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To the editor:
It is a great accomplishment for the TWU to organize the marine diesel technicians and welders at New York City Ferry, but it will not be the "first time the storied transit union will represent workers on the city’s waterways," as The Chief reported.
In the 1950s, the TWU represented workers on the cross-harbor railroad car float system that connected Jersey City with Brooklyn's 65th Street Yard. At that time, Pennsylvania Railroad cars were loaded onto long barges that made the harbor crossing from the New Jersey to Brooklyn to avoid the trip up to Selkirk, called the "Selkirk Hurdle," and then back down again.
The railroad car floats were pushed by barges, offloaded at Sunset Park and then transported by rail to Long Island. TWU represented many of the crafts on the Pennsylvania Railroad including these workers.
Robert Weschler
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