STEWARD MUST LEAVE.

The Sydney Morning Herald, Monday 13 November, 1911.

STEWARD MUST LEAVE.

STEAMER HELD UP.

DICTATION BY FIREMEN.

FREMANTLE, Sunday.

Trouble has broken out on board the steamer

Koombana, belonging to the Adelaide Steamship 

Company, Limited, which is a subsidised mail boat 

for the north-west ports. Practically all the seamen 

and firemen, in number over 30, announced their 

decision not to resume work on board the Koombana 

until the chief steward, Mr. F. W. Johnson, left it. The

mail say they have nothing but good feeling towards 

Captain Allen and the other officers, but they are 

unanimous in their determination that Johnson must 

leave the ship.

On Friday night a meeting of the Seamen's

Union was held in the Trades Hall, Fremantle.

About 60 members of the union were present,

including representatives from the crews of

the Suva, Kyarra, and Kurnalpi, besides the

crew of the Koombana. After discussion, it

was resolved by a very large majority that

the crew of the Koombana should not resume

work until the chief steward was removed from 

the steamer. The decision of the meeting was

intimated to Captain Allen and Mr. A. E. Lewis, 

acting manager of the Adelaide Steamship 

Company's local office, but as Mr. W. E. Moxon, 

the manager, is at present in the east, no definite 

arrangement could be arrived at between the parties.

This action would have been unheard of a few years prior to the incident. The unionization of crew was fast becoming a thorn in the side of the coastal shipowners. At last seamen had a voice and were not afraid of putting their collective foot down. It is interesting that Mr. Lewis, acting general manager, was hesitant to make a decision on the case, in the absence of Mr. Moxon. This both suggests that Mr. Lewis was not up to the job of acting manager and management, in general, were not used to this sort of Union-based action. From what we know of Mr. Moxon, he would probably have taken tough action...  

A wire was received at Fremantle on Saturday from 

Mr. Cooper, secretary of the Firemen and Seamen's 

Union, who is in Sydney, advising the men to work on, 

as it would seriously jeopardise the case at present 

before the Arbitration Court in the east. The men, 

however, refuse to accept the proposal, and 16 

firemen were paid off on Saturday. The Koombana 

was to have sailed for the north-west on Saturday 

evening, but in consequence of the trouble her 

departure was postponed.

The mere fact that the firemen ignored the advice of Mr. Cooper suggests that there was much more to the incident than was presented. The point was made that the crew of Koombana had nothing against her master or officers. This was not a protest against the overall running and management of Koombana. It was very specific to the chief steward and he must have done something more than that presented to warrant such extreme action??? If it came down to the chief steward's control over rations and privileges the discontent would have extended to Captain Allen and his officers. No, my mind keeps returning to the death of the second cook, Jones, a few months prior.

It is understood the company are endeavouring 

to secure firemen in the eastern States.

Securing firemen from the east did not bode well, until the issue was fully resolved in the Arbitration Court. There was no doubt more trouble to come...