Seafarers tread dangerous waters out at work. On board, they may face assault, harassment, bullying, piracy and armed robberies. On top of that, seafarers may be mistreated or abused by their employers when it comes to their contracts or salaries, leaving them to tackle their plight silently and on their own. The problems are far and wide, and help rendered is still not at optimal level. 

Captain Hari Subramaniam, honorary chair, Nautical Institute (Singapore), has seen it all. In an interview with Maritime Fairtrade, he shared more about the problems, seafarers’ rights and welfare, and enforcing a skilled future workforce.

The Nautical Institute is a non-governmental organization (NGO) with consultative status at the International Maritime Organization (IMO). It has over 50 branches globally with a mission to uphold professional standards, best practices and safety throughout the maritime industry by representing the interests of its members.

Captain Hari Subramaniam, honorary chair, Nautical Institute (Singapore). Photo credit: Nautical Institute (Singapore)

What are the loopholes which allow involuntary contract extensions of seafarers? 

As per the Maritime Labor Convention, 2006, (MLC Convention), a seafarer’s tenure on board cannot exceed 11 months normally. Notwithstanding this, the seafarer’s contract of employment or Collective Bargaining agreement (CBA) would ideally stipulate a contract period which is usually lesser than 11 months.  In many cases, the employment contract/CBA is an amended version and often not in the seafarer’s favor. Due care should be taken by the seafarer, company owners, operators and manning agencies to ensure that the standard unamended CBA template is used.

The Covid-19 pandemic brought out many such cases whereby this maximum 11-month period was exceeded largely due to unforeseen circumstances which were not within anyone’s control. 

Another situation where seafarers have had to spend extended months on board is during cases of abandonment. As per the MLC convention, one of the key triggers for a case of delayed services from the owner or operator to the seafarer, such as payment of wages, to become an abandonment case is if a time delay of two months has elapsed. In many abandonment cases, the owner or operator of the vessel is either untraceable or experiencing financial difficulties and the seafarer may be left with no choice but to wait for their outstanding monies to be paid before they can be repatriated. 

Other situations worth mentioning are regarding criminalization of seafarers. The vessel and/or its crew could be arrested due to political conflict or in case of any maritime accidents where the seafarers are detained till investigations are completed. Other cases of alleged port or coastal violations leading to the vessel’s arrest, even if the vessel was hijacked and seafarers are taken hostage, occur too. In all these situations, the possibility of the seafarers having to exceed their stipulated period on board is very likely. 

How can seafarers’ rights be protected?

It is extremely important that the seafarers’ rights are protected. They often join onboard in a highly rushed manner and are not afforded sufficient time to review their employment agreement and other associated documents. This often renders them vulnerable in the event of contractual disputes. The Nautical Institute covers legal fees for its members as part of member benefits. This goes some way into protecting the seafarer’s rights.

Guidance documents is another safety buffer which can assist a seafarer in understanding the salient clauses in an employment agreement. Raising awareness within the seafaring community regarding the importance of the contents of the documents they sign could prove very effective in preventing such situations.

The benefits of joining professional associations such as the Nautical Institute should also be highlighted as a protective measure and seafarers should be encouraged to become members.

Seafarer welfare is vital for the shipping industry as this would directly impact shipboard operations which can further dovetail into directly impacting the safety culture of the industry as a whole. Physical health and wellbeing along with psychological wellbeing of seafarers (as well as their families) has often manifested into a safe, vibrant and content workforce on board. This could offer the seafarer less stress, more peace of mind and thereby a more focused approach to their daily work. This paves the way for a safer working environment with lesser incidents and accidents.

On their part, seafarers also should be more vigilant and cautious. They should ensure personal due diligence before joining a company or enrolling into a manning agent. They must not solely rely on hearsay or verbal promises by anyone. Resources are easily available on the internet and the responsibility for cross-checking anything pertinent should equally be undertaken by the seafarers.

According to IMO’s Maritime Safety Committee in May 2024, the Straits of Malaysia and Singapore reported the most piracy and armed robbery attacks. How can shipping companies protect their shipments and seafarers?

Again, it is important to note that a lot of these statistics are dependent on the reporting culture. It could well be the case that the reporting culture in this region is very good with countries such as Singapore encouraging seafarers to report incidents. Some of the other regions may in fact have more unreported incidents.

Nonetheless, piracy and robbery attacks can be minimized by enhanced cooperation between the neighboring coastal states. This would afford structured and coordinated patrolling by the various navies and coast guards, thereby achieving a better security coverage footprint. Such efforts would tighten the net and deter miscreants from undertaking such piracy and armed robbery attacks. 

I would like to reiterate that a lot of work is already being carried out by the regional coastal states, the Regional Cooperation Agreement on Combating Piracy and Armed Robbery against Ships in Asia (ReCAAP), the Information Fusion Centre (IFC) and others. However, there is still quite a lot which needs to be achieved.

What are potential challenges that crews may face with the integration of renewable fuels?

One of the biggest and unique challenges posed to seafarers by integration of renewable energy sources, including usage of alternative fuels, is that the research and technology has not yet caught up with the looming IMO targets. 

The industry seems to be some way behind in the race against meeting the deadlines coming up for 2030, 2040 and 2050. Mandatory guidelines for seafarer manning and training requirements are yet to be formulated and the maritime legislation regarding design, construction, shipboard operations, pollution, seafarer manning and training operations are also still being developed. Once these instruments are developed and available to everyone, there will be a more focused and definitive approach and effort. 

At the moment, with many avenues of research in various stages of concurrent development, there appears to be some uncertainty within the seafaring community and this can lead to unnecessary speculation. This in turn affects seafarer morale and wellbeing. 

The Mission to Seafarers’ Happiness Index and the Impact of Maritime Decarbonization on Wellbeing by ISWAN all point towards the pinch points that need to be addressed. The Nautical Institute, as well as all the other major stakeholders, are all working in the background to alleviate the burdens placed on the seafarers and as soon as pertinent information is available, we shall prioritize communicating this to them.

Photo credit: iStock/Igor-Kardasov