Editorial

News From Speaker Nancy Pelosi -
Contact: Brendan Daly/Nadeam Elshami, 202-226-7616

Tuesday, September 18, 2007

Pelosi: 'Park Service Should Have Considered Hornblower's Performance in San Francisco Before Awarding Company Another Major Contract' Washington, D.C.

Speaker Nancy Pelosi issued the following statement today following testimony today from Port of San Francisco Executive Director Monique Moyer on the National Park Service's procurement process for ferry service to Alcatraz Island. Hornblower Cruises, the Park Service's operator of ferry service to Alcatraz, has now been selected to provide ferry service to Liberty Island, home to the Statue of Liberty:

”Today, the Natural Resources Subcommittee on National Parks, Forests and Public Lands held an oversight hearing on the management of the Statue of Liberty National Monument and Alcatraz Ferry service. Port of San Francisco Executive Director Monique Moyer testified concerning significant weaknesses in the procurement process by which the National Park Service selected Hornblower Cruises to provide service to Alcatraz, as well as subsequent performance problems.”

“Every year, more than 1.6 million people visit Alcatraz Island, one of the San Francisco Bay Area's most recognized landmarks. Unfortunately, since being selected by the National Parks Service to operate the Alcatraz ferry, Hornblower Cruises has failed to deliver on basic contract requirements, including enhanced visitor facilities in the boarding area, lower-emission ferries, and a new hybrid-electric ferry maximizing the use of solar and wind energy.”

"While Hornblower has sought fare increases from ferry riders, it has unjustly replaced a unionized workforce with nonunion workers. The Department of Labor has ruled that the ferry workers should receive the same pay and benefits as they did under the previous contractor, but Hornblower has appealed the decision.”

“While Hornblower Cruises' contract obligations remain unfulfilled, the National Park Service has been unwilling to enforce contract deadlines and has approved increased fares for Hornblower. The result for families visiting Alcatraz Island has been increased costs and diminished quality of ferry service. Hornblower should focus its resources on fulfilling its contract obligations, not on replacing unionized employees and charging visitors higher fares. The National Park Service should have considered Hornblower's performance in San Francisco before awarding the company another major contract."

Alan Benjamin, an Executive Board member of the San Francisco Labor Council and a member of OPEIU Local 3, spoke on behalf of the San Francico Labor Council at the rally at Pier 31 in San Francisco.

• Are we going to stop this illegal and immoral U.S. war in Iraq! (Response from the crowd, "Hell, yes!")
• Are we going to stop this war by the bosses against union labor on the San Francisco waterfront? (Response from the crowd, "Hell Yes!")

Dear Sisters and Brothers:

My name is Alan Benjamin, and I bring you greetings from the San Francisco Labor Council; from our Executive Director Tim Paulson, who could not make it today; and from the 80,000 union members in this city.

As you may have heard, close to half a million people demonstrated earlier today in Washington, D.C., in response to the call from United For Peace and Justice. I am proud to tell you that we had a large labor contingent that marched from the headquarters of CWA in DC and that had speakers at the rally, including Fred Mason, co-convenor of US Labor Against the War and head of the Marlyand-DC AFL-CIO.

By Harry Brill - Used by Permission

What a wonderful experience marching in the anti-war parade on Saturday. The march was serious; the mood was festive. It was heart warming marching with thousands of people who very much care about making a difference.

It was also an unusual event, one which I hope will set a new standard for future demonstrations. It made the immensely important connection between the violence of the war abroad and the violence of the war at home. That’s right. To deprive working people and their families of decent jobs is a form of violence.

The march ended at Pier 33, where long shore workers lost both their union status and their jobs. Just several months ago the National Park Service awarded a ten year exclusive contract to take tourists to Alcatraz. The company, Hornblower, immediately got rid of the unions and the vast majority of its workers. Members of the striking unions wrote up an excellent leaflet that spells out how the war has contributed to the current mess at home.

Editor's Note - The following is an eyewitness account from the picket and antiwar march on Saturday, January 27th, 2007. To the best of our knowledge the following account is accurate and true.

I had been the active picket captain at the January 27 picket at Pier 33.

The Peace marchers were on their way down the Embarcadero to rally along with us, and they were about 10 minutes away from Pier 33 when a man on his bicycle fell.

This bicyclist was neither with the Peace march nor the picket; he did, however, have fishing tackle in a container on his bike, probably on his way to go fishing somewhere along Fisherman's Wharf.

After he fell, he appeared to not be moving, so I ran over to see what kind of condition he was in.

Seeing that he was bleeding profusely from the back of his head, and with the Peace marchers approaching, I yelled for someone to call an ambulance and also made sure that no one made any attempts to move the man (given that he appeared to have a serious head injury).

Editors, Daily Planet:

On January 17th, Berkeley’s Labor Commission, which makes recommendations on labor issues to the City Council, voted unanimously to endorse a boycott of the notoriously anti-union Hornblower Cruises. For around 30 years the ferry line to Alcatraz Island was operated by a unionized company. But several months ago the National Park Service awarded an exclusive ten year contract to Hornblower, which not only dumped the union, but refused to retain the vast majority of the former workers, some of whom had been working on the ferries for many years.

Although all cruises to Alcatraz leave Pier 33 in San Francisco, many of their dinner cruises operate from the Berkeley docks. Since Hornblower’s anti-labor misconduct extends to our side of the bay, we should make every effort here to persuade Hornblower to rescind its disposable worker policy.

In particular, please do whatever you can to discourage visitors from taking a cruise to Alcatraz until these workers get their jobs back and their union status is restored.. Also, parents should insist that the schools do not give their children an anti-labor education. There are many wonderful ways to enjoy a vacation in San Francisco, including other ferry tours.

Ongoing, different public school groups have been going on Hornblower Alcatraz Cruises to Alcatraz since well after the Alcatraz cruises Hornblower boycott started and a union sanctioned picket line was set up at Pier 33 to support affected Inland Boatmen's Union (IBU) and Masters, Mates and Pilots (MMP)and longshore workers (ILWU 10). The teachers are often shocked when they turn up with their students to realize that they will be crossing picket lines to get on the boat to Alcatraz. However by that time it is too far late to cancel the field trip and they all end up crossing the line. This has happened with school group after school group. The word has simply not gotten out to many teachers and schools despite various resolutions at local labor councils. With the holidays over, Alcatraz school cruises could easily be starting up again.

Presumably Hornblower is making money on these school cruises. This needs to stop.

By Harry Brill

Editors, Daily Planet:

On January 17th, Berkeley’s Labor Commission, which makes recommendations on labor issues to the City Council, will hold hearings on the conduct of the notoriously anti-union Hornblower Cruises. For around 30 years the ferry line to Alcatraz Island was operated by a unionized company. But several months ago the National Park Service awarded an exclusive ten year contract to Hornblower, which not only dumped the union, but refused to retain the vast majority of the former workers, some of whom had been working on the ferries for decades.

Although all Alcatraz cruises leave Pier 33 in San Francisco, many of the company’s boats are docked in Berkeley. Hornblower also operates a dinner cruise from the Berkeley docks. To show your support for these unemployed workers, come to the hearings –Wednesday, January 17th, 7pm at the North Berkeley Senior Center (MLK & Hearst).

The following letter--Dated December 4, 2006--was intended for publication to the San Francisco Chronicle in response to this op-ed piece by Hornblower CEO Terry Macrae:

EDITOR:

Hornblower CEO Terry MacRae has not gone "the extra nautical mile" with the Unions representing Alcatraz ferry workers. ("It's not the old waterfront," December 1.) If he had, Hornblower would be in collective bargaining with the Inlandboatmen's Union and the Masters, Mates & Pilots now.