Pensions for Veterans

Film made in support of a campaign by the Waterside Workers Federation seeking pensions for older waterside workers. It depicts the hardships veterans, particularly older workers as well as some of the health and economic issues they endure. Shows a delegation of older workers, led by the WWF's Jim Healy and Tom Nelson boarding a bus in Sydney and travelling to Canberra, where they gather outside Parliament House. Climaxes with a mass meeting of waterside workers at Leichhardt Stadium and concludes with a group of elderly wharfies walking along the Sydney docks.

Directed by Norma Disher, Jerome 'Jock' Levy, Keith Gow, Pensions for Veterans leans on a strong ensemble — Jerome 'Jock' Levy — to carry a story that balances spectacle with character.

The film landed with audiences for its craft and performances, and remains one of the most talked-about documentary titles of 1953.