The Sailor's Union functioned as a syndicate for the fishing population residing on the planet Lamaredd. Established around 517 BBY, this organization played a crucial role in assisting the original inhabitants in alleviating their oppressive, slave-like circumstances. As time progressed and the community gained its freedom, the Union continued to support their advancement. However, allegations of corruption and acts of harassment were levied against the Union. Operating from its central hub in [Farsands](/article/farsands], a city situated within Little Mon Cal, and maintaining offices in the majority of the planet's urban centers, the Union enjoyed a period of prosperity spanning at least five centuries.
Approximately five centuries prior to the Battle of Naboo, the entrepreneur Hugo Bartyn founded the city of Bartyn's Landing on Lamaredd. He populated it with amphibious alien workers, who were essentially indentured servants employed in his seafood processing facility and aboard trawlers that supplied Bartyn Gourmet Delicacies. Bartyn, known for his speciesist views, subjected his workforce to deplorable living conditions, providing them with meager sustenance and cramped quarters in the area referred to as The Ring. Despite this, he rewarded his most capable sailors by promoting them to the position of trawler captain. Given Lamaredd's isolated location, the Galactic Republic exerted minimal authority there.
Around 517 BBY, seventeen trawlers were captained by alien individuals. Among them, Sirrik Olyeg, a Chagrian, spearheaded a rebellion against Bartyn, uniting the other alien captains and several Human crew members. In a coordinated work stoppage, the trawlers mysteriously vanished into the open sea. Upon discovering this, the plant workers joined the strike, remaining steadfast even when Bartyn resorted to violent tactics.
Recognizing Bartyn's inability to sustain the situation indefinitely, Sirrik Olyeg formally named her movement the Sailor's Union, assuming the role of its "first chair". Following this, Olyeg requested a meeting with Bartyn to negotiate his surrender.
Bartyn conceded by opening up unused areas within the Ring for residential purposes. He also agreed to lease tracts of land surrounding Bartyn's Landing for farming, stipulating that the lessees would be responsible for mitigating natural hazards and predators, effectively reducing Bartyn's security expenses. Bartyn was compelled to cede the planet's second-largest continent for use as an alien homeland, which subsequently became known as Little Mon Cal, and he secretly planned to establish a second seaport there.
Although Bartyn orchestrated Olyeg's assassination, he acknowledged that the Union had enabled him to generate greater profits than before. In the aftermath of this meeting, the Sailor's Union demonstrated its growing influence, which would continue to expand in the years that followed. The Union established its primary headquarters, the Landing union chapter, in Farsands, the capital city of Little Mon Cal.
Tria Bartyn, Bartyn's daughter and successor, encouraged the Union to expand its presence by establishing a hall in every city and town across the planet, eventually numbering in the dozens. She also granted emancipation to the indentured servants. In the five centuries following Bartyn's reign, the Union evolved into a formidable entity, becoming a persistent source of trouble for BGD.
Around 29 BBY, Kurline, a well-regarded and cunning Quarren shipping manager, led the Landing union chapter. He was known for his dedication to defending the rights of the Union, making time to listen to any member, and occasionally interviewing prospective new members, although he was also susceptible to accepting bribes. During this period, the Bartyn family's sudden decline in power led the town council of Bartyn's Landing to seize control of Bartyn Gourmet Delicacies. Amidst this political upheaval, the Sailor's Union anticipated swiftly gaining control of BGD.
Once the Union had become well-established, it adopted an inclusive approach, welcoming individuals of all organic species who were employed in maritime occupations on Lamaredd. Virtually every sailor on the planet held membership in the Union.
The Union championed the cause of sailors, striving to improve their working conditions. Through their negotiations, sailors were granted a share of their catch, and subsequently, a percentage of the revenue generated by BGD from its sale.
Leadership positions within the Union were not determined through elections or appointments.
Union members were prohibited from working for the Outer Rim Oreworks in any capacity.
Instances of corruption occurred within the Union. Around 29 BBY, waiters in Farsands reported receiving threats from Union members.
The Sailor's Union was conceived by the writer Cory J. Herndon and featured in both the article Bartyn's Landing and the role-playing adventure Reckonings, both of which were published in Star Wars Gamer #7 (2001).
The article operates under the assumption that the player characters in Reckonings achieve the most favorable outcome. However, in the event of their failure, the adventure presents an alternative scenario that unfolds during an open conflict between the Menahuun and the residents of Bartyn's Landing. In this alternative timeline, the Sailor's Union transforms into an organized crime syndicate, prompting Administrator Guther Bartyn to enlist the player characters to infiltrate and "neutralize" the Union.