The union was involved in the 1919 Fremantle Wharf riot when the state had been isolated by an outbreak of the influenza virus and a waterside workers strike . Premier Hal Colebatch , had intervened in a dispute involving the unloading of a coastal trader , . The violence escalated when Lumpers Union members threw missiles at a launch carrying Colebatch and strikebreakers who were attempting to start unloading the vessel . Police retaliated and shots were fired . During the violence a lumper named Tom Edwards was fatally injured and died three days later
1919 Fremantle Wharf riot
1919 Fremantle Wharf riot
Fremantle Lumpers Union