Belize-flagged vessel is not subject to Chinese law

Yet another unscrupulous shipowner is trying to convince the seafarers this it's not the case.

Today Inspectors of  Far Eastern Territorial Organization of the Seafarers’ Union of Russia (FETO SUR)  visited the m/v DS Victory (Belizean flag, IMO 9550765) at the port of Nakhodka. According to Nikolay Sukhanov, FETO SUR Chairman, the registered owner of the vessel is the Japanese company Eiri Shipping Co Ltd, the operator and the genuine employer, responsible for paying wages to seafarers, is  Hong Kong Guoshun Shipping Co.

-The crew consists of 14 Chinese seafarers, - he added. – There is no ITF collective agreement on board, and individual contracts were  concluded  directly between each crew member and the Japanese shipowner. The salary of the AB Seaman is USD1,836 , and that of the captain is USD5,884.

Established meal expenditure rates are USD7,5  per day per person.

Nikolay Sukhanov highlighted that the contracts do not specify the amount of insurance compensation to relatives in case of death of an employee during a voyage, the contracts just contain a reference to Chinese law.

The SUR FETO representatives asked off-duty crew members to gather in the mess-room and informed them that Chinese legislation does not apply on board a vessel flying the Belize flag, even though there is a reference to it in their individual contracts. The only document that can protect the crew is the ITF collective agreement still. 

The seafarers asked many questions about their rights. In particular, they wondered why the Japanese shipowner, having registered the vessel under the flag of Belize, employed Chinese seafarers.

- Flags of convenience attract shipowners with more favorable conditions - cheap registers give companies the opportunity not to comply with national legislation, to increase profitability of ship operations and competitiveness of the fleet. International Transport Workers' Federation has set a minimum wage scale for seafarers working for  FOC companies. Effectively, a Belize-flagged DS Victory must have an ITF collective bargaining agreement. The main goal of the ITF is to advocate the interests of seafarers and to push for improvement of labor conditions of crew members. To achieve these goals ITF negotiates the concluding of collective bargaining agreements for vessels under the flag of convenience, -   FETO SUR Chairman explained.

Taking into account the information received, the crew asked the FETO SUR representatives to send a request to the shipowner to conclude a collective agreement with the Hong Kong Seafarers' Union.

Also, the crew asked questions concerning  the coronavirus pandemic situation  in Nakhodka. “We reassured the crew of the m/v DS Victory  saying that they are free to go ashore and, for example, to visit the International Marine Club: the captain can make a request for a free bus to get the crew to the Club,” - N. Sukhanov said.

The representatives of the Seafarers' Union of Russia gave the seafarers fresh magazines "Maritime Unions Herald" detailing, among others,  the activities of  ITF and SUR and books on the rights of seafarers working on FOC vessels.

Photo by FETO SUR