Seafarers' Union of Russia Establishes International Cooperation

Seafarers' Union of Russia (SUR) successfully maintains ties with foreign partners and establishes new relations. It develops not only cooperation with other trade unions, but also strengthens the social partnership with shipowners. So, during five years the SUR managed to sign five major collective bargaining agreements with foreign companies.

Since 2011 the SUR succeeded in concluding agreements with three Greek shipowners - Roxana Shipping SA, Springfield Shipping SA and Optimum Shipping Services, with Swire Offshore from Singapore and Selandia Shipmanagement from Latvia. Apparently, most contracts involve Greek shipowners. The union works closely with the Pan-Hellenic Seamen's Federation  (PNO) on the signing of the ITF collective bargaining agreements to cover seafarers of  Greek companies. SUR even got the right to conclude collective agreements (subject to consultations with the PNO for each company). About 1500 union members work on the Greek vessels covered by the PNO/SUR collective agreement.

The Director of the SUR Foreign Relations Department, Igor Shchekotin, said that the SUR maintains good relationships with Scandinavian colleagues. The SUR representatives are the members of the Seafarers Committee of Central, Eastern Europe and Norway (SCOCEEN) and the Norwegian and Asian Seafarers' Committee (NASCO), which were established on the initiative of the Norwegian maritime unions to negotiate with the Norwegian shipowners together with unions – workforce suppliers.

“The SUR is working side by side with the Swedish Union for Service and Communications Employees (SEKO), both within the ITF campaign against flags of convenience and in the regulation of working terms and conditions of Russian seamen serving onboard  vessels under the Swedish flag”, - said Igor Shchekotin.

Over the past five years the SUR managed to develop ties with eastern partners: after several meetings with the Japan Seamen's Union (JSU) they signed a collaboration agreement between  SUR and JSU. Currently, about 600 union members work under the terms of the JSU collective agreement.  The SUR has adjusted the text of the joint JSU/SUR collective agreement and continues to secure its compliance.

SUR continues to cooperate closely with the German United Service Sector Union (VER.di) and to advice on the joint trade union services for Russian seafarers employed on the ships of German owners covered by the VER.di collective agreement. About 4000 of our union members work under the VER.di agreement.

SUR also has co-operation agreements (or joint collective agreements) with the Maritime Section of the Italian Transport Workers' Federation, the Federation of Transport, Petroleum and Agriculture Workers of Cyprus, the Seafarers International Union of North America, the Maritime section of the trade union "Solidarno??" (Poland), Singapore unions of officers and ratings.