MARINE ENGINEERS' BENEFICIAL ASSOCIATION (AFL-CIO)
         "On Watch in Peace and War Since 1875"

MEBA TELEX TIMES               DECEMBER 08, 2006

The Official Union Newsletter

NUMBER 49

In this issue...
Latest MSC newbuild launched...Buy a Memorial brick!...Rally for Employee Free Choice Act... Breaking the chains, we bust out an uncaged edition and unleash our primal urge for maritime news at liberty. Uninhibited, our spirited, intractable newsletter knows no boundaries and can never be tamed! Footloose and fancy free, the Telex Times was born to be wild!

NASSCO LAUNCHES M.E.B.A.-CREWED USNS ALAN SHEPARD
San Diego's NASSCO shipyard has launched the U.S. Navy's newest resupply ship USNS ALAN SHEPARD (T-AKE 3) which will be part of the Military Sealift Command fleet. The ship, which is crewed with M.E.B.A. engineers, is the Navy's first ship to be named after an astronaut.

John H. Sununu, a three-term governor of New Hampshire and former White House Chief of Staff, was the principal speaker for the ceremony. Mrs. Laura Shepard Churchley, the eldest daughter of Alan Shepard and the ship's sponsor, christened the ship by breaking the traditional bottle of champagne against it. Two former Apollo astronauts - William Anders and Eugene Cernan - were also in attendance.

USNS ALAN SHEPARD is the third ship of an expected class of 11 dry cargo-ammunition ships for the Navy. NASSCO has contracts to build eight T-AKE ships. The first ship of the class, USNS LEWIS AND CLARK, was delivered to the Navy on June 20. The T-AKE class incorporates international marine technologies and commercial ship-design features, including an integrated electric-drive propulsion system, to minimize operating costs over its projected 40-year service life.

Construction of USNS ALAN SHEPARD began in September of 2005. The ship is scheduled to be delivered to the MSC in the summer of 2007. When it joins the fleet, the ship's primary mission will be to deliver food, ammunition, fuel and other provisions to combat ships at sea. The ship has modular cargo holding and handling systems onboard and can carry more than 6,600 tons of dry cargo and nearly 23,500 barrels of fuel.

HELP HONOR FALLEN MARINERS WITH A MEMORIAL BRICK
The M.E.B.A. Merchant Marine Memorial Foundation will be placing the next order for memorial bricks on February 16, 2007. Anyone interested must complete and return a donation form and monies prior to this date. Please place your order now - donations are greatly needed for the maintenance of the park!!

For more information and to obtain the form please visit the School's website: www.mebaschool.org and click on. "What's New" or contact Jessica Milligan at (410) 822-9600 ext. 306 - email: memorial@mebaschool.org.

THOUSANDS RALLY FOR EMPLOYEE FREE CHOICE ACT
The AFL-CIO held a major Organizing Summit this week to spotlight unions' key roles in reversing the situation for working Americans. The Federation's President John Sweeney gave the keynote address. The summit brought together union organizers, leaders and members from the U.S. and around the world. Participants discussed ways to strategically organize outside of what they perceive to be a broken National Labor Relations Board process.

Sweeney's speech was followed by a rally on Capitol Hill to support the Employee Free Choice Act - legislation that would reform the nation's basic labor laws by requiring employers to recognize a union after a majority of workers sign cards authorizing union representation. It also would provide mediation and arbitration for first-contract disputes and establish stronger penalties for violation of the rights of workers seeking to form unions or negotiate first contracts.

Thousands of union activists, leaders, and allies joined Sweeney, Sens. Edward Kennedy and George Miller at the rally. The new Congress is expected to take up the legislation and seem poised to pass it with the Democratic majority. However, Congressional passage would likely not be veto-proof and such legislation appears unlikely to gain the President's signature.

DEADLINES FOR FILING 2006 YEAR-END VACATION AND PORT RELIEF CLAIMS
Wednesday, December 27, 2006, is the last day that vacation and port relief checks, dated in 2006, can be issued in the outports. 12:00 noon, Thursday, December 28, 2006 is the last day checks will be issued from the Plan Office in Baltimore.

Any member who requires that his/her check be dated in 2006 must file before these deadlines. Remember, December 25, 2006 and January 1, 2007 are holidays and the outports and the Plan Office will be closed. Please check with the individual outport offices for their holiday schedule.

If you have questions, call your local outport office or the Plan Office in Baltimore.

NACE COURSE AT SCHOOL CONCLUDES
The Calhoon M.E.B.A. Engineering School no longer offers the National Association of Corrosion Engineers (NACE) correspondence course. If you are presently involved in this program, you must successfully complete the course by March 2007 in order to receive reimbursement from the M.E.B.A. Training Plan.

McKAY REMAINS ATOP AMO - FOR NOW
Michael McKay will continue to serve as President of the American Maritime Officers should he skirt federal racketeering charges against him. McKay staved off five other candidates for President in the union election, and with a razor-thin 20 vote margin, retains his job pending possible challenges to the results - or conviction on the federal charges. 91 votes were ruled ineligible for various reasons. Members have up to 20 days to file protests or challenges.

AMO's Secretary-Treasurer Robert "Bobby" McKay, who is the defendant's brother and also faces federal charges, suffered an election defeat to AMO tanker captain Jose Leonard by 33 votes. Leonard was part of a slate called the AMO Membership Committee for a Fair Election (AMC), an upstart group of members dedicated to restoring democracy to the AMO.

National Executive V.P. Thomas Bethel, National V.P. Ed Kelly, Great Lakes V.P. Dan Smith, and Deep Sea V.P. Joseph Gremelsbacker, each part of the McKay slate, were all re-elected.

According to the AMO Constitution (as of last week), the Secretary-Treasurer would take over the union if the President were unable to serve. McKay would be forced to step down should he be convicted in the ongoing trial which is in its third week.

However, after finding out the results of the election, the AMO Executive Board members pushed through a constitutional amendment that prevents Leonard from taking over in the event of McKay's conviction - and allowing them to choose a new union boss amongst themselves. The amendment was approved by voice vote at AMO Headquarters and, as announced by AMO Headquarters "unanimously adopted by the American Maritime Officers membership at the regular monthly membership meetings in Dania Beach, Fla., Toledo, Ohio, and Brooklyn, N.Y."

While congratulating the new National Secretary-Treasurer-elect, the AMO Executive Board justified the amendment to alter successorship provisions because of Leonard's "total lack of experience as a union official and our belief that the leadership of this Union must fulfill its fiduciary responsibilities by having experienced leadership available to succeed the current National President..."

MARAD SELLS LEXINGTON FOR SCRAP
The Maritime Administration announced that it has sold the obsolete vessel LEXINGTON to Southern Scrap Material Corporation of New Orleans, La. The tanker was built in 1958 and is currently located in the Beaumont Reserve Fleet in Texas. Steel and other materials from the ship will be recycled. Southern Scrap Material purchased two other vessels from the Maritime Administration in May - the ALLISON LYKES and the MALLORY LYKES. "This is a good bargain for the American taxpayer and helps create jobs in New Orleans," said Maritime Administrator Sean Connaughton.

NMC HANDLES WWII VETERAN QUALIFICATION PROCESS
M.E.B.A. sailing WWII sailing veterans or their relatives call Headquarters from time to time to learn about qualifying mariners for veterans' status. The qualifications process is the jurisdiction of the Coast Guard's National Maritime Center (NMC) The National Maritime Center

M.E.B.A. and American Maritime Congress efforts through the years have helped secure certain veterans' benefits for our mariners who sailed in support of our country. In 1988 it was announced that merchant mariners in oceangoing service during armed conflict from Dec. 7, 1941 to Aug. 15, 1945 "shall be considered "active duty" under the provisions of Public Law 95-202 for the purposes of laws administered by the Veterans Administration." Although technically not part of the United States Merchant Marine, Civil Service vessels in ocean going service or foreign waters are also included as part of this approved group.

In 1998, Pres. Clinton signed Public Law 105-368. A provision of this law states that service during the period, August 16, 1945, to December 31, 1946, shall be considered active duty for the purpose of eligibility for certain limited veterans benefits. This law also requires that the Coast Guard collect a $30 processing fee for each application.

To qualify and become eligible for veterans benefits, a member must not only have served within either of the two qualifying periods mentioned above, but also meet the following eligibility criteria:

1. Was a member of the United States merchant marine (including the Army Transport Service and the Naval Transport Service) serving as a crewmember of a vessel that was.

(a) operated by the War Shipping Administration or the Office of Defense Transportation (or an agent of the Administration or Office);  (b) operated in waters other than inland waters, the great Lakes, and other lakes, bays, and harbors of the United States;  (c) under contract or charter to, or property of, the Government of the United States; and  (d) serving the Armed Forces.

2. While so serving, was licensed or otherwise documented for service as a crewmember of such a vessel by an officer or employee of the United States authorized to license or document the person for such service.

Before you can receive veterans benefits, you must first submit a DD Form 2168. This form is available from Veterans Administration Offices and other Merchant Marine veterans organizations. You can also download a copy (using Adobe acrobat) from www.uscg.mil/hq/g-m/nmc/dd2168.pdf. Find out more by contacting NMC at (202) 493-1031 or (202) 493-1023.

NEXT REGULAR MONTHLY MEETINGS
Monday January 8 - Boston, Seattle;
Tuesday, January 9 - Baltimore, Houston, Jacksonville, San Francisco;
Wednesday, January 10 - Calhoon M.E.B.A. School, Charleston, New Orleans, Portland;
Thursday, January 11 - Los Angeles, New York, Norfolk, Tampa;
Friday, January 12 - Honolulu.
 

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