By: Camille Simbulan
The Associated Marine Officers’ and Seamen’s Union of the Philippines (AMOSUP-PTGWO-ITF) led by its President, Dr. Conrado F. Oca, who concurrently serves as the 1st Vice Chair of the International Transport Workers’ Federation (ITF) Seafarers’ Section, and the Chair of the ITF Philippines National Coordination Committee (NCC), attended the ITF Seafarers’ Section and the Fair Practices Committee meetings last November.
During the meeting at the historic city of Athens in one of the world’s major maritime nations, Greece, the Seafarers’ Section assessed the work it has accomplished in respect of the resolutions passed in the Marrakech Congress in October 2024. The section also discussed the progress report on resolutions from the Seafarers Section Conference in Santiago, Chile in 2023 that form a core part of the Section work program for the congress cycle from 2024 to 2029.
There was an informative session from the International Group of P&I Clubs that represent over 90% of worldwide shipping tonnage. The IG committed to strengthening its efforts in upholding the Maritime Labor Convention, 2006, and in assisting in cases of abandonment where their Clubs are involved.
Moreover, the Seafarers’ Section Committee had a presentation and discussion on the latest developments in the Maritime Just Transition Task Force, including the publication of the new baseline training frameworks, which provide guidance on competency standards required for the new training for handling alternative fuels.
It was highlighted that the next phase of work for the MJTTF will be on the recruitment and retention of seafarers, which will include the roll out of National Advisory Committees in key countries in which national governments and seafarers will be tasked with creating the necessary measures to promote the industry, and to structure projects to facilitate cadetships and apprenticeship programs for seafarers.
Other issues discussed were the alarming increase in cases of seafarer abandonment, as well as the unfair treatment and criminalization of seafarers. The ITF Seafarers Trust also reported the results of a major survey on shore leave, which exposed the increasing difficulties of seafarers in spending time off ashore from their duties. The committee, however, noted the work that are being done to address these important issues through work with the wider industry, such as cooperation with the International Maritime Organization (IMO), and the International Chamber of Shipping (ICS), among others.
Furthermore, there was a discussion on the latest regulatory developments. First, for the ILO in respect of ILO 185 Seafarers Identity Documents, and the implementation of the minimum wage for the AB and other seafarers as discussed at the Joint Maritime Commission. With regard to the IMO, a more comprehensive briefing was reported on major developments.
There was also a brief report on developments in the United States relating to the actions of the U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) resulting in seafarers encountering problems when entering the U.S. AMOSUP shared with the committee an advisory it published for union members who might have been affected by the raids. At the meeting, it was noted that during the ITF Cruise Ship Task Force meeting, it was suggested to have informative campaigns for public awareness and stronger global solidarity in support of seafarers affected by the sweeping raids.
“On our part in AMOSUP, we released an advisory to our members onboard ships in the U.S. to remind them to exercise extreme caution when joining online group chats, forums or social media groups. Additionally, we gave some reminders on what to do if they were unknowingly added to a chat group sharing illegal content, or in the event that the U.S. CBP confronts them onboard,” Dr. Oca said.