SHIPPING

RMTnews :: february 2007 :: www.rmt.org.uk 14 The union’s parliamentary group will be holding a special Maritime Seminar on Tuesday March 13 2007, 2pm to 4.30pm in Committee Room 12, and all interested RMT members are invited to attend and give evidence. The aim of the seminar is to raise awareness of the lack of social protection for seafarers; in particular we are seeking to highlight the low pay and conditions of many foreign national seafarers which of course continues to reduce employment for UK seafaring ratings. Shipping minister Stephen Ladyman MP has agreed to attend the seminar and the union aims to engage with him in a positive dialogue on the problems experienced by seafarers with the aim of influencing the outcome of the forthcoming consultation on the Race Relations Act. The fact that the national minimum wage only covers UK internal waters is also of importance in this area. In order to help convince the Minister and his officials of the overall merits of RMT’s case the union will be inviting representatives from across the industry and supported by representatives from elsewhere in the labour movement together with representatives of the RMT Parliamentary group. It is important that members attend to support the union and in particular provide evidence of poor practices in UK shipping. The union has already requested that members or branches to send in details of any examples that they can highlight at the seminar on issues such as low pay on UK flagged ships and poor practices on any ships trading in UK territorial waters. “I look forward to a productive seminar at which we will again be seeking to demonstrate why action must be taken to tackle the discrimination and low pay that has become endemic within the UK shipping industry,” Bob Crow said. The seminar will be chaired by John McDonnell MP and key note speakers confirmed at time of writing include Minister of State, Stephen Ladyman MP, TUC Deputy General Secretary Frances O ‘Grady, RMT General Secretary Bob Crow and Chamber of Shipping Director General Mark Brownrigg. For Further information and to register for the seminar please call RMT on 020 7387 4771, email j.croy@rmt.org.uk, or s.yandell@rmt.org.uk A new report from Cardiff University’s Centre for Occupational and Health Psychology has revealed fatigue in the maritime industry is endangering crews, vessels and the environment. The report – Adequate Manning and Seafarers’ Fatigue: the International Perspective – commissioned by the International Transport Workers Federation (ITF) reveals how far behind the industry is in tackling the problem. The report found overwhelming evidence of the existence of maritime fatigue yet the industry has been reluctant to invest resources into monitoring or preventing it. It notes that in civil aviation, for example, flight time is regulated by the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) Agreement, with a limit of between 70 and 100 hours of flight time allowed over a period of a month (times vary according to different countries’ rules), compared with the 98 working hours a week permitted by maritime regulation. In spite of the long periods spent away from home and the clear risks to the long term health of seafarers and the evident association between fatigue and accidents at sea, little progress has been made to regulate and enforce hours of work in the industry. The report also highlights the worrying phenomenon of false record keeping, where seafarers are bowing to pressures that undermine onboard safety and health. ITF’s Seafarers’ Section Assistant Secretary John Bainbridge said that seafarers are routinely working excessively long hours, endangering themselves and the marine environment. "It’s time to stop putting seafarers at risk and to learn from the examples of best practice in other industries,” he said. The report encourages the development of an onboard safety culture underpinned by realistic levels of staffing, and a more robust approach to regulation. The report and a brief summary can be found on the ITF website www.itfglobal.org/press- area/index.cfm/pressdetail/1133 RMT TO HOLD PARLIAMENTARY MARITIME SEMINAR Convening in the House of Commons on March 13 at 2pm, a meeting will highlight issues including low pay and poor practices on ships trading in UK waters REPORT EXPOSES OVERWORK AT SEA SHIPPING SEMINAR: John McDonnell will chair the meeting’s