"I want to be a wharfie!"

one of the local dog walkers told me as he was walking briskly past this morning. He knew that I knew what he meant.

The "maritime union" men are out on strike. They only get paid $170,000 a year for sitting in an air-conditioned cabin moving containers from ship to shore. It's tough work but someone has to do it.

I once taught in a school where a good many of the children had fathers who were old fashioned "wharfies". Things were changing but at least some of them had started work on the wharves when they still had to load ships manually. These men were known for being rough, tough and loud. 

They rarely appeared at the school. Their wives came instead. If something needed repair a father might appear to do something temporary until the "public buildings man" appeared.  That would be it. Nevertheless these fathers were generally capable of repairs.

They earned a good wage even back then. They were buying their own homes. They had good cars, a boat for fishing when their work was done, and a caravan for "going on holiday". Their children had bikes to ride to and from school. As teachers of their children we could only dream of such riches. 

Work on the wharves has become more and more mechanised. The advent of container shipping changed so much about the actual way it was done. The numbers of men needed decreased but, with some hiccups, it was done largely through attrition. New jobs on the wharves are rare and they still get handed down through the tight network of the union. Union membership may not be compulsory under the law but they have still made it so. 

If you happen to be one of the fortunate families involved in the business then you will do well....but apparently not well enough. There are people I know who take on far greater responsibilities in their everyday lives who do not get paid anything like the wharfies get paid. Their working conditions are nothing like that of the wharfies. They really keep our country running. They control and drive the transport. They feed the country. They keep the power on and the country clean.  Some of them earn as little as a quarter of what a wharfie gets.

There was a time when wharfies had a tough job and they no doubt deserved their pay. I doubt they earn those inflated figures now but they can hold the country to ransom.  It must be nice work...if you can get it.