I'm really enjoying this spirited debate. For my contribution I've cut/paste this from The Australian (obviously R wing bias - correct?) 18 May 2007. Dr Google really is marvellous.
Hal G.P. Colebatch: Here's the waterfront drama that Aunty did n
We heard nothing of how the unionists undermined the war effort during World War II, all the looting, the strikes and industrial ransom | The Australian | May 18, 2007 12:00AM
IF the ABC wanted to make a drama about the waterfront in Australia, one may wonder why it didn't look at a matter rather more dramatic and significant than that depicted in Bastard Boys, and one that has been suppressed with Orwellian thoroughness by the Australian history industry: the waterfront strikes that occurred throughout World War II, and at times when Australia's national survival appeared to be at stake.
As Japanese forces attacked Milne Bay in 1942 and Australia and the US tried to rush reinforcements to the troops holding on there, Townsville watersiders refused to load heavy guns unless paid treble or, later, quadruple time. A small group of US soldiers, under a colonel who had trained Australia's first modern heavy artillery battery, eventually threw the watersiders off the wharf and loaded the guns themselves. By then the rest of the convoy had sailed. The guns reached Milne Bay too late.
When advance elements of the 7th Infantry Brigade on the SS Tasman reached Milne Bay in 1942, proceeding straight into battle, they found watersiders at Townsville had broken into the radio vans and taken the accumulators from the radio sets. Other waterside strikes caused Milne Bay to be supplied with anti-aircraft gun barrels without mountings. The Tasman was the target, as it ferried troops to New Guinea, of not exceptional but repeated strikes during each voyage.
In Adelaide in 1942, watersiders deliberately wrecked US aircraft engines by dropping them from cargo nets until American soldiers fired sub-machineguns. Sergeant E. D. Patton of the First Australian Corps of Signals recalled: "There were two incidents which occurred at Adelaide on our arrival from the Middle East in 1942 on the SS Jetersum. Our cargo consisted of 5000 tons of ammunition, 25-pounder field guns, 200 truck pens plus four Bofors 40mm anti-aircraft guns mounted on deck. The ammunition was covered by about 3000 tons of sand and 80 tons of gun cotton was below water level in the anchor-chain lockers.
"As soon as we tied up at the wharf, the wharfies came on board asking various members of the crew and army what we had on board, especially under the sand. Well, no one would tell them but they soon found out about the ammo and demanded danger money. Not receiving (it), they went on strike. The army was called in to unload the ship. In the meantime some of the wharfies would not get off the ship, so the army removed them.
"The ship berthed in front of ours was an American Liberty ship which was unloading Allison aero engines. When the cargo nets were lowered into the hold the engines in their flimsy crates were loaded, then the winch-driver would snatch the net up and swing it over the side and let it drop on the concrete wharf; as a result the engines were damaged.
"The Americans told them to stop dropping the engines, (but) the wharfies took no notice whatsoever. As a consequence the Americans armed themselves with Thompson sub-machineguns and fired a number of short bursts up in the air. That quietened them for about half an hour, so some of the crew produced some plastic stun grenades and dropped them down into the hold. That put a stopper on their shenanigans."
On the Brisbane wharves Australian watersiders also deliberately wrecked US P-38 fighter planes. According to another eye-witness, Ian L. O'Donnell: "They simply hooked the lifting crane on to the planes and, without unbolting the planes from the decks, would signal the hoisting engineer to lift, which effectively tore the planes to pieces."
On the same wharves, in August 1942, watersiders smashed the vehicles of an army battalion being rushed to New Guinea by dropping them from winches after soldiers with drawn bayonets had stopped them stealing food from the stores they were loading.
When No317 radar station was being set up at Green Island near New Britain, it was found that all the valves for the radar sets had been stolen by wharf labourers at Townsville. Without the valves the station was unable to go on air as scheduled, and a violent electrical tropical storm caught a force of two-seater American Vultee Vengeance dive bombers flying back from a raid on the Japanese base at Rabaul.
The storm upset the aircrafts' compasses and, even though they were in radio contact, they became lost. Without radar the station could not guide them home and they flew on until they ran out of fuel and crashed, as those listening on the ground heard. Two of the aircraft were found. Sixteen others were lost and the 32 men in them perished. James Ahearn, an RAAF serviceman at Green Island, wrote: "Had No317 been on air it was possible the doomed aircraft could have been guided back to base. The grief was compounded by the fact that had it not been for the greed and corruption on the Australian waterfront, such lives would not have been needlessly lost."
RAAF sergeant H. T. Tolhurst, who had opened the box marked "Radio valves - handle with care" and found it empty, said: "We believed that had we been on air it was possible that we could have guided those doomed aircraft back ... All of the personnel keenly felt the loss of those ... young lives. Our feelings were not helped by the scorn of the US Air Force personnel who became aware of the reasons ... and who tainted us with the contempt they held."
In September 1942, at South Brisbane, watersiders refused to work after midnight unless paid time-and-a-half when the 2/1Battalion, AIF 6th Division, was being rushed to New Guinea to defend Port Moresby. Jack Prichett, a sergeant with the 2/2 Battalion, AIF 6th Division, recalled: "As orders were to sail at 0300 hours with or without stores our (commanding officer) took charge and 14 platoon loaded the stores and we sailed late. It was essential that we got to Port Moresby to prevent the Japs capturing it."
These are a small sample of accounts that I have collected dealing with literally hundreds of incidents of wartime strikes and pilfering on the wharves from 1939 to 1945, as well as outright sabotage. During the course of World War II, virtually every major Australian warship, including at different times our entire force of cruisers, was targeted by strikes, go-slows or sabotage.
Too bad the ABC is not interested. The story would make a great drama.
Hal G.P. Colebatch is writing a book on wartime strikes and sabotage, Australia's Secret War. That's it from me. Cheers people
