Longshoremen are the men and women who move cargo between ships and land. New Westminster's two terminals, Pacific Coast Terminals and Overseas Transport were hubs of activity, shipping the products of Canada all over the globe.

Until the invention of the shipping container in the 1950s and its widespread commercial adoption in the 1960s, longshoremen moved cargo with forklifts and winches, and then hand-stowed the cargo inside the hold of the ship. Here in New Westminster, through the 1960s, longshoremen moved 240 lb sacks of coffee, 112 lb lead bars, 60 lb zinc bars, 120 lb sacks of fertilizer, as well as flour, nickel matte, asbestos, and apples. More than anything, longshoreman in New Westminster loaded lumber of all shapes and sizes: plywood, "fletchers" (dimensional lumber), and "timbers" (roughly trimmed logs) that could be up to 40' long.

Longshoremen loaded ships in gangs of 13 men, each with specific responsibilities. The gang developed an efficient rhythm working together. This gang structure, along with the organized labour union, produced a very strong sense of camaraderie and brotherhood amongst longshoremen, both on and off the job.

My [union] friends and I, we went through girlfriends, we've been together through marriages, children, divorces, another marriage, or whatever. I was there [on the docks] 48 years, and the whole time you've been together, you've been there through the whole life. And they're the only ones that stuck. 
-DEAN JOHNSON, retired Local 502 longshoreman

They broke [nickel matte] up into big chunks, just like rocks and put them in the deep tanks of ships. You'd pick them up and put them into a skiff and out of the hatch. Your fingers were just destroyed in that job. They were pretty heavy. 
-BRIAN RINGROSE, retired Local 502 longshoreman

Joe Breaks is a retired 2nd-generation longshoreman who began his career in New Westminster and worked on the waterfront for 45 years. Joe was president of the ILWU Local 502 for seven years, and is committed to the brotherhood of union work.

At times, this brotherhood extended to the sailors who lived and worked on the steamships. One of Joe's strongest memories of this was in 1973, when desperate Filipino sailors on a Greek ship went on strike because they hadn't been paid for more than six months, and did not know what else to do. The sailors set up their picket line in front of the gangplank—the entry onto the ship. The longshoremen refused to cross the picket line and work stopped. Some of the longshoremen fed and housed the sailors and continued to honour the picket line until  the sailors were paid and received flights home.

Bernie had about 20 or 30 of them sleeping in his basement... The strike had gone on for 2 weeks, and the Greek ambassador came out and he went on the ship. Then a limousine pulled up and it was the Filipino ambassador... Eventually we were all invited onto the ship and we started going over what the issues were. After a couple of days of bargaining with all these people, they agreed to pay them. We even got them a bonus for having to wait. 
-JOE BREAKS, retired Local 502 longshoreman

Work on an industrial waterfront is intermittent and often dangerous. This was especially true before modern workplace health and safety regulations. Also, jobs were often allocated through an informal system, the "shape-up", that was open to abuse and favouritism. Waterfront workers formed unions to advocate for their wages and benefits, fair treatment, and for training programs. A "local" usually refers to a group of workers within a union who share a specific jobsite or geographic area. ILWU Local 502 was formed in 1944 to represent longshoremen in New Westminster and on the Fraser River. Longshoremen, welders, carpenters, fishermen, marine construction workers, mill workers, machinists, municipal and some warehouse workers, are members of unions.

Many longshoremen know that membership in the union creates an important connection and deep friendships amongst workers. Others contend that unions create a safer work environment, and help develop a high standard of workmanship.

There was a lot of camaraderie, whether you were an officer of the union, or a worker. If you didn't have the union, you wouldn't have the pension, the good wages, and all the rest of it. They represent you, and they do their best... The union has a lot to do with training people properly, and in a safe manner. 
-FRANK COBBAERT, retired Local 502 longshoreman

Let's say you have to do something unsafe, for five minutes - union people will take an hour and a half to make it safe. Everything is done to the book... They help you out because they know you are a brother, or a sister. We are in this together, and they are there to help. It’s the way it should be. 
-MARK SORKIN, marine welder