END MODERN SLAVERY IN THE OFFSHORE SUPPLY SECTOR

RMT helpline 0800 376 3706 :: january 2021 :: RMTnews 17 T he detaining of the Maltese-registered offshore supply vessel Ben Nevis in the port of Rotterdam last month for failure to pay crew wages for the last two months is the latest example of modern slavery in the industry. The vessel, owned by Global Offshore Services (GOS), was released from the port of Aberdeen in October having been detained by the Maritime and Coastguard Agency for breaches of the Maritime Labour Convention, including non-payment of crew wages. The Dutch authorities have now detained the Ben Nevis for MLC infringements having discovered that 15 crew members have not been paid for their work in October and November. RMT general secretary Mick Cash said that it was further evidence of the appalling crewing practices that continue to plague the European Continental Shelf offshore energy sector. “These workers are virtual hostages, they cannot afford to leave the vessel for fear they may never get paid and so are forced to remain on board. This is tantamount to modern- day slavery. “RMT is calling for due diligence practices to be significantly improved at every level of the supply chain in the offshore energy sector and greater dialogue between government, trade unions and industry to red-flag rogue operators. “These practices have no place in the 21st Century offshore energy sector; they must be outlawed and the crewing agents and others profiting from these abusive, ‘low cost’ practices must be exposed and prevented from tendering for supply chain contracts on any part of the European Continental Shelf. “This is a key test of the UK government’s commitment to increase domestic employment from the transition to net zero,” he said. disruptions to the schedule. In such an environment, requirements for reporting work/rest hours are seen, by seafarers, as merely a paper exercise. Additionally, software intended to support recordkeeping seems ‘gamed’ for compliance. Instead of improving accuracy, they effectively incentivise crew to adjust their records. According to the report, “they are trapped in cognitive dissonance, where deviance is normalised”. Many companies appear disinterested in seafarers’ feedback on this issue and flag State surveys are limited to reviewing paperwork with no verification of the reality of work on board. Inevitably the effectiveness of the International Safety Management (ISM) Code must be questioned. The authors of the report propose three significant areas for urgent attention. The first is the need for collaboration on a research-based model for determining safe manning for all operational conditions. The second is a review of the effectiveness of the ISM code and the third is to consider the ‘chronic mistrust between shore and ship personnel combined with the job insecurity characteristic of numerous seafarers’ working contracts’. The conclusions of the research are shocking in their revelation of a system that looks good on paper but in fact masks an insidious unspoken collusion, which ultimately negatively impact the effectiveness of international Conventions. RMT general secretary Mick Cash welcomed the ground- breaking report. “We have long raised our concerns over the tick box exercise on hours of work and manning levels which is especially common on Flag of Convenience registered ships in the UK shipping industry. “Importing crew from the other side of the world to work 12 hour days, seven days a week for months on end remains an issue for RMT. “The report correctly finds the current culture and practice on crewing levels in the merchant shipping industry to be dangerous and at odds with efforts to improve seafarer rights and maritime safety. This report must be a wake up call to government, industry, trade unions and seafarers on the need for safe hours of work and crewing levels which take into consideration the commercial operation of a vessel and not just a minimum safe manning model. “This would prevent shipowners from stretching safety regulations to cut labour costs. The culture of routinely undermining seafarer rights and maritime safety to protect profits per voyage must end and RMT call on the UK government to engage with trade unions in order to enact reforms that tackle seafarer fatigue around the UK coast at the earliest opportunity. Such reform would be consistent with the actions of a quality flag state,” he said. END MODERN SLAVERY IN THE OFFSHORE SUPPLY SECTOR Supply vessels docked at Aberdeen