Beneficial Association.

As we all know, MEBA signed a covert, collusive and concessionary contract with Interlake Steamship Co. days before a valid collective bargaining agreement between AMO and Interlake expired in July 2003. The 10-year Interlake-MEBA contract — and the coercion of Interlake vessel officers that followed it — cost our union the engineer and mate jobs on seven self-unloading Great Lakes bulk carriers, left the Interlake captains and stewards with no union representation at all, and triggered other jurisdictional disputes between AMO and MEBA on the lakes. A further consequence of the Interlake-MEBA contract was the loss of employer contributions to the AMO benefit funds since August 2003.

I intend to see the Interlake-MEBA contract issue through. The public record — including transcripts of the arbitration we pursued successfully against Interlake and the depositions drawn in connection with the civil lawsuit — supports our strong case, which is set for trial in Toledo next month.

Once the Interlake-MEBA issue is settled, I will stand by to assist Tom Bethel and his administration in any way I can. Like Mel Pelfrey, Tom has incredible instinct for his job, and he applies it to our union’s lasting collective advantage. Tom has a productive policy agenda focused on continued growth, sustained job and benefit security for all AMO members and their families, and additional unprecedented opportunities for AMO members in an ever-changing industry worldwide. Tom Bethel represents not just a new day for AMO, but a new era, and he has earned union-wide support.

After the ballots were counted in Dania Beach June 24, I counted my blessings — a wonderful wife and family who believe in me and support me without question, an extended family of honorable, hard-working AMO officials, representatives and employees, many friends in the fleet, and a long career representing the men and women of American Maritime Officers. I could not ask for anything more.