Page 11: of Maritime Reporter Magazine (December 2020)

2020 Trends: The Seafarer 2020 Trends

Owners & Operators: Do the Right Thing

Due to a con? uence of factors, COVID-19 has adversely impacted merchant mariners more than virtually any other profession.

By Dennis Bryant he merchant marine is an international profession of? cer that the crew members would be repatriated the next from a wide variety of countries, so there is no one day. The next day, the operator advised that repatriation plans nation standing up to represent them. The ships and fallen through and that the crew members would be repa- on which they sail are registered in numerous na- triated in the next port. The PSC of? cials issued a direction

T tions, heavily weighted toward small countries with limited notice stating that the vessel could not depart until all nine in? uence on the world stage. The ports at which the vessels seafarers had been repatriated. Repatriation occurred the call tend to be more concerned about the health of the local following day. The lesson here is that crew changes are not community than the welfare of seafarers, ignoring the fact impossible. Given suf? cient incentive, owners and operators that the cargoes carried keep their economies running. Some will comply with their legal and moral obligations, despite ports and nations ban crew changes outright, while others the inherent dif? culties and higher costs resulting from the place such onerous conditions on crew changes as to make global pandemic. It is unfortunate, though, that such drastic the process extremely dif? cult and expensive. Owners and port state measures were required.

operators are widely dispersed and virtually anonymous in The Australian Maritime Safety Administration (AMSA) many cases, making them generally imperious to public pres- then issued a notice stating that, through 28 February 2021, sure. Some, possibly most, owners and operators want to no extensions of seafarer service without taking leave beyond facilitate crew changes, but charterers often insist on char- 14 months will be accepted by AMSA unless the master or ter provisions making that dif? cult. Despite all the obstacles owner demonstrate to AMSA that: (1) all possible efforts cited above, regular changes of crews on merchant vessels have been made to repatriate the seafarer without success; (2) are necessary, just as regular maintenance is required to keep the seafarer has provided written con? rmation accepting the the vessels from breaking down. It is incumbent on owners extension; and (3) a plan to repatriate the seafarer within a and operators to undertake crew changes despite the bureau- month has been put in place. As of 1 March 2021, the maxi- cratic obstacles and added expense. They did not tie up their mum duration of service periods on board following which a vessels when the price of bunkers rose. Rather, they adapted. seafarer is entitled to repatriation shall be less than 12 months

That same type of adaptation is called for now. (per MLC 2006).

The International Labour Organization (ILO) adopted the The choice now is clear. Either owners and operators can

Maritime Labour Convention (MLC 2006) and virtually ev- take the necessary steps to plan for and implement regular ery nation has become party thereto. That convention pro- crew changes or port states can follow the example of Aus- vides, among other things, that the maximum duration of tralia and mandate that course of action. The ? rst option is service periods on board following which a seafarer is en- preferable for all concerned.

titled to repatriation shall be less than 12 months. When the

COVID-19 global pandemic ? rst struck, ? ag and port nations were encouraged to grant a reasonable degree of discretion

The Author in the enforcement of time limits such as this. That discre- tion is being abused by owners and operators and ignored by

Bryant many nations. Australia has signaled that enough is enough.

Dennis L. Bryant is with Bryant’s

Inspection of a bulker there found that three crew members

Maritime Consulting, a regular had been onboard for over 12 months, four had been onboard contributor to Maritime Reporter & for over 16 months, and two had been onboard for over 20

Engineering News. months. The operator assured the port state control (PSC) www.marinelink.com 11

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