Robert Edward Durkin was born December 25, 1912 in Paterson, New Jersey. He enlisted in the Navy in November 1934 in New York and received an honorable discharge in December 1938 in Seattle. He married Helen Cleo Jones in Lakewood Village, Los Angeles on April 1, 1948. He did not have any children.

Durkin became a member of the Masters, Mates and Pilots, Local 90 in 1942. In 1949, he was elected Trustee and served on the Executive Committee of Local 90. He was appointed as the Wilmington Branch Representative in 1952 and served out the remainder of a term that had been left vacant by a predecessor. Durkin was subsequently elected for two more terms and served as the Wilmington Branch Representative until 1957. In 1953, he was elected as a shareholder Trustee for Local 90's Building Association. He served three more six year terms and was elected President of the Building Association in 1958 and reelected annually 13 times. He was elected as chairman of the Board of Trustees for the MMP- PMA Pension, Welfare and Vacation Plans and remained chairman until December 1971. Durkin was elected President of Masters, Mates and Pilots, Local 90 in 1957 and was consecutively reelected for six more two year terms until 1971. At the same time that he served as the Local 90 President, he was also elected President of the International in July of 1958. He served as International President until January 1961.

During his tenure as International President, he presided over a major restructuring that transformed the position of International President into a full time job. Previously, the International President had been elected from among the delegates at the IOMMP biennial convention and served concurrently as both Local and International President. Despite the fact that he led the restructuring, Durkin decided not to run for the new job. However, he remained a member of the International Executive Committee from 1958 until 1971. During this time he served as a member and or chairman of the International Constitution and Finance Committees. In 1970, all of the locals of the IOMMP merged into a single International Offshore Division and Durkin served as Vice President from October 1970 until December of 1971. He retired on December 31, 1971 but remained a Shareholder Trustee of the Masters, Mates and Pilots Building Association.