Maritime labour convention

Introduction

• Maritime labour convention, 2006, according to the international labour organisation, provides a broad perspective to the
seafarer’s rights and fortification at work

• Maritime labour convention, 2006 entry into force on 20 Aug 2013

• Maritime labour convention, 2006 lays down a set of regulations relating to seafarers to protect them at work, living conditions,
employment, health, social security and similar related issues

• On the basis of the maritime labour convention, 2006, the seafarer’s employment contracts is implemented and mandated
against nullifying the present employment contracts

• Maritime labour convention, 2006, made up of standards (Part A) and guidelines (Part B), which fall into the 5 titles
Structure of the maritime labour convention

• Maritime labour convention contain on:

 Title 1. Minimum requirements for seafarers to work on a ship:

 Minimum age
 Medical certificate
 Training and certifications
 Recruitment and placement

 Title 2. Conditions of employment:

 Seafarer’s employment agreement
 Wages
 Hours of rest and hours of work
 Entitlement to leave
 Repatriation
 Seafarer compensation for the ship’s loss or foundering
 Manning levels
 Career and skill development and opportunities for seafarer’s employment
 Title 3. Accommodation, recreational facilities, food and catering:
 Accommodation and recreational facilities
 Food and catering

 Title 4. Health protection, medical care, welfare and social security protection:
 Medical care on board ship and ashore
 Ship owner’s liability
 Health and safety protection and accident prevention
 Access to shore-based welfare facilities
 Social security
 Title 5. Compliance and enforcement
 Flag state responsibilities:
 General principles
 Authorization of recognized organizations
 Maritime labour certificate and declaration of maritime labour compliance
 Inspection and enforcement
 On board compliance procedures
 Marine Casualties
 Port State Responsibilities:
 Inspections in port
 Onshore seafarer complaint-handling procedures
 Labour-supplying responsibilities
Maritime labour convention applies and not applies

Maritime labour convention applies

• Maritime labour convention applies to all ships, whether publicly or privately owned, ordinarily engaged in
commercial activities,

Maritime labour convention not applies

• Maritime labour convention not applies to the ships engaged in fishing or in similar pursuits, ships of traditional
build such as dhows and junks and warships or naval auxiliaries
Minimum age

• The minimum age is 16 years

• Night work of seafarers under the age of 18 shall be prohibited

 Night shall cover a period of at least nine hours starting no later than midnight and ending no earlier than 5 a.m

• The employment, engagement or work of seafarers under the age of 18 shall be prohibited where the work is
likely to jeopardize their health or safety
Medical certificate

• Every seafarer must has a valid medical certificate before work on a ship attesting that they are medically fit to
perform the duties they are to carry out at sea

• A medical certificate:
 For seafarer under the age of 18, maximum period of medical certificate validity shall be one year
 For seafarer age of 18 and above, maximum period of medical certificate validity shall be two years

• A medical certificate of colour vision shall be valid for a maximum period of six years

• In urgent cases the competent authority may permit a seafarer to work without a valid medical certificate until the
next port of call where the seafarer can obtain a medical certificate from a qualified medical practitioner, provided
that:
 The period of such permission does not exceed three months
 The seafarer concerned is in possession of an expired medical certificate of recent date

• If the period of validity of a medical certificate expires in the course of a voyage, the certificate shall continue in
force until the next port of call where the seafarer can obtain a medical certificate from a qualified medical
practitioner, provided that the period shall not exceed three months
Training and certifications

• Seafarers shall not work on a ship unless they are trained or certified as competent or otherwise qualified to
perform their duties

• Seafarers shall not be permitted to work on a ship unless they have successfully completed training for personal
safety on board ship
Recruitment and placement

• Each member that operates a public seafarer recruitment and placement service shall ensure that the service is
operated in an orderly manner that protects and promotes seafarers’ employment rights as provided maritime
labour convention

• Where a member has private seafarer recruitment and placement services operating in its territory whose primary
purpose is the recruitment and placement of seafarers or which recruit and place a significant number of
seafarers, they shall be operated only in conformity with a standardized system of licensing or certification or
other form of regulation

• The member can maintaining a free public seafarer recruitment and placement service for seafarers in the
framework of a policy to meet the needs of seafarers and shipowners

• No fees or other charges for seafarer recruitment or placement or for providing employment to seafarers are
borne directly or indirectly, in whole or in part, by the seafarer, other than the cost of the seafarer obtaining a
national statutory medical certificate, the national seafarer’s book and a passport or other similar personal travel
documents, not including, however, the cost of visas, which shall be borne by the shipowner
Seafarer’s employment agreement

• All seafarers working on ships that fly its flag shall have a seafarers’ employment agreement signed by both the
seafarer and the shipowner or a representative of the shipowner

• Seafarers signing a seafarers’ employment agreement shall be given an opportunity to examine and seek advice
on the agreement before signing

• The shipowner and seafarer concerned shall each have a signed original of the seafarers’ employment agreement

• Minimum notice periods to be given by the seafarers and shipowners for the early termination of a seafarers’
employment agreement shall not be shorter than seven days

• Seafarer’s employment agreement shall continue to have effect while a seafarer is held captive on or off the ship
as a result of acts of piracy or armed robbery against ships, regardless of whether the date fixed for its expiry has
passed or either party has given notice to suspend or terminate it.
• Seafarers’ employment agreements contain:
 The seafarer’s full name, date of birth or age, and birthplace
 The shipowner’s name and address
 The place where and date when the seafarers’ employment agreement is entered into
 The capacity in which the seafarer is to be employed
 The amount of the seafarer’s wages or, where applicable, the formula used for calculating them
 The amount of paid annual leave or, where applicable, the formula used for calculating it
 The termination of the agreement and the conditions thereof, including:
 If the agreement has been made for an indefinite period, the conditions entitling either party to terminate it, as well
as the required notice period, which shall not be less for the shipowner than for the seafarer
 If the agreement has been made for a definite period, the date fixed for its expiry
 If the agreement has been made for a voyage, the port of destination and the time which has to expire after arrival
before the seafarer should be discharged
 The health and social security protection benefits to be provided to the seafarer by the shipowner
 The seafarer’s entitlement to repatriation
 Reference to the collective bargaining agreement, if applicable
 Any other particulars which national law may require
Wages

• Each Member shall require that payments due to seafarers working on ships that fly its flag are made at no
greater than monthly intervals and in accordance with any applicable collective agreement

• The seafarers are able to transmit their earnings to their families

• Where a seafarer is held captive on or off the ship as a result of acts of piracy or armed robbery against ships,
wages and other entitlements under the seafarers’ employment agreement, relevant collective bargaining
agreement or applicable national laws shall continue to be paid during the entire period of captivity and until the
seafarer is released and duly repatriate or, where the seafarer dies while in captivity, until the date of death

• For seafarers whose remuneration includes separate compensation for overtime worked:
 For the purpose of calculating wages:
 The normal hours of work at sea and in port should not exceed eight hours per day
 For the purpose of calculating overtime:
 the number of normal hours per week covered by the basic pay or wages not exceed 48 hours per week
 The rate or rates of compensation for overtime:
 Not less than one and one-quarter times the basic pay or wages per hour
Hours of rest and hours of work

• The normal working hours shall be based on an eight-hour day with one day of rest per week and rest on public
holidays

• Maximum hours of work shall not exceed:

 14 hours in any 24-hour period
 72 hours in any seven-day period

• Minimum hours of rest shall not be less than:

 Ten hours in any 24-hour period
 77 hours in any seven-day period

• Hours of rest may be divided into no more than two periods, one of which shall be at least six hours in length, and
the interval between consecutive periods of rest shall not exceed 14 hours

• Working hours should not exceed eight hours per day and 40 hours per week and overtime should be worked only
where unavoidable for safety reasons for seafarers under the age of 18
Maritime labour certificate and declaration of maritime labour compliance part I and part II

• Maritime labour certificate and declaration of maritime labour compliance part I and part II applies to ships of:
 500 gross tonnage or over, engaged in international voyages
 500 gross tonnage or over, flying the flag of a Member and operating from a port, or between ports, in another
country

• Maritime labour certificate has five years of validity with interim, initial and intermediate surveys

• Declaration of maritime labour compliance (DMLC) part I drawn up by the competent authority include the
statement of national requirements

• Declaration of maritime labour compliance (DMLC) part II drawn up by ship owner and shall identify the measures
adopted to ensure ongoing compliance with the national requirements between inspections and the measures
proposed to ensure that there is continuous improvement

• Under maritime labour convention, 2006, the ship owners are required to submit a declaration of maritime labour
compliance (DMLC) part II to their respective flag states which form a party to the convention

• The competent authority or recognized organization duly authorized for this purpose shall certify Part II and shall
issue the declaration of maritime labour compliance