wages – Officer of the Watch

ITF Report on Challenges Faced by Black Sea Seafarers

August 13, 2013 by Officer of the Watch Leave a Comment

For some time concern has been growing about the frequency of serious accidents and the repeated appeals from seafarers in difficulty on vessels trading in the Black Sea area. Black sea trade is characterized by older, smaller ships, often trading beyond their expected economic life in circumstances that can undermine safe and secure employment practices. Since the entry into force date (20 August 2013) of the ILO Maritime Labour Convention 2006 (MLC) is getting nearer, we would like to highlight a report that has been prepared from seafarers’ unions from the Black Sea area affiliated to the International Workers’ Federation (ITF).

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

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

The Longshore Union Strike

January 2, 2013 by Officer of the Watch 1 Comment

When the story first broke, when those 800 members of the International Longshore and Warehouse Union (ILWU) Local 63 Office Clerical Unit walked off their jobs and effectively shut down the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach, it was treated by the media as your stereotypical union money-grab.

Filipino Seafarers to Get Double Wage When in HRA

November 6, 2012 by Officer of the Watch 10 Comments

Last month POEA issued a Governing Board Resolution regarding Filipino seafarers working on vessels transiting high-risk areas. According to mentioned resolution the computation of double wage and compensation benefits for seafarers traversing established high risk zones/areas covers overtime and leave pay.

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Filed Under: OOW FOCUS Tagged With: compensation benefits, Crew, Filipino, high-risk areas, HRA, Philippines, POEA, wages

UK Crewing Agent Guilty of Withholding Seafarers’ Pay

October 10, 2012 by Officer of the Watch Leave a Comment

A Liverpool court has found a director of a crewing agent operating in the UK guilty of withholding approximately £21,000 in pay from four seafarers. The court in Liverpool ordered the director of a UK Crewing Agency, to pay fines and costs totalling £3,015. The crewing director, who admitted the offences, was prosecuted by the Employment Agency Standards Inspectorate following an investigation into claims of non-payment of wages. The UK Crewing Agency has now gone into liquidation.