What's the difference between longshoremen and stevedores?

[Bucky]

Aren't they both supposed to put stuff from the docks onto the boats a/o stuff from the boats onto the docks? Yet I got told by someone that there's a distinction between them--someone who was not able to explain what that distinction was.

So now the job is yours. What's the difference?

[Richard Steele]

1. Unionization.

"Longshoremen" are unionized & they earn a living wage.
"Stevadores" are day-to-day TEMP laborers, and they earn SQUAT.

At least that's the "difference" I've noticed
in my limited experience with folks who do such work.

[Bucky]

4. thanks -- the Longshoremen's Union here in Houston are goddamn awesome

They're good dependable liberal Democrats and make our local party stronger.

[Critters2]

2. Wikipedia says they're synonyms, just different origins:

from the Wiki entry for "stevedore":

The word "stevedore" originated in Spain or Portugal, and entered the English language through its use by sailors. It started as a phonetic spelling of Spanish estibador or Portuguese estivador = "a man who stuffs", here in the sense of "a man who loads ships", which was the original meaning of "stevedore"; compare Latin stīpāre = "to stuff".<2> In the United Kingdom, men who load and unload ships are usually called dockers while in the United States and Canada the term longshoreman, derived from "man-along-the-shore," is used.<3> In Canada the term "stevedore" has also been used, for example in the name of the Western Stevedoring Company, Ltd., based in Vancouver, B.C. in the 1950s.<4>

[Bucky]

3. Yes, I'd read the wiki on it--I found it less than informative

[NYC_SKP]

8. There's a sailor joke in there somewhere...

What with all that "stuffing" business.

[Critters2]

10. I love your narwhals!

:thumbsup:

[no name no slogan]

5. Longshoremen know how to curse.

They go to a special school for it.

[UTUSN]

6. None. They would both be disappointed & disaproving of their artistic sons. n/t

[Inchworm]

9. ..

:rofl:

that was funny.

:hug:

[qnr]

7. (US) Stevedores are Republicans, Longshoremen are Democrats

Just kidding, in relation to the union bit.

[TreasonousBastard]

11. The common modern US usage is that the stevedore is...

the company that hires the longshoremen. Technically, there isn't any difference, but I wouldn't go down to the docks and call the guys you find there stevedores.