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The International Labour Organization's Maritime Labour Convention 2006
Will become a Reality!
Since 2006, the Pontifical Council for the Pastoral Care of Migrants & Itinerants has called upon all of us in the Apostleship of the Sea to encourage our nations to ratify ILO Maritime Labour Convention 2006.
In his 2012 Sea Sunday Message, Cardinal Vegliņ, president of the Pontifical Council, called for the ratification by nations throughout the world of the MLC 2006. He wrote:
"Furthermore we should increase the awareness of the importance to provide them with protection from abuses and exploitations. For this reason we renew our appeal that the Maritime Labor Convention 2006 (MLC 2006) be ratified as soon as possible to guarantee full protection and decent working conditions to the more than 1.2 million seafarers around the world."
It is with great joy to announce that yesterday, the International Labour Organization announced that Russia and the Philippines have submitted their ratification documents to the ILO. With these two countries' ratifications, the necessary prerequisite of 30 ratifying nations has been reached. The convention will now come into for in twelve months.
Sadly, our own nation is still sitting on its hands, and will not be enforcing the convention in our own country.
Below, we share with you a number of press releases that give greater detail about this great day for seafarers throughout the world.
In thanksgiving to our Lord Jesus Christ,
Fr. Sinclair Oubre, J.C.L.
President - AOS-USA |
 On course for decent shipping
When the ILO adopted the Maritime Labour Convention in February 2006, Director-General Juan Somavia called it "making labour history". Following the ratification by Russia and the Philippines, the Convention will come into force in 12 months' time. What does this mean for the world's 1.2 million seafarers? GENEVA (ILO News) - Four years ago, when the ILO photographer visited the Port of Genoa in Italy, he also met a young seafarer, Ms Wang Chung-Hai. The young cadet broke many stereotypes.
Not only because she was one of the world's 1-2 per cent female seafarers hoping to become one of the even rarer women officers or captains one day. Or because Chung-Hai's pay is about five times the ILO minimum wage for seafarers.
She proudly showed the photographer her tidy and spacious cabin which she is allowed to share with her partner when she goes on shorter voyages in the Asian region. When her ship, the "Y M Orchid", a 275 metre long recently built cargo ship operating under the flag of Panama, was inspected by the Italian port state control officer, it was found to be in perfect condition.
Not all seafarers are so lucky, as not all ships are so well-kept. Many seafarers face a more difficult, dangerous and dirty reality, working on unsafe ships that are not fit to sail.
In the same port of Genoa, the ILO photographer saw a ship that had been abandoned with its crew by the owner. Their salaries had not been paid for months and they did not know how to pay their trip back home. Although this was an extreme case, the ILO Database on Abandonment of Seafarers reports more than 100 similar cases since it was established in 2004.
The ILO's Maritime Labour Convention, 2006 (MLC, 2006) states that shipowners must continue to pay seafarers' wages until they are repatriated.
A seafarers' bill of rights
The Maritime Labour Convention, 2006 (MLC, 2006), goes far beyond addressing the issue of wages at sea. It sets out seafarers' rights to decent conditions of work on a wide range of subjects, including basic employment rights, improved enforcement of minimum working and living conditions and the right to make complaints both on board and ashore.
| Under the MLC, 2006 every seafarer has the right to: |
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- A safe and secure workplace that complies with safety standards
- Fair terms of employment
- decent working and living conditions on board ship
- Health protection, medical care, welfare measures and other forms of social protection
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As the Convention applies to all ships, including those of non-ratifying Member States, it will be globally applicable and can be uniformly enforced.
The MLC, 2006, will come into force 12 months after ratification by 30 ILO member States, representing a total share of at least 33 percent of the world's gross tonnage (gt) of ships. With the ratification of the Philippines and Russia, both conditions have now been met and even exceeded.
Often described as a "Bill of Rights" for seafarers, the Convention also helps to achieve a "level-playing field" for quality shipowners, ensuring fair competition while marginalizing sub-standard ship operations.
The Convention promotes a strong enforcement regime to ensure that labour standards are enforced as effectively as the International Maritime Organization (IMO) conventions on ship safety, security and environmental protection (SOLAS/MARPOL) by both flag and port States.
More power for regulation
Under the MLC, 2006, States must inspect all ships flying their flag and also issue those ships with a maritime labour certificate and a declaration of maritime labour compliance if ships are 500 gt or over and go on international voyages.
If a ship that has undergone a flag state inspection does not meet the requirements, the inspector reserves the right not to issue the certificate, can refuse to endorse it or, in especially serious cases, may even withdraw it.
The reasons for which a ship may be detained will also change once the MLC, 2006 comes into force.
Nowadays detention is limited to safety-related matters. The MLC, 2006 however goes beyond this and also covers the social welfare of seafarers. That means an inspector will be able to detain a vessel or prevent it from going to sea if the social or labour rights of the crew are being violated, for example, if wages are not being paid or employment records are not in order.
"We can still see seafarers sailing on sub-standard ships, with working and living conditions which are substantially below minimum international standards. I am confident that the ILO's Maritime Labour Convention, 2006 can address these challenges and set a safe and decent course to the future", concludes Cleopatra Doumbia-Henry, Director of the ILO's International Labour Standards Department.
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EMPLOYERS AND UNIONS WELCOME ENTRY INTO FORCE OF ILO MARITIME LABOUR CONVENTION IN JUST 12 MONTHS' TIME
ITF and ISF Stress Vital Need for Industry to be Ready
The International Transport Workers' Federation (ITF) and the International Shipping Federation (ISF) are united in welcoming the news that the ILO Maritime Labour Convention (MLC, 2006) will enter into force in just 12 months' time, in August 2013, following the announcement that it has been ratified by 30 ILO Member States, the latest being Russia and the Philippines. The tonnage requirement of at least 33% gross tonnage has also been well exceeded and currently stands at just below 60%.
However, the ILO social partners warn that shipowners will need to ensure they are ready before the new regime of global labour standards comes into force. Significantly, the MLC will be subject to port state control, including the potential for more detailed inspections if ships are thought not to comply, and the possibility of detention in serious cases of non-compliance or where hazardous conditions exist.
ITF and ISF emphasise that the MLC, 2006 has been dubbed the 'fourth pillar' of shipping regulation, alongside the IMO SOLAS, MARPOL and STCW Conventions, and as such is likely to be strictly enforced by flag states and port state control.
Dave Heindel, chair of the ITF Seafarers' Section, commented: "The MLC - the seafarers' bill of rights - is a genuine agent for real change. It has the potential to make a real difference to all seafarers, regardless of nationality or the flag of the ship on which they serve. Its entry into force will be the culmination of over 10 years of collective effort by the ILO social partners. At last, we will have a 'one stop shop' for labour standards which we are confident will be genuinely implemented and enforced on a global basis. It means that all seafarers should soon be able to enjoy comprehensive protection of their fundamental rights. It also means good employment practice across the industry so that responsible employers, as represented by ISF, are not disadvantaged by the irresponsible minority."
ISF Labour Affairs Committee Chairman, Arthur Bowring, commented: "Governments are to be congratulated for ratifying the MLC so quickly. This is a Convention with a very wide scope, incorporating labour and social security requirements, and therefore requires detailed study and potential amendment of local legislation to bring it into effect. We expect many more countries will ratify the Convention over the coming year, so that entry into force will be backed up by truly worldwide enforcement.
"This Convention is the result of tripartite negotiation over a lengthy period, which means that the labour standards which we have all agreed can be supported by governments, shipowners and seafarers giving us a uniform global framework of sound employment standards that is required by both shipowners and seafarers," Mr Bowring continued.
An important feature of the Convention's enforcement will be the issue of 'Maritime Labour Certificates' by flag administrations following an inspection. There is also a requirement for ships to complete and maintain on board a 'Declaration of Maritime Labour Compliance'
The MLC addresses a wide range of matters, including the obligations of shipping companies with respect to seafarers' contractual arrangements, the responsibilities of manning agencies, working hours, health and safety, crew accommodation, catering standards, and seafarers' welfare.
Under the tripartite ILO process, ITF and ISF were responsible for negotiating the text of the new Convention with governments, on behalf of maritime employers and seafarers' trade unions, prior to its adoption in 2006. ITF and ISF therefore are keen to see the smooth implementation of the MLC, 2006 when it enters into force in 2013.
Mr Bowring added: "The vast majority of companies should have no difficulty complying with the substance of the Convention, since in large part this is derived from existing ILO maritime standards and accepted good employment practice. However, the enforcement mechanism is new, and it will be important to avoid teething problems when some of the more detailed requirements are applied and interpreted. It will therefore be most important for all ship operators to ensure that they are ready."
Mr Heindel concluded: "The shipping industry is almost certainly unique in having such a comprehensive global framework of employment standards, which is supported on all sides. While there will be lot to do to ensure that the standards are properly enforced in a year's time, I think this is a moment when all concerned can take credit for what has been achieved by the adoption of the MLC, 2006, and the really tangible benefits that this will bring both to shipowners and the seafarers they employ."
-ends-
Notes To Editors:
For Further Information, please contact:
ITF: Sam Dawson tel: +44 207 940 9260
ISF: Debra Munford (Elaborate Communications) tel: +44 1297 682356
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INTERMANAGER SAYS MLC RATIFICATION WILL HELP PROMOTE A CAREER AT SEA
Ship and crew managers have welcomed the ratification of the Maritime Labour Convention 2006 which is set to protect the rights of millions of seafarers when it comes into force in August next year.
"Establishing minimum standards for the working conditions of the world's seafarers is essential in ensuring best practice across our industry, especially at a time when recruitment is at a low level and the industry is struggling to attract young people," said Alastair Evitt, President of InterManager, the international trade association for the ship and crew management industry whose members represent almost 250,000 seafarers. "Valuing our seafarers is a first step in attracting new recruits to our industry," he said.
He vowed that InterManager members, who already adhere to the association's Code of Conduct and cadet berth policy, would lead the way in complying with MLC 2006 on their vessels.
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| Prayer for Hurricane Season
O God, Master of this passing world, hear the humble voices of your children. The Sea of Galilee obeyed your order and returned to its former quietude; you are still the Master of land and sea. We live in the shadow of a danger over which we have no control. The Gulf, like a provoked and angry giant, can awake from its seeming lethargy, overstep its conventional boundaries, and invade our land and spread chaos and disaster. During this hurricane season, we turn to You, O loving Father. Spare us from past tragedies whose memories are still so vivid and whose wounds seem to refuse to heal with the passing of time. O Virgin, Star of the Sea, Our Beloved Mother, we ask you to plead with your Son in our behalf, so that spared from the calamities common to this area and animated with a true spirit of gratitude, we will walk in the footsteps of your Divine Son to reach the heavenly Jerusalem where a storm-less eternity awaits us.
Amen.
Originally dedicated to the victims of Hurricane Audrey in 1957. - Fr. Al Volpe, Cameron Parish, LA
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