Word: dockmen
(lookup in dictionary)
(lookup stats)
Dates: all
Sort By: most recent first
(reverse)
...world can match Brazil's as places where dock hands earn more and more for doing less and less. No matter how small the cargo handled, union rules in most Brazilian ports require a crew of at least 13 stevedores. For crates weighing more than a ton, dockmen get an extra 30% of their base pay; for deteriorated cargo, 50%; for cold-storage cargo, an extra 100%. They draw 30% extra when it rains, even if the rain stops before they start working. Dusty cargo is worth a 25% bonus; smelly cargo, 35%. And when a ship is loading...
...they received a yearly Christmas dividend equivalent to one-twelfth of their total earnings during the year. Then the federal government decreed that all Brazilian workers should receive a similar Christmas gift. The dockers reasoned that this entitled them to another bonus; the port concessionaire at Santos said no. Dockmen also demanded a 30-day paid vacation each year, full pay for days they are on strike, and a 20% "shame" bonus for hefting such cargoes as toilet bowls and sanitary napkins. After three days' idleness, they settled for a 20% pay boost, as well as regular...
...Interviewed as he was being hauled out of his craft by three burly dockmen, Rheault gasped, 'Nothing to it. Knew I could never make the top of the ladder--precarious position anyway. Always somebody fighting for the top. Nobody fighting for the bottom. That's where I wanted...
...though drowning inwardly of dropsy and so weak that he could scarcely move a finger. There was nothing for it but to strap him in an armchair and hoist him over the side like any common lading. As the winch turned and the invalid rose lurching, the sailors and dockmen burst into jeering laughter at the pitiful figure...
Under Government pressure, union leaders got most of London's dockmen back to work after four days of shipping jams that threatened serious food shortages. The Glasgow strikers accepted a Government settlement. The Tower Bridge also was opened to traffic again: the Government moved in Royal Navy crews to operate it, and workmen redecorating the Guildhall for a "Welcome Home" dinner for the Royal Family walked out in protest. In Durham, 20 striking enginemen shut down 15 collieries which employ 20,000 miners...