MLC 2006 – Officer of the Watch

Abandoned Seafarers Incident in the UK

July 17, 2013 by Officer of the Watch Leave a Comment

A usual case of the abandonment and her crew is highlighted within this post. The story took place in the UK during February 2013, less than a year before the official entry into force of the Maritime Labour Convention. Foreign seafarers were left stranded at Sussex after their shipping companies flounder on the brink of bankruptcy. Angry, confused and disillusioned crew members of various nationalities including Russian, Ukrainian and Belarusian, were living in their vessels for months on end without being paid wages and without an idea of when they can return home.

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Filed Under: OOW FOCUS Tagged With: abandonment, Crew, MLC 2006, seafarer, wages

Thirteen Seafarers Stuck on Abandoned Ship Appeal for Help

June 26, 2013 by Officer of the Watch Leave a Comment

In about two months from now the Maritime Labour Convention will enter into force, nevertheless even as the MLC entry into force date draws near, there are still incidents of abandoned seafarers such as the one mentioned in this post. Last April thirteen Russian seafarers stuck on a ship that has been abandoned and anchored off the coast of the Phillipines since the owner company went bankrupt have appealed to the governor of Primorye region for help in returning home.

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Filed Under: OOW FOCUS Tagged With: abandonment, Crew, MLC 2006, seafarer

Will ILO MLC Deliver as Promised?

June 6, 2013 by Officer of the Watch Leave a Comment

ILO Maritime Labour Convention (MLC), the so called “ILO Super Convention” is expected to enter into force on August the 20th as the 4th pillar of Maritime Regulatory Compliance along with SOLAS, MARPOL, STCW. As the clock is ticking towards the deadline let’s see if the MLC will deliver the promised land by examining some key issues involved.

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Filed Under: OOW FOCUS Tagged With: Crew, Maritime Labour Convention, MLC 2006, seafarer

MLC 2006 Enforcement through Port State Control Inspections in Ports (MLC Regulation 5.2.1)

May 1, 2013 by Officer of the Watch 1 Comment

The Maritime Labour Convention, 2006 (MLC 2006) was adopted by the International Labour Conference of the International Labour Organization (ILO), under article 19 of its Constitution, during a maritime session in February 2006 in Geneva. The aim of the current article is to analyze MLC regulation 5.2.1 regarding inspections in ports. In other words it will be discussed how member states which have ratified the MLC will enforce it through Port State Control (PSC) procedures.

Implementing ILO MLC 2006 with a Separate Stand-Alone Manual

January 10, 2013 by Officer of the Watch Leave a Comment

As time passes by and the enforcement date for the MLC 2006 is getting nearer a very interesting article written by Apostolos Belokas Managing Editor of SAFETY4SEA explains the best approach on implementing the new regulation. Shipping industry is facing a regulatory storm, including among other things the implementation of ILO MLC 2006 by August 20th of 2013 globally. There are many peculiarities related with ILO MLC, the most spicy one is with the deadline due. In case your flag state has ratified MLC by August 20th 2012 the deadline is by August the 20th 2013. In case your flag ratifies MLC after that date, say for example on 1st of February of 2013 then the deadline is by the 1st of February 2014, i.e. 12 months later. If your flag does NOT ratify the MLC you are not responsible for implementation. Is this correct ? Well, not exactly … Actually in line with the “NO more favorable treatment” principle of the MLC vessel will be subject to inspection by PSC worldwide and especially to countries that they have ratified MLC already (e.g. Netherlands, Australia etc.).

MLC 2006 Could Turn out to be a Paper Tiger

December 26, 2012 by Officer of the Watch 1 Comment

The Maritime Labour Convention (MLC) 2006 could turn out to be a paper tiger, Dr Cleopatra Doumbia-Henry has told delegates at Apostleship of the Sea’s 23rd international congress in the Vatican. Dr Cleopatra Doumbia-Henry, director international labour standards department of the International Labour Office (ILO) in Geneva, said that the MLC 2006 was simply a tool that had to be used wisely. “But if not used or improperly used may be of little consequence – the so called ‘paper tiger’ (meaning something that seems as threatening as a tiger, but is really harmless); or they may even cause harm, if only because it is then very difficult to mobilize the political will to replace an international instrument.

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Filed Under: OOW FOCUS Tagged With: Apostleship of the Sea, Crew, ILO, MLC 2006, seafarers

Getting On Board with the MLC 2006

October 6, 2012 by Officer of the Watch Leave a Comment

Filed Under: VIDEOS Tagged With: MLC 2006, seafarers

Maritime Labour Convention Ratification

August 20, 2012 by Officer of the Watch Leave a Comment

The ILO has received the 30th ratification of the Maritime Labour Convention, 2006 (MLC, 2006) fulfilling the last condition for the first global standard that spans continents and oceans to go into effect in a year’s time.

“This is great news for the world’s more than 1.2 million seafarers,” said ILO Director General Juan Somavia. “It was a dream of the ILO as early as 1920, and I pay tribute to the international maritime community for having made it a reality.”