Education · 1 of 4

The path

There is no programme to apply to. You get on a list, you take shifts, you wait.

1. 1

   High school diploma

   Grade 12

   Helpful but not always required. Being 18 or older and physically capable is.

2. 2

   Get a port security clearance

   Weeks to months

   Working inside a marine terminal means a federal background check. A criminal record can end the plan here.

3. 3

   Get onto the casual list

   The wait can be months or years

   Casual hiring is run by the union hall or the employers' association at each port, and openings are posted rarely. Watch for them and apply the day they appear.

4. 4

   Work casual shifts

   1 to 5 years

   You show up to the dispatch hall and take whatever work is handed out. Gangs, lashing, driving, hold work.

5. 5

   Union membership

   Varies by port

   Enough hours and seniority moves you onto the union board, which is when the pay, the pension and the steady hours start.