Without a rudder, food, water, electricity, lights, wi-fi, refrigeration, GPS, security or safety lights, 15 seafarers sit at anchor in Manila Bay, Philippines.
This is a message for every ITF seafarers affiliate and every one of their members – the seafarers who have professionally and diligently fulfilled their jobs during this unprecedented and uncertain time.
Whilst we await the outcome of the investigation it appears that the young Ukrainian seafarer took her own life in the Port of Rotterdam whilst awaiting repatriation home.
The Covid-19 crisis has exposed the global seafaring community to numerous challenges.
The International Labour Organization (ILO) Maritime Labour Convention 2006 (MLC) is clear – a seafarer, while working on board, has the right to adequate health protection and access to prompt and adequate medical care including essential dental care.
Three Greek seafarers and 22 of their shipmates on two bulk carriers at anchor in the Port of Djibouti are among a rising tide of crew abandoned around the world at the height of the Covid-19 pandemic.
The International Labour Organisation (ILO) Special Tripartite Committee of the Maritime Labour Convention issued a statement last week that accurately frames the current situation:
A campaign from the Marine Transport Workers’ Trade Union of Ukraine (MTWTU), supported by the ITF and the International Maritime Employers’ Council (IMEC), is highlighting the key role of maritime workers to keep the world supplied with essentials during the Covid-19 crisis.
The life of a seafarer: the “invisible” workforce that keeps world trade moving.
