Report: Rights at Sea

Abstract

REPORT ❐ MARITIME WORKERS’ LEGAL RIGHTS or not. The challenge now is to make it work and to make it universal. Each and every one of us has a job to do to put pressure on those countries that still haven’t ratified . Ratification and clear implementation will give this Convention the force it deserves and help ensure that seafarers everywhere finally get the rights and recognition that they need and deserve. The ITF has promised to dedicate all its resources to helping it make real changes to the lives of all seafarers. The ITF recognises the MLC as the first ever true bill of rights for those working at sea. The ITF has worked alongside shipping organisations, the ILO and governments for over a decade to jointly create and shape the MLC, and is committed to monitoring and assisting its implementation and persuading many more countries to ratify it. For nations in the Asia Pacific region, which supplies the majority of the world’s seafarers and where the bulk of global sea trade is concentrated , the MLC will underpin new seafarer employment opportunities and is a key plank in the global shipping regulatory framework designed to secure the future of a high quality and competitive shipping industry. It has been a hard-won victory to reach this moment. Now the same coalition of the ILO, unions, maritime organisations and governments have to continue to jointly build on and support the convention, and make sure that as many countries as possible ratify this landmark piece of legislation. The ITF is supporting the MLC’s launch with a range of advice and materials designed to help seafarers understand and apply it. These include a dedicated web area complete with advice and Q&As at www.itfmlc.org; a new leaflet for all those working on cruise ships, The Maritime Labour Convention 2006 – what does it mean for cruise crews, which can be downloaded at www.itfglobal.org/infocentre/pubs.cfm; and more, including the previously published, in-depth guide A seafarers’ bill of rights, available at www.itfglobal.org/infocentre/pubs.cfm/detail/23556. The MLC is also welcomed in a short film featuring Paddy Crumlin and Steve Cotton, which can be seen at www.youtube.com/watch?v=5CmXhW-JSA4. The ITF is also collaborating fully with the ILO’s welcoming publicity around the MLC, which can be seen at www.ilo.org/global/standards/maritime-labour -convention. Rights at Sea Every ship over 500 gross tonnage operating internationally will have to have a maritime labour certificate issued by its flag administration following an inspection INTERNATIONAL union rights Page 24 Volume 20 Issue 3 2013 Steve Cotton is Acting General Secretary at the International Transport Workers’ Federation (‘ITF’) in London The ITF is committed to making the MLC a success for seafarers. To find out more please visit www.itfmlc.org W e’ve been waiting over a decade to say this, and now we can: as of 20 August, a seafarers’ bill of rights exists. The Maritime Labour Convention 2006 (‘MLC’) has come into force. The MLC lays out minimum rights for seafarers and promotes good employment practices across the shipping industry. It incorporates and builds on 68 existing maritime labour conventions and recommendations to ensure decent working and living conditions. The Convention also stipulates that everyone working on board a cruise ship making international voyages is a seafarer and is entitled to the protections it guarantees. These include the right to a safe and secure workplace; fair terms of employment; decent living and working conditions ; access to medical care, health protection and welfare. The MLC has been described as the fourth pillar of shipping regulation, alongside The International Convention for the Safety of Life at Sea (‘SOLAS’), the International Convention for the Prevention of Pollution From Ships (‘Marpol’) and the Standards of Training, Certification and Watchkeeping Convention (‘STCW’). The new instrument is intended to be strictly enforced by flag states and port state control. It should provide a ‘one stop shop’ for labour standards. This will mean that all seafarers should be able to enjoy comprehensive protection of their fundamental rights, and it should also ensure good employment practice across the industry...