The wharfie

[billy]

have a look at the basic meter thread Leanne did here
have a look and see if you can take something from it.  a constant meter would help the poem's rhythm no end.
try and use some imagery; how does the ship burn etc.
try and be less obvious with phrase. change them round, or change them up;
example:
I work the wharves....

look at W's hear sounds when said out loud, it's call alliteration, one of many poetic devices you could use. the sound of words should or could [usually] play an important role in our work

I toil on the wharfs, all day I see
Magnificent ships that'll never carry me,
Welts on my back rise from the foreman's whip
If I fail to fully stock a single ship

I am fated to be a lowly stevedore,
loading and unloading, nothing more,
Shouted at by a toff all day and night,
I resolve to set his vessel alight

Ever-careful not to be seen,
I douse his deck with gasoline
I cut the ropes from the cleats
And set him and his yacht adrift