Marine Engineers' Beneficial Association - MEBA

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Marine Engineers' Beneficial Association - MEBA M.E.B.A. represents skilled engineers and deck officers in the Merchant Marine & shoreside industries The Marine Engineers’ Beneficial Association (M.E.B.A.)

is the nation’s oldest maritime union. was born out of necessity on the Great Lakes and Mississippi River in the 1870s. Back in 1875 a collection of local marine engineers’ association representatives, fed up with the intolerable working conditions of the day, banded together. Boiler explosions aboard steamboats and unfair working conditions coupled with measly paychecks drove these trailblazers to unite for the protection of mariners. In February of 1875, the leaders of five steamship unions met in Cleveland and the National Marine Engineers’ Association was born. Early on, the M.E.B.A. forefathers battled for beneficial legislation to certify and license waterborne engineers. They also prevailed in securing U.S. officers – both deck and engine – aboard U.S.-flagships displacing foreign seamen. Those early struggles and many others paved the way for the worker protections and benefits M.E.B.A. members have today. As M.E.B.A. moved into the new century, it began to look less like a professional society and more like a labor union. The M.E.B.A. grew stronger on all coasts as international shipping took on a new focus in American commerce. The desire to commit to the goals of organized labor caused the M.E.B.A. to affiliate with the AFL for the first time in 1919. For the next few decades, the M.E.B.A. would peak and fall with the global demand for shipping. Maritime business would skyrocket with each of the two World Wars but suffer during the Great Depression. American maritime labor would recognize the higher calling of the nation’s defense and served the country admirably in both wars. The merchant marine continues to serve as a vital expression of American military power.

Whatever it takes to keep the ship running. Aboard the Pride of America in Hawaii, M.E.B.A. members show up for the work...
10/21/2026

Whatever it takes to keep the ship running. Aboard the Pride of America in Hawaii, M.E.B.A. members show up for the work, wherever it takes them.

Close the pay gap. Pay our engine crew now.Washington State Ferries engine crew worked more than 100,000 hours of overti...
10/20/2026

Close the pay gap. Pay our engine crew now.

Washington State Ferries engine crew worked more than 100,000 hours of overtime last year alone. In The Seattle Times, M.E.B.A. Washington State Representative Eric Winge explains why competitive pay for marine engineers is key to reliable ferry service.

"Marine engineers are invisible to the ferry-riding public, but ferries depend on us for operations, repairs and maintenance."

From the op-ed:
✅ Engine crew already work 84 hours in a seven-day workweek
✅ More than 60% of WSF marine engineers surveyed say they're likely to retire or leave
✅ Engine room wages have fallen 20% below those of shipmates above deck

Read the full piece: https://www.seattletimes.com/opinion/competitive-pay-for-engineers-is-key-to-reliable-wa-ferries-service/

Amid a global marine engineer shortage, engine room workforce challenges at WSF will only further hobble ferry service in the years ahead if left unaddressed.

Our second Q3 Stories at Sea photography winner is Joseph Turocy. He captured this view from high above the deck as fog ...
10/19/2026

Our second Q3 Stories at Sea photography winner is Joseph Turocy. He captured this view from high above the deck as fog rolled in over San Francisco on December 22, 2022, just a few days before Christmas.

Spending the holidays on board or back home? That's this quarter's theme. Send us your photos and videos for Holidays at Home or at Sea by December 31.

One photo winner and one video winner will each take home $1,000: bit.ly/MEBAStories 👈

Meet Connor Corbett, one of our two Q3 Stories at Sea photography winners. His winning photo was taken April 22, 2026, a...
10/18/2026

Meet Connor Corbett, one of our two Q3 Stories at Sea photography winners. His winning photo was taken April 22, 2026, at Grand Bahama Shipyard, where the crew was inspecting the hull of the Seakay Valor. Pictured, left to right: Jeb Monigle, Mike Cooper, and Connor Corbett.

Q4 is open now. The theme is Holidays at Home or at Sea, and one photo winner and one video winner will each take home $1,000. Submit through December 31: bit.ly/MEBAStories

Thank you to every member who submitted to Stories at Sea in Q3. Your photos and videos show the real work of M.E.B.A. m...
10/17/2026

Thank you to every member who submitted to Stories at Sea in Q3. Your photos and videos show the real work of M.E.B.A. members at sea. We'll introduce our two winners this week.

Q4 is open now. This quarter's theme is Holidays at Home or at Sea.

Thanksgiving in the galley, Christmas morning with family, the watch you stood on New Year's Eve. Show us how you spend the season, wherever you are.

🎥 Videos count too. Tell us what the holidays look like on board.
📷 Up to 10 photos or videos per member per month
📋 Include who, what, when, and where, plus a completed waiver form
✅ One photo winner and one video winner each take home $1,000
Submit by December 31: bit.ly/MEBAStories

10/16/2026

M.E.B.A. President Adam Vokac on what he loves most about the union: job diversity.

"No matter what stage of your career you're at, whether you're just starting out, in the middle, starting a family, or towards the end, we've got a job that suits your situation... You can do that in M.E.B.A., or you can sit on one ship. Your entire career, the choice is yours."

— Adam Vokac, M.E.B.A. President

Tampa Union hall Branch Agent Nicole Greenway worked the recent Great Lakes Maritime Academy Board of Visitors and Caree...
10/14/2026

Tampa Union hall Branch Agent Nicole Greenway worked the recent Great Lakes Maritime Academy Board of Visitors and Career Fair advancing M.E.B.A. interests and enticing cadets into the fold. With the board of visitors, Nicole (a GLMA grad), discussed the academic and financial direction of GLMA. The School held two careers fairs coinciding with the event. Nicole is seen in these various photos with alumni, with AMO Rep. Corey Kole and with M.E.B.A. Interlake members Logan Vasicek and Kole Brokke.

This is what building a career looks like, on day one and thirty years in. M.E.B.A. members are working at shipyards and...
10/14/2026

This is what building a career looks like, on day one and thirty years in. M.E.B.A. members are working at shipyards and on the water across the country.

What's happening in this shot? 🕺 Tell us in the comments. 👇️
10/13/2026

What's happening in this shot? 🕺 Tell us in the comments. 👇️

High above the hull at Hanwha Philly Shipyard. Every rivet, weld, and inspection here supports the future of U.S. shipbu...
10/12/2026

High above the hull at Hanwha Philly Shipyard. Every rivet, weld, and inspection here supports the future of U.S. shipbuilding, work M.E.B.A. members are proud to be part of.

Address

444 N Capitol Street NW
Washington D.C., DC
20001

Telephone

+12026385355

Website

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