The myth behind pay for mariners

On April 18, the House Committee on Veterans’ Affairs chaired by Rep. Bob Filner, D-Calif., held a hearing on HR-23, “A Belated Thank You to World War II Merchant Mariners.” This bill, which Rep. Filner sponsored, would entitle merchant mariners who served between Dec. 7, 1941, through Dec. 31, 1946, to a veteran’s benefit of $1,000 per month for life, an entitlement that would apply also to the widows of such men. Such largesse is presently only given to those awarded the Medal of Honor. If it becomes law, HR-23 would enfold thousands of individuals who served at sea during the 16 months after the surrender of the Japanese.

HR-23 passed the House last year and is being heavily co-sponsored this year as well. A companion bill of identical composition, S-961, is being considered in the Senate. The rationale for HR-23 has been an alleged deprivation of benefits afforded merchant mariners in comparison to veterans of the Armed Forces. One supportive claim being touted by Filner et al is that the pay of the merchant mariner of World War II terminated once his ship was lost to enemy action. Another claim is that if made a POW the merchant mariner was not paid during his incarceration. This mythology has now become part of the Congressional Record, thanks to Rep. Filner’s opening statement for the hearing on the bill in which he said that merchant mariners “were only paid when they were working. When their ship was torpedoed or sunk and they were in shark-infested waters in a lifeboat, they were not paid. POW, not paid. Wounded, not paid.”

The reality is that once his ship was sunk the merchant mariner continued to receive his base wage plus any applicable Area War Bonus until such time that he reached a friendly shore. At that time his Area War Bonus was terminated, but his base wage continued until he was finally repatriated to the United States. If he became a prisoner of the enemy (POW or internee), then once landed on enemy territory his base wage continued until such point in time after the war that he was repatriated to the United States.

For those men who had war-caused disabilities because of injury or illness, their government-funded War Risk Insurance paid out $200 a month until the disability was deemed to be permanent, an additional benefit would have kicked in to the amount of $100 per month up to a further limit of $2,500. If a crewman died as a result of enemy action, or later because of external cause while in captivity, his dependents would have received a flat sum of $5,000.

The undeniable fact is that merchant mariners serving aboard U.S. flag ships, whether employed either by the government’s War Shipping Administration or by private shipping companies were fiscally protected throughout the entirety of World War II. The agency which saw to that and which also regulated mariners’ “War Zone,” “Attack” and “port” bonuses as well as compensation for the loss of personal effects was the Maritime War Emergency Board, established on Dec. 19, 1941.

A history of the board as well as its decisions are contained within a monograph titled “History of the War Emergency Board prepared under the direction of the United States Department of Labor by Francis B. Goertner, former Secretary and Counsel of the Board.” Since that document is obtainable through the Record Office of the U.S. Maritime Administration as well as through the Library of Congress, it is perplexing as to why Rep. Filner and his staff did not avail themselves of the facts which that monograph contains.

If this sad tale of attempted raid against the Treasury, which could eventually cost in the billions, is typical of the care and diligence taken by the House Veterans’ Affairs Committee, then they are indeed guilty of legislative mismanagement. This is particularly disturbing at a time when the budget for veterans is already stretched so tight that many wounded veterans returning from Iraq are finding difficulty in receiving the care they so desperately need and deserve.

Charles Dana Gibson of Camden is a World War II veteran, having served in both the merchant marine and the Army Transport Service. He is also a maritime historian, having written eight books and numerous articles dealing with maritime and military history. His scholarly research was largely responsible for the award in 1988 of veterans’ status to the Oceangoing Merchant Marine of World War II.