User:Jackiegarcia0212/sandbox

History (exists)
The introduction of steamships in the early 1800s increased the demand of engineers needed to maintain them operating. However, the concept of steam engines powering these ships was still relatively new and the study of marine engineering was barely starting to develop as the engineers hired learned aboard the ship.  The engineers hired to manage the steam engines were shore-side engineers since the marine engineer did not exist yet. It was a completely new kind of field compared to the shore-side work they were used to. The unfamiliarity with the specifics of what engineers were working with and the fact that the steam engine was in its earliest stages meant that the ships were boarded with engineers of minimal marine engineering knowledge and unreliable machinery.

The ongoing injuries and deaths from working on the steamships finally motivated engineers to demand a means of safety regulations from Congress in order to acquire protection and improve their working conditions.  In 1838, the first Steamboat Act was implemented, however it was very inefficient because its legislation was vague and so the tragedies on steamships continued. The lack of improvement from the Steamboat Act led to and even greater demand to make the act stronger and more efficient. This continued until 1852 when Congress passed an enhanced version of the Steamboat Act which required engineers to have a license to work on steamboats and enforced an inspection system for the machinery.

The first gathering of the Buffalo Association of Engineers in 1854 an essential role model for the unionization of M.E.B.A. The Buffalo Association of Engineers implemented the topics of discussion such as wage which helped them fight wage cuts until they dismembered the association. When wages started to be cut again, cities such as Cleveland, Chicago, and Detroit took after the Buffalo association and created organizations of their own. Individually, these city-wide associations were merely effective, therefore this brought on the idea to unite the one-city associations as a national movement.

MEBA vs Howard A. Thor and Jan Moehl, Individuals (non-existent)
The M.E.B.A. vs. Howard A. Thor and Jan Moehl, Individuals trial involved M.E.B.A. District No.1, the Pacific Maritime Association (P.M.A, an organization that represents ship industry employers) vs. Howard A. Thor and Jan Moehl, Individuals (Marine Engineers’ Beneficial Association, 2018). The hearings took place in San Francisco, California with twenty-seven hearing dates between August 27, 1971 and January 5, 1972.  The men argued that the respondent union (M.E.B.A.) had registered and dispatched candidates from its exclusive hiring hall based on unlawful preferences and unfair considerations under the meaning Section 8(b), 2, and 1(A) of the Act and questioning if a licensed officer had authority over unlicensed personnel aboard a ship. The trial examiner found that M.E.B.A. had an agreement with P.M.A. in which the M.E.B.A. would handle all the dispatches for them. The unlawful preferences claimed by Thor and Moehl were that M.E.B.A. would give preference to their own members, applicants to become members, and graduates of their maritime schools in the hiring halls which was seen unfair by non-M.E.B.A. members. In the end the trial examiner, Martin S. Bennett, agreed in favor of MEBA that there had been no unfair labor practices made and that the licensed officers when appointed to supervise by employer and the approval of the union had the authority to discharge an unlicensed worker, therefore the complaints were dismissed.

Union Benefits (non-existent)
By becoming a M.E.B.A. member, M.E.B.A. provides a medical plan includes prescription drugs, dental, mental health, disability, life, accidental death, and dismemberment benefits for MEBA members and their dependants by completing what they call a Permanent Data Form. They also offer four kinds of  M.E.B.A. Pension Plans. The “Regular Pension Plan” means you can retire with a regular pension plan if you have twenty years of accredited pension years, regardless of what age you retire. The “Reduced Pension Plan” is for those who have less than twenty accredited pension years and have reached the normal retirement age of sixty-five years old or the fifth year anniversary of the start date of the pension plan. The “Early Retirement Pension” is for those who choose to retire early when you reach the age of sixty and have a minimum of fifteen accredited pension years. Lastly, there is the “Disability Pension” in which you can retire early if you have become permanently disabled and have a minimum of ten accredited pension years. There are also ways these pensions can be distributed in situation of marriage, children, and death. M.E.B.A. also provides a 401(k) plan in which you have the option enroll for and if you do you can name a beneficiary. A Vacation Plan is also provided in which is determined by the collective bargaining agreement with the employer, the type of vessel you work on, number of days of Covered Employment, and your rating.

Directory Information (non-existent)
-Headquarters:

444 North Capitol Street, N.W., Suite 800

Washington, DC 20001-1570

-Current President: Marshall Ainley (2014-present)

-Current Executive Vice President: Adam Vokac (2014- present)

-Current  Secretary-Treasurer: Bill Van Loo (2014-present)

-Current Atlantic Coast Vice President: Jason Callahan (2017-present)

-Current Gulf Coast Vice President: Erin Bertram (2017-present)

M.E.B.A. Associated Port Locations (non-existent)



 * Seattle, Washington
 * San Fransisco/ Oakland, California
 * Los Angeles/ San Pedro, California
 * Honolulu, Hawaii
 * Houston, Texas
 * NewOrleans, Louisiana
 * Tampa, Florida
 * Jacksonville, Florida
 * Charleston, South Carolina
 * Norfolk, Virginia
 * Baltimore, Maryland
 * New York/ New Jersey
 * Cleveland, Ohio
 * Boston, Massachusetts