MLC-2006: from words to deeds

The “SHT Husseyn Akil”, a dry cargo carrier flying the Moldavian flag, has been detained by Novorossiysk Port State Control inspectors as it fails to meet the requirements of the ILO Maritime Labour Convention, 2006. A multi-national crew have neither employment contracts nor payment documents available. In addition there are technical deficiencies that prevent the vessel from leaving the port.

The “SHT Husseyn Akil” docked in Novorossiysk a few days ago. On arrival crew members, two Turks and six Indians among them, applied to the local ITF inspector Olga Ananina and asked her to board the vessel and recover their back wages.

“It turned out that only Turkish crew members had employment contracts and received wages with a month delay”, - Olga Ananina explained. – “Meanwhile Captain and Chief Engineer’s documents were full of curiosities. It was stipulated there that under no circumstances could seafarers apply to the ITF. As for the Indian seafarers they had been serving on the vessel without documents at all and had not received payment for four months already. The deck ratings’ total wages were only 400 dollars, but according to the letter from the Turkish shipowner the crew had agreed to receive payment after the voyage. The letter, sent to the vessel a day prior to the inspection, said that nobody complained of working conditions and it was surprising that somebody did it”.

While Olga Ananina was inspecting how the labour rights were fulfilled aboard the “SHT Husseyn Akil” was also visited by Port State Control to inspect the technical condition. Anyway, the motor ship was built in 1983 and it was not for the first time that it had been detained. Last year for example it took a week to remove defects when the vessel was detained in Novorossiysk. 

“I’ve informed Port State Control inspectors that there were no employment contracts, payment documents and wages on the “SHT Husseyn Akil”, - Olga Ananina said. – It’s quite enough now after the MLC-2006 has come into force to detain the vessel”.

In fact there were much more irregularities. 21 deficiencies were found by the Port State Control inspectors 6 or7 of them were considered serious.

“We have drawn up a report and informed the shipowner that the vessel would stay in the port till the requirements are met”, - Vladimir Anishenko,Chief Port State Control inspector and the Head of the Port Authority for ships supervision, said. – It is new for us to detain vessels on the ground of labour rights violations. Usually we pay attention to technical condition of vessels. Now we are to take into consideration the MLC principles. As for labour rights we shall have to use experience of the SUR and the ITF inspectors because they are really competent in this field.

Vladimir Anishenko added that it was not the first vessel detained in Novorossiysk in line with the MLC. On 1 September a hydrofoil vessel “Vladimir Komarov” was detained by the PSC because there was too high temperature in passenger cabins. According to the MLC temperature should be in line with sanitary standards of the national legislation that is not higher than 25? C. On “Vladimir Komarov” it was 35? C.