As a wave of pro-union momentum continues to sweep across New York, the city’s waterways have become the latest battleground over outsourced public transit.
Despite an aggressive, corporate anti-union campaign by operator Hornblower, NYC Ferry captains have voted to join the Transport Workers Union of America. This is a victory for the Big Apple waterways and the family of labor. As the second successful maritime workforce expansion in two months, this organizing drive positions TWU to unionize hundreds of deckhands and supervisors.
The consecutive victories also signal a clear strategy for TWU. The union founded by NYC subway workers in 1934 is uniting the workforce behind all the ways New Yorkers gets around the city – by land, air, bike, horse & carriage, and now sea.
“Organizing every job title and craft at every employer is the pathway to worker empowerment” said TWU President John Samuelsen. “This is the TWU’s goal throughout the NYC Ferry system.”
