Sacked

for the love of his union & the love of his life

Captain Cook skipper and MUA delegate David Swales spent all year planning his holiday in Poland with his girlfriend Ilona Malinowska. They would spend Christmas with her mum and dad.

A sort time before they were to fly out the company said no go.

David went anyway. He'd promised Ilona and her family. He'd paid his fare. He'd put in his leave form months back. He was burnt out from five years working day and night on Sydney Harbour without more than a week's break. He'd spent all his leave till now on training to get his skipper's ticket -- at his own cost.

The company owed him a holiday big time.

In an impassioned letter to his boss David pleaded his case:

"I am seriously physically, mentally and emotionally exhausted. I am run down and worn out," he wrote. "I am human like everybody else and would appreciate being treated like one."

On his return David found he was sacked.

The heartless action of the multi-million dollar Captain Cook Cruises aroused public outrage.

"Sacked for falling in love: Romantic cruise line faces mutiny of the heart," said the Sydney Daily Telegraph.

TV and radio coverage followed as the union rallied to his cause, with Sydney Branch officials Warren Smith and Paul Garrett hitting the phone and putting his case across the airwaves.

Talkback radio ran hot all morning, the Sydney monthly stopwork meeting swelled to a record turnout as members from as far away as Port Botany wharves turned up to rally in support of David.

Family and friends joined Sydney Ferries workers, linesmen, tug workers, wharfies and seafarers outside the Circular Quay wharves shouting "MUA says reinstate David" and waving placards saying"Heartless Captain Cook."

Flags waving, supporters then jumped aboard a Sydney Ferry and marched on the company's main office in Darling Harbour.

"It was so encouraging having everyone rally on the day," said David. "We might not work together but we work in the same industry. All my mates were coming up and saying 'Good on ya, stick it up them!' The vessel I spent five years on blew its horn when it saw us go past."

The dispute went to the Commission for conciliation on January 27. Captain Cook management, shamed by the union, media and public outcry, soon after agreed to settle.

With the union by his side David had the choice of another job with Captain Cook in North Queensland or a redundancy payout, including full written recognition of his service.

David chose to take the money and go.

The company advised David of a redundancy.

In February Ilona flew back from Poland and the couple were reunited. David has a couple of new jobs on offer -- all thanks to the union.

But the Captain Cook affair does not end there.

The unfair dismissal was not the first time the union or the workers have had an issue with Captain Cook Cruises. Nor will it be the last.

It wasn't just because of David's commitment to his girlfriend that he'd got the sack. It was no coincidence that David Swales was an MUA delegate on Sydney Harbour, working for a company that is vehemently anti union.

In his letter to management on November 21 David not only outlined how the job had exhausted him, but claimed company bullying due to his role as union delegate.

On the overnighters David worked a 53 hour weekend with only five hours between shifts to sleep in dirty, dusty cabins which caused massive allergic reactions and required four years immunotherapy injections.

When David and other crew members got organised the company harassed and victimised them for being members of the union.

The company, which boasts annual revenue of up to $100 million and employs around 500 people on cruise vessels in Fiji, the Great Barrier Reef and the Murray River is still locked in a dispute with the union in Sydney Harbour.

Captain Cook mainly employs overseas students and backpackers. Like David's girlfriend Ilona. They put up with poor pay and conditions for a few weeks or months and then move one. Around eight in 10 workers are casual.

"In catering, casuals are all very vulnerable," said Bernie Farelly, who is employed by the joint MUA/Miners Unite. "They are frightened to come forward and talk to the union. It's not worth it for them. None of them stick around."

Working hours are long and arduous. Bullying is rife.

"We've had women in tears for being called fat or for being told they couldn't have their day off to look after young children," said MUA Assistant Branch Secretary Paul Garrett. "Crew were refused counselling after fishing a dead body out of the Harbour; the boss has been attempting to force members into signing individual contracts; young men and women are regularly forced to extend their shift to 1am then given no assistance to get home in the middle of the night to places as far afield as Cabramatta and Meadowbank and the boss refused to address safety issues such as asbestos on board until the union called in the relevant authorities (WorkCover)."

Captain Cook Cruises is the only major company on Sydney Harbour without a collective agreement.

This is why last year when the union launched a campaign with the joint MUA /Miners organising centre to clean up the Sydney charter boat industr, it was targetted.

Now most of the marine section has joined up.

But the company has fought the union every inch of the way.

Stage one of the Unite campaign was to set up a safety committee. Captain Cook tried to interfere and run the election. But the workers organised and elected their own delegates. It wasn't easy. The union had to take the dispute to the Commission again and again.

"When we first raised the issue of asbestos the company response was if you don't like working here, you can go," said Bernie.

The next battle was getting the workers onto a collective agreement. The company tried to force each of its employees onto individual contracts (AWAs), victimising those who refused by cutting back on their hours.

All casuals who became delegates also had their work cut back to as little as eight or nine hours a week. Once the company knew Ilona was romantically involved with David, her hours were slashed too. She left the company in October last year.

In December, MUA delegates returned 25 AWAs unsigned on behalf of their workmates. Other members stuck tight and simply refused to sign. Only a handful gave way.

Finally Captain Cook agreed to negotiate a collective agreement, but only on condition the union wasn't involved.

Then they sacked MUA delegate David Swales.

"David was a rallying point," said Assistant Branch Secretary Warren Smith. "He has written an open letter to all his old workmates to ensure they know what the union did for him and that they keep up their fighting spirit. Now we're getting together with the other maritime unions and putting the pressure back on the company to get them back to the negotiating table."

"Even two months down the track people are ringing the union rooms to talk about what's going down on the Harbour," said Paul Garrett. "If you start a conversation up in the local pub everyone knows about it. People are sympathetic. We really did get the message out there. We got people talking."

"The support shown by MUA members across our industry in Sydney showed the Captain Cook workers that they will joining a family that sticks together whether we are wharfies, seafarers, tug hand or charter crew," said Assistant National Secretary Mick Doleman. And in this case a sacking over love really got the family going."

Unite is a joint initiative of the MUA and the CFMEU (Mining and Energy) arising out of the 2004 National Delegates' Conference. It aims to help grow the union by organising exploited workers in non union areas, such as the charter boat industry, diving and pearling. A separate alliance with the Australian Workers' Union is targetting non-union areas in the offshore industry.

Rallying to the Cause

MITCH SPOONER, Ausport Marine, was on his way into the stopwork meeting when he read about the dispute in the newspaper:

"We've all got to stick together. We've got to support each other."

PAUL KEATING, Port Botany wharfie came into town especially:

"We're here to fight for all workers at Captain Cook. We're not going to tolerate unjust behaviour. This is just the start. There's more to come. We'll turn it up till we get justice."

VERITY & VALDA ASHOVER, are family friends:

"We live across the road. We're upset over what happened. We were really shocked. It's totally unfair. Dave's a really good worker. t's really bad management. They're losing a lot of skills."

BILL JACKSON, delegate, Dampier Spirit, Teekay shipping, NW Shelf was on leave when he got word of Dave's sacking:

"The MUA crew support our sacked comrade. It's discrimination. It's so typical of management."

SHANE KELK, chief steward, has paid off the pipe layer Lorelay:

"I came straight down as soon as I heard an MUA member had been sacked."

CRAIG LOCK, Sydney Ferries:

"We must stand up for our rights. Otherwise we'll all be sacked."