Maritime Union commemorates Merchant Navy Day 2024

The Uni­on rep­res­ent­ing New Zea­l­and sea­farers is com­mem­or­at­ing Mer­chant Navy Day, held inter­na­tion­ally each year on 3 Septem­ber.

Mari­time Uni­on of New Zea­l­and Nation­al Sec­ret­ary Carl Find­lay says Mer­chant Navy Day holds pro­found sig­ni­fic­ance for the Mari­time Uni­on “as we remem­ber our sea­far­ing mem­bers past and present.”

“In the great con­flicts of the 20^th Cen­tury, sea­farers showed cour­age and resi­li­ence. Their work ensured the safe pas­sage of essen­tial sup­plies, troops, and equip­ment.”

Mr Find­lay says glob­al con­flict con­tin­ues to impact on the safety and well­being of sea­farers in inter­na­tion­al waters.

He says as we reflect on the past, we must con­sider the chal­lenges faced by mod­ern-day sea­farers. 

“As an island nation, Aotearoa New Zea­l­and relies heav­ily on sea­farers, and the vast major­ity of New Zealand’s goods con­tin­ues to be car­ried by sea.”

Mr Find­lay says the mari­time industry has evolved, but the life of a sea­farer remains demand­ing and fraught with dif­fi­culties. 

Long peri­ods away from home, isol­a­tion, and the phys­ic­al and men­tal toll of the job are just a few of the issues sea­farers con­tend with. 

The COVID-19 pan­dem­ic had a major impact, with many inter­na­tion­al sea­farers stran­ded at sea for exten­ded peri­ods, unable to return to their fam­il­ies. 

Mr Find­lay says the Mari­time Uni­on of New Zea­l­and is com­mit­ted to advoc­at­ing for sea­farers’ rights, ensur­ing fair work­ing con­di­tions, and provid­ing the sup­port they need. 

The Mari­time Uni­on of New Zea­l­and is affil­i­ated to the Inter­na­tion­al Trans­port Work­ers’ Fed­er­a­tion, which rep­res­ents over 1 mil­lion sea­farers in over 200 sea­farers’ uni­ons across 106 coun­tries.

MUNZ is also work­ing for the future of New Zea­l­and coastal ship­ping.

Mr Find­lay says New Zea­l­and faces a crisis in our sea­far­ing work­force due to a shrink­ing num­ber of New Zea­l­and flagged and crewed ves­sels, an age­ing work­force and lack of train­ing oppor­tun­it­ies.

“Today, as we pay trib­ute to our sea­farers of the past and present, let us also advoc­ate for a new gen­er­a­tion of New Zea­l­and sea­farers.”

He says we must con­tin­ue to work for a mari­time industry that val­ues and respects its work­force. 

“This means invest­ing in train­ing, ensur­ing safe work­ing con­di­tions, and rebuild­ing our New Zea­l­and mer­chant fleet.”

Mr Find­lay says the task today is to con­tin­ue to rep­res­ent New Zea­l­and sea­farers and cam­paign for a strong New Zea­l­and mer­chant fleet, and to play our role in defend­ing the rights of all sea­farers who work in our waters.

The Mer­chant Navy in his­tory: back­ground

Dur­ing the Second World War, thou­sands of New Zea­l­and sea­farers volun­teered to serve in the Mer­chant Navy.

They sailed ship­ments of fuel, food and oth­er essen­tial sup­plies across the world, and delivered troops and mil­it­ary equip­ment where they were needed.

The work was import­ant and extremely dan­ger­ous. 4,700 Allied mer­chant ships were sunk dur­ing the con­flict, and 30,000 Allied mer­chant sea­men lost their lives.

This included New Zea­l­and ships like the Turak­ina and the Lim­er­ick, and at least 140 Kiwi mer­chant sea­farers were killed with a sim­il­ar num­ber taken pris­on­er.

The Mer­chant Navy faced great­er danger than any oth­er group of New Zea­l­and civil­ians. Their sac­ri­fice and hero­ism will be remembered.

Mari­time Uni­on in his­tory

The Mari­time Uni­on and its pre­de­cessors have the longest his­tory of any uni­on in New Zea­l­and.

MUNZ was formed when the Water­front Work­ers’ Uni­on and New Zea­l­and Sea­farers’ Uni­on joined togeth­er in 2002.

The first Seamen’s Uni­on was formed in 1879 and it was a trans-Tas­man Uni­on with mem­bers in Aus­tralia and New Zea­l­and.