Nautilus Telegraph - March 2014

Beating the bullies Nautilus launches new drive to end harassment at sea 22-23

Open for business College open days show lots of interest in seagoing careers 19

NL nieuws Twee pagina’s met nieuws uit Nederland 34-35

Volume 47 | Number 03 | March 2014 | £3.50 €3.70

Shipping hit by storms cargoship Luno, left, was one F of the maritime victims of stormy The Spanish-flagged general

conditions which swept across the UK and continental Europe last month.

The French officers’ union FOMMCGT has expressed concern about the circumstances of the ship’s loss when it broke in two after hitting a breakwater at the entrance to the port of Bayonne. Investigators are looking into reports that the 3,466gt vessel suffered electrical failure causing a loss of propulsion and manoeuvrability.

Luno — which was in ballast at the time — was driven onto the breakwater by waves up to 6m high.

Eleven crew members and a local pilot were airlifted to safety and the Dutch salvage firm Smit was called in to remove some 127 cu m of fuel oil from the ship’s tanks.

Nautilus is calling for a full investigation into the death of a passenger on a cruiseship that was struck by waves during a storm in the Channel — see page 44.

Picture: Reuters

Owners panic over Filipino certificates Nautilus says threat of EU de-recognition should prompt a return to ‘tried and tested’ sources

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Nautilus has rejected calls from leading ship managers for countries such as the UK and the Netherlands to issue certificates of competency to Filipino officers facing de-recognition by the European Maritime Safety Agency (EMSA).

The international ship managers’ association, InterManager, expressed concern last month following new reports suggesting that Filipino officers could be banned from working on EU-flagged ships as a result of EMSA investigations into the standards of training and certification in the Philippines.

Owners are preparing for the worst after EMSA checks showed some academies still falling short of STCW standards. Belgian owners have even threatened to flag out of Europe if they are prevented from using Filipino officers.

Philippines senate leader Franklin Drilon warned that 80,000 Filipino seafarers could lose their jobs if the EU goes ahead

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with the threat to withdraw recognition of their STCW certificates.

Speaking as the Philippines Congress began to debate a bill to overhaul the nation’s maritime administration last month, he called for urgent agreement on the plans to create a single authority with responsibility for the training and certification of seafarers in an effort to address some of the issues identified by EMSA. But InterManager has urged companies to ‘put in place sensible contingency plans to guard against a worst-case scenario’ if the latest EMSA audit rules that the Philippine Maritime Administration is not effectively implementing all the provisions of the STCW Convention.

InterManager says companies should ‘mitigate the immediate impact of any possible ban’ by ensuring that their existing Filipino officers extend the validity of their CoCs before any de-recognition comes into force.

‘The EU has indicated that, if ever a ban

were to take effect, this would not be levied against valid and active CoCs,’ InterManager pointed out.

‘By extending the validity of their CoCs, the Filipino officers are able to gain a maximum five year period of grace. Should the EU ever implement a ban, a subsequent resolution may likely be found within the five year grace period. Georgia, which has recently been subjected to a similar ban, resolved its shortcomings within two years.’

It said owners and managers should also hold discussions with port state control authorities to extend this five year window to Filipino officers serving on non-EU flagged vessels which may call on EU ports.

And it revealed that discussions are currently underway with a number of countries such as the UK, Norway, the Netherlands and Belgium, to allow their recognised schools to assess cadets for their CoC — so allowing those cadets to qualify onboard EU-flagged ships.

InterManager president Gerardo Borromeo said: ‘The message we are giving out as responsible ship managers is that our primary duty is to ensure that ships continue to sail safely and efficiently, which means we will put the right people onboard these ships and, in the case of Filipinos, we will work with the right crewing institutions and entities to ensure these officers are properly trained and certificated.’

But Nautilus general secretary Mark Dickinson said the industry should take a much more constructive response to the situation. ‘Rather than adopting shortterm sticking plaster solutions, owners and managers should reflect on the repeated findings from EMSA audits of the Philippines and recognise that this demonstrates the shortcomings of pursuing low-cost crewing policies,’ he added.

‘The potential crisis facing the industry could easily be avoided by investment in traditional tried and tested sources of seafaring expertise,’ he said.

Inside F Bound for glory

How the Outward Bound Trust is helping to keep cadets on track — page 20 F On the map

Maritime careers map package aims to ease the path from ship to shore — page 21 F Viking conquest

Recruitment firm starts work on new training centre in Dover — page 25 F Sex and the sea

Maritime museum stages adults-only exhibition about seafarers’ sex lives — page 27

19/02/2014 17:32

02 | telegraph | nautilusint.org | March 2014

NAUTILUS AT WORK

A close shave for Alf helps Wirral hospice in last month’s Telegraph, F Mariners’ Park resident Alf Eady Following his appearance

has completed his fundraising challenge centred on the big question of whether or not to shave off his moustache.

As donors pledged money online or handed in envelopes of cash at the Mariners’ Park Care Home, they each voted ‘shave’ or ‘keep’, and the outcome was… shave!

The de-moustaching ceremony

took place in front of 60 people on 17 January at the Care Home, under the razor of hairdresser Mel Nuttall, pictured above. ‘Then he was back to his usual handsome self,’ laughed Mariners’ Park activities coordinator Audrey Stocker, who was definitely in the ‘shave’ camp.

Mr Eady has now raised an impressive £1,400 for Wirral Hospice St John’s, which has been providing him with palliative care since he was diagnosed with cancer.

Staff seek support for sea charity fundraising drive A

Following several years of successful fundraising challenges, Nautilus staff members have announced another big push to raise money for maritime charities in 2014.

Staff at the Union’s offices in London and Wallasey have already taken part in the Sailors’ Society’s Woolly Hat Week, but there are some much more arduous challenges lined up.

First to test his mettle will be industrial organiser Paul Schroder, who is running the London Marathon next month in aid of Seafarers UK. Paul has transformed himself from couch potato to keen runner in the last two years, but the marathon will be the longest distance he has ever attempted, so he is after moral support as well as sponsorship…

Then, a little later in the year, it will be time for the big one: the Race to the Stones. This 100km ‘ultramarathon’ will cross the hills from Chinnor in Oxfordshire to Stonehenge in Wiltshire on 19-20 July.

It will be attempted by a team of 10

runners (or more likely walkers) from Nautilus and the MNOPF pension scheme, in aid of the Merchant Navy Fund.

The Race to the Stones team will be led by Nautilus general secretary Mark Dickinson, who is a veteran of numerous charity challenges. ‘This time, we’re particularly keen to support the Merchant Navy Fund,’ he said, ‘because they’ve been helping us establish the new dementia wing at the Nautilus Mariners’ Park Care Home. We really hope that Nautilus members and the wider maritime community will get behind us to raise money for this worthy cause.’

g To help Paul Schroder raise £1,500 for Seafarers UK at the London Marathon, please make a donation via http://uk.virginmoneygiving.com/ schroder g To help the Nautilus/MNOPF team raise £5,000 for the Merchant Navy Fund at the Race to the Stones, please make a donation via www.justgiving. com/TeamNautilus2014

Nautilus care home wins specialist provider award Care Home has been accredited F with specialist NHS ‘end of life care’ The Nautilus Mariners’ Park

provider status to help people live as well as possible until they die, thanks to the dedication of three of its staff.

Registered general nurses Emma Bailey and Angela Renolds, and activities coordinator Audrey Stocker spent almost a year working to ensure that the home met the provider status standards laid down by the NHS. Care manager Amy Johnson said the programme aims to keep people as comfortable as possible once they

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are diagnosed as being at the end stage of a terminal illness.

‘We want people to have dignified deaths and to have it how they want it, as long as it is legal,’ she explained.

‘It’s about listening to them, and ensuring we have the best practice for the individual rather than them just going into hospital.’

Ms Johnson said the latest award enhanced the home’s existing multidisciplinary approach to care — including its team of ‘dignity champions’ who ensure dignity and respect is at the heart of resident care.

Union raises concerns on cuts at MCA Surveyor staffing tops agenda in talks with Agency chief

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Nautilus has raised renewed concerns over the Maritime & Coastguard Agency’s staffing and resources during a meeting with chief executive Sir Alan Massey.

General secretary Mark Dickinson said he had held ‘constructive and positive’ discussions with Sir Alan on issues ranging from upholding standards on UK-flagged ships to the numbers of UK certificates of equivalent competency being given to foreign officers.

Mr Dickinson said he had raised particular concern over the impact of public spending cuts on the MCA and shortfalls in surveyor numbers, with evidence that as many as 23% of surveyor posts are currently unfilled. The Union is concerned that tough public sector pay policies are causing increasing problems in the recruitment and retention of professional staff.

‘Nautilus also questioned Sir Alan on our serious misgivings about the current move away from so-called “gold plating” of regulations under the UK flag,’ Mr Dickinson said.

‘We take issue with the idea of turning the register into just another one that competes for business in the global market by offering adherence to minimum standards and we certainly don’t believe that you can use the adoption of international conventions to undermine national regulations.’

The Union presented Sir Alan

MCA chief executive Sir Alan Massey meets Mark Dickinson last month

with a dossier of cases involving cadet members having negative experiences during their training — especially during seatime on UK-flagged ships with no British officers onboard.

‘While the majority of cadets do have a good experience, these cases show that a significant proportion have some serious problems and this can damage retention,’ Mr Dickinson pointed out.

‘Sir Alan promised to look into this and to consider the potential for targeted audits of relevant training providers to ensure that the principles of the marine guidance note are followed.’

During the discussions with

the MCA chief executive, Nautilus also raised the long-standing concern over the large numbers of CECs being issues to allow foreign officers to serve on UK-registered ships. ‘Not only do we consider that this has a negative impact on the recruitment and employment of British seafarers, but also we believe that it is important for the MCA to take into account the findings of the European Maritime Safety Agency review of training and certification in the Philippines,’ Mr Dickinson added.

‘This was a very useful and constructive meeting, which we are going to follow up on a regular basis,’ he said.

Government figures reveal fresh decline in UK seafarer numbers F

New figures showing a 5% slump in the number of British officers and ratings serving at sea last year underline the need for further government action, Nautilus has warned.

The annual UK seafarer statistics published last month showed a decline in the total of officers and ratings for the third successive year — with 22,830 active at sea.

The number of ratings dropped by 8%, to just 8,590, while the number of certificated UK officers fell by 1%, to 10,840 and the number of uncertificated officers fell by 16%, to 1,410.

While the number of officer cadets in training — 1,990 — was the highest for a decade, the number of new entrants under the SMarT 1

scheme tumbled from 903 in 2011/12 to just 780 in the 2012/13 financial year.

The Department for Transport said the sharp fall in uncertificated UK officers was largely the result of a significant decrease in the numbers being reported by one of the largest UK shipping companies.

The figures showed that while deck officer numbers rose by 2% last year, engineer officer numbers fell by 4% and the total of UK engineer ratings declined by 18%.

According to the statistics, there were 12,660 non-UK nationals with valid certificates of equivalent competency (CECs) last year — compared with 12,330 in the previous year.

Nautilus general secretary Mark

Dickinson commented: ‘These are disappointing statistics and demonstrate how much more needs to be done to tackle the underlying decline in UK seafarer numbers.

‘The government cannot be surprised to see the serious reduction in the cadet intake following the cuts to SMarT, which were later restored, and the CEC statistics show that we are continuing to allow an expanding pool of cheaper labour to operate under the UK banner,’ he added.

‘Nautilus will soon be taking part in a further round of strategic partnership policy discussions with owners and government, and ways in which we can address some of the fundamental problems identified in these statistics are at the top of our agenda,’ Mr Dickinson said.

Don’t miss members’ deals and discounts brings you all the specialist F support and assistance you would

Nautilus membership not only

expect, but it also gives you access to Nautilus Plus — a portfolio containing money-saving discounts, designed to save you time and money in both your personal and professional life.

There is no sign-up process, nor any extra charge — you are automatically eligible to access Nautilus Plus by virtue of your membership. Here are just two of the benefits available: g Avis Car Hire — save 5% The Travellers Advantage travel service can take the stress out of booking your car hire with an additional 5% discount on all car rentals with Avis. With over 5,400 rental locations in 174 countries worldwide, you can guarantee that Avis, along with the Traveller’s Advantage travel service, can make car hire run smoothly for you.

Whether exploring the local area or simply getting from A to B, they are sure to have your vehicle rental needs covered. Take advantage of great prices and simple rental agreements and take to the open roads.

Visit Nautilus Plus or call 0800 783 2183 to book via telephone. g iSUBSCRiBE — save an additional 10% Nautilus members have access to an extra 10% discount across the wide range of magazine and newspaper subscriptions at iSUBSCRiBE — the UK’s largest magazine and newspaper subscriptions website, showcasing over 2,500 different titles. They work directly with the magazine and newspaper publishers to bring you the best discounts and special offers they can find.

Visit Nautilus Plus via www. nautilusint.org or to order by telephone, call 020 7199 0161 (quote NTU75) g Terms and conditions apply. See website for details. Offers subject to change without notice. iSUBSCRiBE: Please note that the discount is only applicable to debit/credit/PayPal orders and cannot be used against Direct Debit orders. Nautilus Plus is managed on behalf of Nautilus by Parliament Hill Ltd.

Royal date for Union’s new Hub delighted to announce that F Princess Anne, the Princess Royal, will Nautilus International is

conduct the formal opening of the new Trinity House Hub at the Nautilus Mariners’ Park estate on Friday 4 April.

The Princess will perform the opening ceremony in the presence of distinguished guests during an afternoon visit to the Park in Wallasey, Merseyside.

The Hub is a new £4m-plus project which includes community facilities such as a café, a spa, a gym and rooms for meetings and hobbies. There are also 18 fully-accessible apartments for retired seafarers and their dependants to rent.

The largest donor to the project was Trinity House, of which the Princess Royal is the master. g More information on the Trinity House Hub is available at www. nautiluswelfarefund.org

19/02/2014 17:19

March 2014 | nautilusint.org | telegraph | 03

NAUTILUS AT WORK

Partnership set to deliver for UK, owners say Minister promises to make maritime training a key priority in the year ahead

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The new ‘strategic partnership’ between the shipping industry and the UK government should turn the country into ‘the most attractive environment for maritime business in the world’, the head of the owners’ organisation warned last month.

But Ken MacLeod, the president of the Chamber of Shipping, also launched an attack on ‘interference’ by Brussels and warned that Europe should stop imposing regional regulations in excess of International Maritime Organisation standards.

Mr MacLeod told guests at the Chamber’s annual dinner in London that the past 12 months had seen the relationship between the industry and government transformed. He said the strategic policy partnership developed with ministers from across several government departments should help the UK to benefit from the predicted doubling of world seaborne trade over the next 20 years.

‘The strategic partnership will leave no stone unturned,’ he promised. ‘It will tackle the longstanding problems, and the new ones that emerge. It will help us grow, create more jobs, provide environmental sustainability as well as business success.’

The Chamber president urged all sides of the maritime sector to continue to work collectively.

‘This industry used to operate in individual silos — and we were worse off as a result,’ he added.

‘Working together is not always easy. But it is vital. If we are to grow, if we are to compete, if we are to survive, we have no choice but to work as one.’

He said the industry should also do more to promote itself positively. ‘We have to roll up our sleeves and engage, noisily. We are a huge industry. But for too long we have been content to go about our business behind closed doors. We complain about sea blindness and how the industry isn’t as understood as it should be. Well, the only people who can change that is us.’

Mr MacLeod pointed out that the maritime services sector supports 537,000 UK jobs, contributes £32bn to GDP and pays £8.5bn in tax. ‘This country, a trading, island nation cannot succeed without us, but equally we cannot succeed unless we use our collective voice,’ he stressed.

But he also warned against Europe undermining the princi-

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shortreports ASIAN ATTACKS: last year saw a 13% increase in the number of robbery and piracy incidents involving ships in SE Asia, according to a new report from the Singapore-based Regional Cooperation Agreement for Combating Armed Robbery and Piracy (ReCAAP).

The organisation said a total of 141 incidents and nine thwarted attempts were reported during the year, including 11 piracy incidents and 139 cases of armed robbery against ships, the vast majority of which occurred in ports and anchorages. ‘Incidents involving crew being assaulted, held hostage and threatened were less frequent in 2013 compared to previous years,’ the report added.

PIRACY PROBE: a team from Interpol was called in last month to help investigate an incident involving the Liberian-flagged product tanker Kerala off the coast of Angola. The multinational Interpol-led incident response team was called in by Liberia, in cooperation with the vessel’s owners, to following claims that the hijacking of the 74,998dwt vessel had been a hoax.

The flag state said that while the investigations were continuing last month, it was already convinced that the vessel had been hijacked by pirates.

YOUNG MEETING: the next meeting of the Nautilus Young Maritime Professionals’ Forum is due to take place on Saturday 22 March at the Jury’s Inn hotel in Southampton between 1000hrs and 1200hrs. A limited amount of financial assistance is available for UK full members under 35 wishing to attend and who otherwise would not be able to make the journey. To book a place contact Paul Schroder at ymp@nautilusint.org.

DILIGENT EXERCISE: the Royal Fleet Auxiliary forward repair ship Diligence has taken part in a multinational exercise to test methods of protecting merchant shipping from the threat of piracy or terrorist attacks. The ship was part of the Combined Maritime Forces (CMF) exercise Falcon Defender in the central Gulf, in which ships and aircraft practiced essential escorting operations for ships carrying valuable cargoes.

Chamber of Shipping president and former seafarer Ken MacLeod attacked EU ‘meddling’ Picture: Natassja Yoxall

Scottish vote ‘could hit sector’ have an adverse impact on A British shipping, the head of the UK owners’ organisation has warned.

Speaking at the Chamber of Shipping’s annual dinner, president Ken MacLeod said Scotland’s first minister Alex Salmond had failed to explain what independence would mean for the maritime services sector.

Research commissioned by the Chamber estimates that maritime services in Scotland— including North Sea oil and gas shipping operations — support some 75,000

jobs and contribute around £1.2bn a year in taxes.

But Mr MacLeod said the Scottish government’s white paper on independence suggested that the Northern Lighthouse Board, the Marine Accident Investigation Branch and the Maritime & Coastguard Agency would continue their work unchanged — ‘funded by existing arrangements’.

‘Well, those existing arrangements are that they are funded by UK taxpayers,’ Mr MacLeod pointed out. ‘I suggest humbly that this does not constitute

independence. I express no formal view as to how the Scottish people should vote. But it is clear to me that the Scottish Government has not yet done enough to explain what independence looks like for the shipping sector.’

He said the UK Chamber is working hard and is pushing the Scottish government for answers.

‘But time is running out,’ he warned.

‘This is real, and there is too much at stake. We need to know, in detail, how independence would work so that Scottish shipping can at least have some certainty.’

ples of global regulation for the shipping industry.

‘Ships can move anywhere in the world at a moment’s notice,’ he pointed out. ‘They move in and out of national jurisdictions on a daily basis, and we have the International Maritime Organisation to provide the global level playing field we need.

‘There is surely a role for the EU to play, most notably in sustaining the single market, but when it comes to regulation, all too often they just get it wrong,’ he added.

‘We’ve seen this with the environmentally and economically illiterate regulations of sulphur. This is the EU interfering in a global regulatory regime and spending millions of pounds of taxpayers’ money on coming up with the wrong answer to the wrong question.’

Mr MacLeod said the European Commission has to ‘up their game’ and understand that sometimes ‘the best thing they can do is do nothing at all’ Shipping minister Stephen Hammond said training is one of his three key priorities for the year ahead. ‘I want to see more of our young people secure a job in one of the most dynamic industries in the world,’ he added. ‘It is an industry where, if you are prepared to knuckle down and work hard, you will get on and quickly.

‘Last year there were 780 new officer trainees starting and forecasts suggest there will be around the same number this year,’ he added. ‘According to the latest statistics, there were 1,990 officer cadets in training last year. That’s the highest level for over a decade. But I know there is more that

can be done, particularly when it comes to ratings.’

Nautilus general secretary Mark Dickinson said he welcomed the positive messages delivered by the minister and Mr MacLeod. ‘However, they should remember that the tonnage tax was not delivered by the Chamber alone and that much more must be done to deliver on employment and training,’ he stressed.

‘And while it is trendy to bash Brussels, it is something of a highrisk policy to take a head in the sand approach to environmental issues,’ Mr Dickinson argued.

‘Shipping has a good case to make as a viable green alternative to other modes of transport, but it does need to embrace environmental concerns in a more positive way and engage constructively in the debate.’

Scottish independence could

FISHY STORY: authorities in Chicago are considering blocking the US city’s canal system to stop giant fish infesting entering North America’s Great Lakes and have warned that some measures may impact on European shipping. They want to stop the spread of Asian Carp, originally introduced to southern US states more than three decades ago to control algal build-up in sewage treatment plants.

TUC RALLY: the TUC is organising another mass demonstration in London, to tell the government that ‘Britain Needs a Pay Rise’ This is the fourth demonstration organised by the TUC since the coalition government came to power, and it will take place on Saturday 18 October, culminating in a rally in Hyde Park to protest at ‘the biggest squeeze on incomes since Victorian times’.

WOMEN’S FORUM:: The next meeting of the Nautilus Women’s Forum will take place at the Union’s head office in London on Saturday 29 March 2014 from 1100hrs to 1600hrs. The meeting will launch the new maternity and paternity rights leaflet. For more information, or to attend, email Lisa Carr at women@ nautilusint.org.

GERMAN PROTEST: the German seafaring union Verdi has warned that a national agreement between government and the maritime sector could fall apart if companies continue to flag out and make German seafarers redundant.

DUTCH DEALS: a total of 462 pay and conditions agreements were signed by unions and employers in the Netherlands last year. In 13% of the deals workers had to accept a pay freeze, but the average increase was 1.4%.

CADET CHALLENGE: a group of cadets at Warsash Maritime Academy are to brave the elements by spending 24 hours in liferafts in the river Hamble on 21 March to raise money for the Sail 4 Cancer charity.

19/02/2014 18:14

04 | telegraph | nautilusint.org | March 2014

NAUTILUS AT WORK

shortreports FAIRMONT RISE: a pay and conditions claim has been submitted on behalf of members employed

by Fairmont Shipping Vancouver and serving on MOL vessels managed by Azalea. The claim includes a pay rise above RPI, pay for attending courses and the introduction of sick pay. Industrial organiser Derek Byrne is currently awaiting a formal response from the company on the claim.

CEFAS SUBMISSION: a pay and conditions claim has been submitted on behalf of members employed

by P&O Maritime Services and serving onboard Cefas Endeavour. The claim includes an increase above inflation, a reduction in tours of duty and an increase in pay for DP certificates.

LCT MEETING: a pay and conditions claim has been submitted on behalf of members employed by LCT Support Services. The claim includes an RPI increase, and industrial organiser Lisa Carr and the liaison officers are due to meet management on 3 April to begin negotiations.

TRINITY TIME: members employed by Trinity House have voted to accept the company’s proposal to buy out overtime payments when travelling to join a vessel at any port with a one-off non-consolidated payment amounting to £900 per SVS employee.

MANX CORRECTION: last month’s Telegraph incorrectly stated that the pay increase for members employed by Manx Sea Transport Guernsey and serving onboard the Isle of Man Steam Packet Company vessels was 2.68%. The actual pay increase was 2.85%.

ABSOLUTE CALL: a pay and conditions claim has been submitted on behalf of members employed

by Absolute Shipping Ltd and Absolute Shipping Management. The claim includes a pay rise above RPI inflation, standby pay and training.

CALMAC MEET: Nautilus national secretary Steve Doran and Caledonian MacBrayne liaison officers have had a productive meeting with company management on a number of issues of relevance to members.

Protests at low pay on Condor Ferries British and French unions demonstrate over ‘social dumping’ in EU waters

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Maritime unions in the UK and France have intensified the long-running campaign against social dumping in the ferry industry with protests targeting the Channel operator Condor Ferries.

A demonstration was staged outside the Portsmouth Commercial Freight Gate in support of demands for the company to end its use of non-EU labour on its ferries and to enter into agreements with the unions to ensure its seafarers are paid acceptable terms and conditions.

In France, striking French seafarers occupied the Bahamasflagged high-speed ferry Condor Rapide for almost a fortnight in the port of St Malo in support of demands for the company to reflag to the French register and sign an agreement on pay, conditions and cover for health, social security and other social benefits.

Unions have challenged the company’s use of low-cost eastern European crews on intra-EU ferry services. Some of the seagoing staff on the services from Portsmouth to the Channel Islands are reported to be paid around £2.35 an hour.

Nautilus senior national secretary Paul Keenan commented: ‘We don’t believe it is right that a company operating ferries within the EU should be able to

Unions protest outside Portsmouth Commercial Freight Gate last month

undercut other operators by using seafarers paid well below industry norms and even the national minimum wage. It’s interesting to see that the company does not seek to deny the rates paid to its foreign crew but instead tries to justify them, and we have asked Condor to engage in meaningful dialogue about decent conditions and union recognition.’

RMT national secretary Steve Todd added: ‘The fight to stop the scandal of social dumping remains a national priority for RMT and we will continue to step up the campaign to turn the spotlight on the shameful practices that this government legitimises in the British shipping industry.’

The French unions had been

WESTERN TALKS: Nautilus was set to open talks with Western Ferries management last month on a claim for an above-inflation pay rise and a review of shift patterns and meal breaks.

Member of the Scottish A Parliament for the Orkney Islands, Nautilus officials met the

INTRADA CLAIM: a claim for an above-inflation pay rise has been submitted on behalf of members employed by Intrada Ships Management.

complete service for mariners run by certificated ex-officer qualified accountants always available computerised 100% claims and forecast projection will writing service available 26 High Street, Barry CF62 7EB, South Glamorgan, UK Tel. Barry (01446) 739953 MARINETAX@YAHOO.COM Established 1974

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Liam McArthur, last month to discuss the continuing stalemate in the 2012 pay and conditions claim for Orkney Ferries’ members.

Mr McArthur said that he had representations from his constituents about the situation, which has led on occasion to ferries being tied up. But he said he was aware that Nautilus members in dispute with Orkney Ferries are also his constituents who he represented, and he respected their desire for a fair deal.

‘We talked Mr McArthur through the background to the issue,’ explained industrial organiser Derek

Global offer agreed by members Marine Systems have voted to F accept the company’s improved pay

Members employed by Global

and conditions offer including a 2.75% increase in basic pay.

The package also includes an additional 0.25% one-off payment (based on December 2013 salaries), and the triggering of the discretionary bonus scheme payment.

The company apologised for unilaterally implementing the offer before the formal consultation process had be concluded and confirmed that this would not happen again.

National secretary Jonathan Havard had written to the company stating that its actions fell short of the spirit in which negotiations took place.

its conventional freight ferries ‘are happy with their terms and conditions of employment, which include a comprehensive suite of air travel, free medical, accommodation and food benefits and that these terms exceed all required international standards’.

James Fulford, CEO of Condor Ferries, added: ‘Our ferries operate in international waters and are not confined to the EU; as such we operate under international maritime law. Our ships are flagged as one of the first signatories to the Maritime Labour Convention and we take pride in the fact that all our standards, whether related to employment or health and safety standards, meet and exceed those required by international law.’

Nautilus meets MSP on Orkney Ferries dispute

BRIGGS CLAIM: following consultations with members employed by Briggs Marine on Environment Agency vessels, Nautilus has submitted a claim for an above-inflation pay rise.

MARINE TAX SERVICES (CARDIFF) LTD

calling for their members who serve onboard Condor Rapide to be given the same rights as workers ashore. ITF/CGT inspector Laure Talloneau said: ‘We are fighting for Condor to transfer the vessel from an FoC to the RIF, France’s second register, and until this is effected, for the crew to have clear written and signed contracts that will give crews access to the French seafarers’ social security system.’

The action was called off when Condor agreed to explore the option of adopting the French flag (RIF) and the possibility of changing its crew to French contracts.

Condor had claimed it was confident that the crew members from Ukraine who work onboard

Byrne. ‘We highlighted that members were not on strike, they were simply working to their contracts, and therefore any ferry cancellations were a direct result of Orkney Council having minimum manning levels which did not take into account staff absences for holiday or sick leave.

Mr McArthur said that he would take the new information away with him to consider how he could assist in getting the issue resolved.

‘Overall I think it was a very positive meeting,’ concluded Mr Byrne. ‘I hope Mr McArthur is able to assist us by putting pressure on Orkney Council to return to the negotiating table and work with us to finally resolve this dispute.’

Five-year Wightlink deal

DFDS offer still awaited industrial organiser Lisa Carr, F DFDS representative Gemma Griffin, Pictured above are Nautilus

and Nautilus liaison officer Mark Miller following further talks last month on the 2014 pay review.

As well as pay and conditions aspirations, discussions covered the occupational pension arrangements and management

confirmed that DFDS is still investigating different options with different providers.

Ms Carr confirmed that the Union is still awaiting a formal offer in respect of pay and would be meeting again in March. The company confirmed that any uplift agreed would be backdated to 1 January 2014.

Wightlink Ferries have agreed by F an overwhelming majority to accept Nautilus members working for

a five-year pay deal which will provide inflation-proof increases for the next five years.

The agreement is particularly weighted to support lower paid staff and includes pay rises of between 0.3% and 0.1% above RPI with minimum increases over the five-year life of the agreement of between £475 and £675.

Nautilus industrial organiser Lisa Carr said the settlement confirmed the importance of members’ contribution to securing the future of Wightlink’s service to and from the Isle of Wight.

‘It is right that we should reflect employees’ work and give them the security of a long-term pay agreement,’ added Wightlink chief executive Russell Kew. ‘We will continue our constructive dialogue with the unions in the months and years ahead.’

19/02/2014 18:34

March 2014 | nautilusint.org | telegraph | 05

NAUTILUS AT WORK

Fair treatment for seafarers, Nautilus tells Fairtrade firm protested to the board of a A ‘Fairtrade’ company after a ship Nautilus International has

Isis under detention at Tilbury last month Picture: Apostleship of the Sea

carrying one of its cargoes was found with problems including an expired safety certificate, inoperative radar and seafarers who were owed up to four months’ wages.

The 7,738gt bulk carrier Isis was detained in Tilbury by the Maritime & Coastguard Agency until the safety deficiencies were rectified, while the outstanding wages were paid after the International Transport Workers’ Federation threatened to arrest the ship.

The Marshall Islands-registered vessel had sailed from the Caribbean with a cargo of sugar for the Tate & Lyle refinery at Silvertown, in east London. Tate & Lyle has Fairtrade accreditation, but Nautilus general secretary Mark Dickinson said he was concerned because this was not the first time a substandard ship had been discovered delivering cargoes to the company.

The Isis had been detained in Port Arthur in Texas in September 2013 after its owner encountered financial

difficulties and was unable to pay the crew there. ITF and Apostleship of the Sea inspectors said some of the crew members had been at sea for up to a year and many have families back in the Philippines who were struggling to make ends meet because of the nonpayment of wages.

Mr Dickinson said the case highlighted the strength of the Fair Transport initiative developed by Nautilus and the Swedish union SEKO to highlight the need for fair treatment of everyone in the supply chain for Fairtrade products.

‘We think there is a clear inconsistency in transporting Fairtrade products on ships where the crew are not being treated properly and have to rely on organisations such as the ITF or charities such as the Apostleship of the Sea to ensure their wages are paid and their welfare needs are met,’ he added.

Nautilus has urged Tate & Lyle to consider the conditions of the workers who carry its Fairtrade products — pointing out that the company’s website states that ‘we do what is right, no matter what’.

P

04-05 at work.indd 5

A former seafarer who is now

that they could lead to a ‘race to the bottom’.

Albert Owen, Labour MP for Anglesey, said he was concerned by the proposals to reduce pay and conditions for seafarers on the Irish Sea services.

Mr Owen, who served at sea ‘increasingly caught up in a race to the bottom on employment standards’.

He told Mr Hammond: ‘We believe it is fundamentally wrong that operators committed to decent operating and employment standards should be forced to compromise their principles by unfair competition built upon “global” working conditions in domestic or regional services which undermine decency thresholds, national employment law and industry standards on pay rates, pensions and working conditions.’

Nautilus has been consulting members on the proposals, and officials and liaison officers opened discussions with Stena Line last month. Senior national secretary Garry Elliott said the talks had given liaison officers the opportunity to ‘express in no

from 1976 to 1992, warned: ‘There are real concerns that less time off for seafaring staff to recuperate leads to greater risks to safety at sea; other companies have done this only to reinstate extra paid time off.’

The MP described the proposals as ‘a race to the bottom which is bad for morale and Irish Sea port communities in general’. uncertain terms the strength of feeling of members onboard’.

‘Whilst we are willing to hear what the company has to say and remain committed to discussion, debate and consultation, we told management that what we are not prepared to consider or negotiate on is any reduction in members’ current pay rates and leave,’ he added.

Mr Elliott said Nautilus would withdraw from the discussions if Stena sought to make immediate savings on current employment conditions and the Union has urged the company to concentrate on the long-term by looking at such concepts as a different scale for new recruits.

Further talks were being lined up late last month and the Union is also planning a series of ship visits to discuss the developments with members.

PNTL PAY: following consultations with members serving with PNTL (INS), Nautilus has submitted a claim for an above-inflation pay increase and a move towards a one-for-one leave ratio. The Union is also aiming to restore pay differentials between officers and ratings following the increase in leave awarded to ratings, and wants all members operating on reduced manning to be remunerated for shared duties.

WINDSTAR DEAL: members employed by Windstar Management Services have voted to accept the company’s pay and conditions offer, including various increases which mean that all employees will receive a minimum 4% increase in pay. The deal also includes new rates for new starters from 2013 and fourth engineers being re-graded as third engineers.

SHELL SETTLEMENT: members employed by Shell International Shipping Services (SISS) and QGTC-MI have accepted the company’s pay and conditions offer.

The settlement includes various increases in merit awards and bonuses which will result in increases of up to 2.1% based on performance and up to 10% on bonuses.

RFA TALKS: discussions are due to continue throughout March between Royal Fleet Auxiliary management, Union officials and lay representatives over the Future Development strategy. A formal consultation is expected to follow between April and May. HANSON OFFER: members employed by Hanson Ship Management are being consulted on the company’s offer of a 2% increase in pay across all ranks.

The package also includes a 2% increase in the day rate and an increase to the Christmas watchkeepers’ bonus.

Nautilus refuses to discuss reductions in current terms an MP has attacked Stena F Line’s cost-cutting plans, warning

FORELAND JOBS: Nautilus has managed to negotiate a reduction in the number of redundancies being made at Foreland Shipping and to avoid any compulsory job losses, following the sale of two of the UK’s strategic sealift ro-ros. The company announced that the move would lead to 72 seafarer redundancies, but the figure was reduced to 38 (11 officers and 27 ratings) — all on a voluntary basis.

NORTHERN DELAY: talks on an aboveinflation pay claim for members employed by Northern Lighthouse Board have been delayed after a meeting was cancelled because of adverse weather. Industrial organiser Derek Byrne was seeking to fix a new meeting date late last month.

Union warns on Stena cuts Stena Line’s plan to cut seafarers’ terms and conditions on the Irish Sea threatens to undermine the UK government’s strategic policy aims for British shipping, Nautilus has warned.

And the Union has opened negotiations with the company on its controversial proposals by warning that it is not prepared to consider reductions in members’ existing terms and conditions.

Stena is seeking some £10m savings this year and has warned unions that it wants to reduce its crewing costs by 10% so that it can compete against operators with low-cost employment models.

In a letter to shipping minister Stephen Hammond, Nautilus general secretary Mark Dickinson said the company’s move represented ‘a clear and present danger’ to the government’s strategic policy objectives and had alarming implications for other routes in and out of UK ports.

Mr Dickinson said the ‘appalling situation’ raised serious questions about issues including safety, training, communications, and the regulation of employment conditions in the maritime sector.

He urged the minister to take a ‘hands-on’ approach to prevent the ferry sector from becoming

shortreports

CEMEX WAIT: a pay and conditions claim has been submitted on behalf of members employed by Cemex UK Marine. The Union is seeking a pay rise above RPI inflation and industrial organiser Paul Schroder was awaiting a formal response late last month.

Unions discuss NERC pay: tender fears organiser Micky Smyth is F pictured with Bryan Reynolds, Nautilus national ferries

full-time RMT rep at Caledonian MacBrayne, before a meeting at the Scottish Parliament last month.

Organised by the Scottish TUC, the meeting — chaired by Highlands & Islands MSP John Finnie and attended by eight MSPs — was held to discuss union concerns over the next tendering process for the routes currently operated by Caledonian MacBrayne.

‘It was a really useful meeting,’ said Mr Smyth. ‘We were able to explain our reasons for believing that the tendering exercise is wrong and our concerns about the scandalous waste of money that could be better spent on new tonnage.

‘We made the point that it is damaging for the morale of the seafarers and could create real difficulties with the MNOPF,’ he added.

more talks

Lisa Carr is due to meet A management at Natural Environment Nautilus industrial organiser

Research Council (NERC) on behalf of members on serving onboard ships operated by NOC, NMFSS and British Antarctic Survey.

The meeting will discuss the 1% pay offer which Union representatives stated that they would not consult on unless it addressed other areas of the claim, including additional elements to compensate the government’s restriction and to reward members’ loyalty and commitment.

Management replied by stating that they would implement the 1% increase in the February payroll.

Ms Carr said she was disappointed with the response and would be seeking urgent clarification on the other outstanding issues raised by members.

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19/02/2014 18:25

06 | telegraph | nautilusint.org | March 2014

OFFSHORE NEWS

shortreports

Island Offshore has ordered an A innovative UT777 design vessel which

PILOTS WARN: the UK airline pilots’ union BALPA has warned that a Civil Aviation Authority review of North Sea helicopter operations is ‘too little, too late’ for offshore workers. The review is being undertaken jointly with the Norwegian CAA and the European Aviation Safety Agency, advised by a panel of experts, and will examine current operations, previous incidents and experience in other countries before making recommendations aimed at improving safety. But BALPA said it was not convinced the review would look at ‘the totality of the commercial cut-throat business that is the North Sea, and not just the helicopter operation’ and repeated its call for an independent review along the lines of the Piper Alpha inquiry led by Lord Cullen.

is claimed to be ‘unlike anything seen before’.

Developed from the design of its existing vessel Island Wellserver, the new ship will be able to undertake a wide range of subsea work including top hole drilling, subsea construction and inspection, and maintenance and repair work in deep waters. It can also be adapted to undertake light well intervention.

To be built by Kawasaki Heavy Industries, the vessel is scheduled for delivery in 2017. Rolls-Royce has secured a £25m contract to provide integrated design and ship equipment for the 170m vessel, which will have accommodation for up to 91 people.

TECHNIP REJECTION: members employed by Technip Singapore have voted to reject the company’s revised offer and to move to conducting a ballot for industrial action. The revised offer included a 4.17% increase in pay for 2014 and UK RPI plus 1% (to a minimum of 3% and a maximum of 4%). Industrial organiser Derek Byrne was seeking urgent talks with the company late last month in an attempt to secure an improved offer.

FATAL FALL:a seafarer died after falling from the Norwegian-flagged supply ship Viking Athene in the North Sea last month. Rescue boats were launched by the 2,469gt vessel and sistership Viking Lady after the man was spotted in the water near the Leiv Eriksson rig some 200km NE of Stavnager, but he was confirmed dead after being recovered from the sea.

FARSTAD CLAIM: following feedback from members serving with Farstad Singapore, Nautilus has submitted a claim for an above-inflation pay rise, an increase in seniority payments to 25 and 30 years or a one-off payment to members with full seniority, premier and extra legroom seats for travel over five hours, and a 0.5% increase in pension contributions.

SWIRE ADDITION: the ST Marine Shipyard in Singapore has launched Swire Pacific Offshore’s seventh D-Class AHTS vessel, Pacific Dispatch. The vessel is due to be delivered in the middle of the year and Swire Pacific expects to have 100 vessels in its fleet by the end of 2015, including eight D-Class AHTS vessels.

NKOSSA OFFER: members employed by Maersk Offshore and serving onboard Nkossa II are being consulted on a pay and conditions offer. The offer includes an increase in salaries of 2.7%. Consultation results are expected early this month.

DEEP DEAL: members employed by DeepOcean have accepted the company’s pay and conditions offer.

The offer included an increase in basic pay of 3.5% and an increase in the subsea allowance of 20%, effective from 1 January.

GULF VIEWS: members serving with Gulf Offshore (Guernsey) have been asked to give the Union their views on the contents of this year’s pay and conditions claim ahead of forthcoming negotiations with management.

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06 offshore.indd 6

The Norwegian operator

New warning on investment Study says skills shortage is posing a barrier to growth

P

The volatility of the North Sea oil and gas sector was highlighted by a report this month warning that the area was set to become a ‘less attractive investment destination in 2014’ — in contrast to reports last month that North Sea investment had reached its highest levels since the 1970s and that 2014 was set to continue the upward trend.

The latest report, by the classification society DNV GL, shows that the UK and Norway have dropped from joint fourth position as offshore energy investment destinations in 2012 to seventh and ninth place respectively

in 2014, having been overtaken by China, Malaysia and Canada.

The findings are the result of a survey of more than 450 oil and gas professionals and industry executives and highlight that confidence in the sector is lowest in Europe. ‘Just 24% of those polled expressed strong confidence about the overall outlook for the oil and gas industry for 2014,’ the report states. ‘This compares with 44% in North America and 38% in Asia Pacific.’

The ongoing skills crisis in Europe was noted as one of the reasons for the fall and the number one barrier to growth.

‘The older demographic and

lack of qualified professionals entering the industry mean that skills shortages will be a major concern for operators in 2014,’ the report concluded.

The report was positive about safety, finding that 44% of respondents believed their companies’ current approach was not just about box-ticking but involved a genuinely safer operating environment.

‘A deeper industry safety culture is taking root,’ said Liv Hovem, DNV GL divisional director for Europe. ‘Companies have woken up to the fact that an HSE focus gives a competitive advantage.’

Mate had taken cocaine an offshore supply vessel may F have contributed to the loss of the

Drug use by an officer onboard

ship in the Gulf of Mexico last year, an accident investigation report has concluded.

The US-flagged supply vessel Ricky B sank some 24nm off the Louisiana coast in May 2013 following flooding of the engineroom as a result of damaged starboard shaft seal packing.

The leak had been spotted by crew

members two days before the sinking, and they had carried out repairs and were using only the port engine while carrying out their final planned platform supply run.

But a US Coast Guard investigation found that the mate had ‘for unknown reasons’ decided to engage the starboard engine at clutch speed soon after taking over a watch.

Some time later, he noticed the bilge pump was not keeping up with the ingress of water and the vessel

had to be abandoned when a series of attempts to pump out the rising water failed.

Post-accident tests on the crew discovered a positive reading for cocaine in the mate’s urine specimen.

‘The mate’s use of this illegal drug may have contributed to the sinking because of his decision to engage the starboard propulsion shaft even though he knew it had been shut down due to a severe seal leak,’ the report stated.

ordered two platform supply A vessels from the Dutch Damen The Swiss firm Promar has

Shipyards Group, left. The two Damen PSV 3300s are due for delivery in February and August next year and the company is planning to deploy them in the west African market.

The two ships are being customised for Promar, with additional specifications including Fire-Fighting Ship 1, ROV preparations, oil spill detection radar and a tank heating system. Promar, which operates a fleet of multipurpose PSVs and fast crew boats, says it is planning further expansion of the offshore fleet under its management over the next five years.

Maersk offer is agreed Offshore onboard supply vessels F have voted to conditionally and Members employed by Maersk

reluctantly accept the company’s ‘full and final’ pay and conditions offer.

The two-year deal includes a 2.5% increase in pay from 1 June 2013 and 3% from 1 June 2014.

As part of the offer, Maersk confirmed its strategy to operate in the deepwater anchor handling segment which requires officers to hold suitable CoCs. National secretary Steve Doran confirmed that ‘if this represents redeployment of the vessels and unlimited certificates are actually required to operate the vessels in these areas, then members will have no choice but to be demoted to the highest rank at which they are qualified to serve in an unlimited capacity’.

However, he advised members to consider approaching the company to pay for the training required or to consider redundancy depending on the terms of the contract of employment. He confirmed that management had agreed to assist those officers who have not already undergone the CoC upgrade and continue to pay college and exam fees.

Mr Doran has informed the company that the offer has been reluctantly accepted, on condition that the next partnership at work meeting will include COCs on the agenda.

Incidents on the increase in Aberdeen marked increase in the rate of F vessel accidents in Aberdeen Harbour A new report has revealed a

over the last two years.

The annual summary of marine safety reports shows that there were 30 incidents in 2013, equating to 1.14 incidents per 1,000 vessel movements — up from 0.96 in 2011 and 0.60 in 2011.

The report also points to crew error as the cause of the incident in 50% of cases, with machine or equipment failure accounting for 30% and pilot error for 7%. Nearly 50% of incidents resulted in a collision, 16% in contact and 6% in a grounding.

Nautilus senior national secretary Allan Graveson commented: ‘Negligence of the crew is all too often a convenient way of attributing the cause of incidents rather than address the real issues that are either “difficult” or “costly” to address.’

19/02/2014 18:16

March 2014 | nautilusint.org | telegraph | 07

NEWS

New simulator expands Liverpool Pilots’ training programmes delivery of a second bridge for A their ship and tug simulator, pictured Liverpool Pilots have taken

left, and are fine-tuning a new Voith Schneider escort tug model, as part of a programme to expand the training on offer to the industry.

The second bridge will enable towage training with both ASD and Voith tugs. It will also enable more interactive training, providing the ability to have a bridge team in each bridge on separate ships, ideal for ship-to-ship transfer training, collision avoidance and hydrodynamics.

Livestock ship held with safety defects criticised conditions onboard a A Panamanian-flagged vessel detained A Nautilus ITF inspector has

in the UK over safety and welfare concerns last month.

The 7,087gt livestock carrier Express 1 was held following a port state control inspection when it was towed into Falmouth after suffering engine failure in gale force conditions.

The Maritime & Coastguard Agency said the vessel had been detained over ‘a number of safety issues’ — including emergency training concerns, the fire detection system and substandard crew accommodation, with a lack of hot water and heating, no ability to serve hot food and unhygienic water supplies.

Inspection operations manager Pat Dolby said the MCA wanted to send ‘a clear message to all ship operators that substandard conditions that

affect the health, safety and welfare of crew onboard will not be tolerated.’

Nautilus/ITF inspector Tommy Molloy described conditions onboard the Greek-owned ship as ‘outrageous’.

The 25 crew — including 15 Syrians, eight Filipinos and two Romanians — were being cared for by the Mission to Seafarers.

‘Panama has consistently failed to live up to the expectations of a flag state, even though it has signed up to the Maritime Labour Convention,’ he added.

Owners in court on grounding charges that ran aground on the Farne A Islands, off the NE coast of England, The German owners of a ship

after the officer of the watch fell asleep have pleaded guilty to two safety breaches.

The general cargoship Danio ran aground in the early hours of 16 March last year while sailing from Perth to Antwerp with a cargo of logs.

The vessel could not be refloated for 12 days because of bad weather.

Investigators found that the bridge safety alarm system had been switched off.

Graham Duff, prosecuting for the Maritime & Coastguard Agency (MCA), stated: ‘It was an accident waiting to happen, and it did. It is perhaps fortunate that it struck the Farnes as it could have steamed

onwards and collided with another vessel. But on the Farne Islands, it could have caused an environmental disaster.’

In a magistrates’ court hearing last month, Cuxship Management GMBH, admitted being responsible for the conduct of a ship on which international regulations were contravened by the chief mate and officer of the watch failing to maintain a proper lookout. The company also pleaded guilty to being responsible for the failure of the ship’s safety management system to comply with regulations.

The case will be dealt with at Newcastle Crown Court this month after magistrates decided that their powers of sentencing were insufficient.

07 news.indd 7

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‘We can tailor courses to specific needs as we have an extensive selection of Azipod ships on the simulator and all our simulator trainers are working Liverpool pilots.’

Mr Evans said the simulator is also used to introduce young people to the shipping industry — with regular visits from Sea Cadets, Scouts, and schools to get some hands-on experience.

‘This has inspired some to get cadetships at sea,’ he added. g For further details contact: +44 (0) 151 647 3352 or visit www.liverpoolpilots.com.

Industry alert on ports of refuge United call for action to stop ‘not in my backyard’ blocks to stricken ships

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International shipowners, salvors and insurers have joined forces to issue a united call for action to ensure that stricken ships are provided with a port of refuge.

The International Chamber of Shipping (ICS), the International Salvage Union (ISU) and the International Union of Marine Insurance (IUMI) are urging coastal states to end their ‘not in my backyard’ approach to handling vessels in distress.

The call comes after a series of cases, culminating last month in the failure to provide a safe place for the 44,000dwt chemical tanker Maritime Maisie to offload cargo seven weeks after a collision with a car carrier which caused a serious fire.

Both South Korea and Japan denied the vessel entry into their waters because of concerns over safety and pollution. Lloyd’s Register’s Ship Emergency Response Service (SERS) said the ship was in danger of breaking up if the weather deteriorated or a long tow had to be undertaken.

‘Continued exposure to seas will weaken the ship’s structure — at some point it is likely to fail,’ said SERS team leader Wijendra Peiris. ‘Maritime Maisie needs to be taken to a safe haven and offload its cargo — as soon as possible. We would be very concerned if the ship is towed for a lengthy period in the open ocean or remains where she is for an extended period.’

Port side damage to the ‘pariah’ ship Maritime Maisie Picture: Lloyd’s Register SERS

The three organisations want coastal states to abide by an International Maritime Organisation resolution which stresses the risk to lives and the environment if ships are not given places of refuge.

They said they recognised offering refuge to stricken vessels is sensitive, with political implications, and that the risk of pollution from casualties cannot be completely removed.

And they are urging countries to follow the UK’s example of establishing an independent expert body — SOSREP — to assess each case on its merits

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The new equipment will allow pilots, ships’ officers, and tug masters and mates to do escort towage training together.

The two simulators will also be incorporated into Liverpool Pilots’ resource management and statutory Human Element Leadership and Management (HELM) courses for ships’ officers.

‘Whilst piloting Azipod ships we meet many masters and officers who have not been specifically trained on Azipods — here is an opportunity for them to come to us,’ said Liverpool Pilots secretary Dave Evans.

without political interference.

‘Such an assessment must include a visual inspection and conclude with recommendations for managing and mitigating the risk of any impact on local coastlines and communities,’ they added.

‘The assumption should be that a place of refuge will be granted if needed and that there should be no rejection without inspection.’

ICS secretary general Peter Hinchliffe said the pariah treatment of ships in distress stood in marked contrast to the attitudes for aircraft in need of assistance.

And ISU president Leendert Muller added: ‘Our members

are right on the front line of this issue. Too often they are unable to follow the best course of action which is to take the casualty into shelter, which does not necessarily have to be a port.’

The three organisations said that there is no need for new international regulations on ports of refuge, but rather that existing guidance needs to be followed.

‘IUMI is of the strong opinion that the prevailing regulations as set out, for example, by IMO and the European Union are sufficient but that the necessary steps have to be taken to make the rules work,’ said IUMI president Ole Wikborg.

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19/02/2014 18:34

08 | telegraph | nautilusint.org | March 2014

LARGE YACHT NEWS

Feadship completes custom-built Como for New Zealand yachtsman semi-displacement motoryacht Como, pictured left, A which was custom-built for the experienced yachtsman The Dutch yard Feadship has launched the 46.22m

Neville Crichton.

Featuring a modern bow and whaleback sheer, Como’s exterior design by Dubois Naval Architects reflects the owner’s very specific ideas. The yacht has unprecedentedly large windows in the hull and there is a great deal of glass in the superstructure: the latter is placed on top of the metal rather than being set into it, creating a continuous glass surface.

Como comprises two and a half decks — an exception for Feadship in recent times, when most projects have had four or five. The wheelhouse is slightly recessed into

Nautilus MLC course is free to members crew can find out all they need F to know about the Maritime Labour

Superyacht captains, officers and

Convention (MLC) at a free course taking place in Palma, Majorca in May. Nautilus International is running the introduction to the MLC training seminar, aimed at the superyacht section, alongside partner Dovaston Crew. So that as many yacht crew can attend as possible, the course is taking place on 5 and 6 May, immediately after the Dovaston crewshow in Palma.

Nautilus senior national secretary Paul Keenan, who has handled a number of employment issues on behalf of yacht members, will also be on hand to explain how the Union is using the Convention to ensure that owners and employers provide basic rights to crew.

Tutors, course materials and lunch are provided free of charge to Nautilus members. Non members should contact the Union to enquire about course costs. gTo book a place contact Hilary Molloy on +44 (0) 151 639 8454 or email hmolloy@nautilusint.org. fSTCW update: Changes to yacht sector training and certification requirements have recently come into force as part of the STCW 2010 Manila Amendments. For more information, see M-Notice summaries, page 42.

the main deck structure, with a large outside deck area completely covered and surrounded by glass, which can be lowered or raised. The back end of the wheelhouse slopes down from the front into a control station for outdoor helming.

The twin-screw motor yacht has an aluminium hull and superstructure, with twin Caterpillar C32 main engines, and can accommodate four guests and eight crew.

Mr Crichton said he had built many yachts in New Zealand, and had chosen Feadship after a careful and extensive examination of its expertise and facilities. He said he had been delighted with the quality of the work on Como — ‘with a remarkable and unique superyacht as the end result’.

Union hits out at ‘cynical’ owners Nautilus concerned at increase in cases of badly treated superyacht crews

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There are still too many owners in the superyacht sector who think they can get away with treating their crews abysmally, Nautilus has warned.

The Union is dealing with an increasing number of cases involving seafarers from large yachts who have had their basic employment rights ignored by owners who seem to believe they can leave crews high and dry with unpaid wages, says senior national secretary Paul Keenan.

As an example, he is dealing with a case involving eight crew members from a Maltese-flagged yacht who contacted the Union last year when they were owed several months’ wages. Thanks to advice from Nautilus, they were paid — but then they got in touch with the Union later in the year to say that their contracts on the vessel had come to an end and they were once again owed more than a month’s worth of salary.

Mr Keenan said Nautilus had taken up their case and had made a series of representations to a Swiss-based organisation responsible for their employment arrangements. ‘The com-

Lairdside Maritime Centre

pany said it needed some accounts from the captain to be able to pay the crew off, but he had supplied these already.

‘Another crew member had contacted the owner about the owed wages, and the owner told him he didn’t care about dead dogs — meaning that he didn’t care because they were no longer working for him,’ Mr Keenan said.

‘This is just one example of how crew are being mistreated week in and week out,’ he added. ‘In this case, we are now in a position where we have lawyers involved and are looking to arrest the yacht. The sum involved comes to almost $100,000 and we believe the owner is deliberately withholding the payments — a position which is cynical and wholly unsustainable.’

In the last two years, Nautilus has recovered more than €200,000 in unpaid wages for superyacht crew members, Mr Keenan added.

It has assisted well over 180 crew in this period — the majority with owed wages, notice pay, accrued leave or problems with repatriation.

The Union recently secured €8,000 in owed salary and notice pay for one captain and

is currently dealing with the case of five crew from a Cayman Islands-registered yacht who are owed wages. In another case in Italy, Nautilus is helping members claim €30,000 in outstanding pay.

‘It seems that the only thing that many of these owners understand is the threat of legal action and the yacht being taken off them,’ Mr Keenan said.

Although there have been suggestions that the Maritime Labour Convention is improving matters, Mr Keenan warned that many Seafarer Employment Agreements are found not to be compliant with the terms of the convention. ‘We raised the non-conformities with one flag state and the excuse we got was that they have 600 ships on the register and are too busy to check everything,’ he added.

‘These cases are just the tip of the iceberg and show why yacht crew need to be members of Nautilus,’ Mr Keenan pointed out. ‘We now have more than 500 members in the sector, and the figure is growing all the time because we are independent, reliable and get the job done.’

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08 yachts.indd 6

by Michael Howorth

F

Once the facility currently refitting the 65m Shemara becomes free in June this year, Burgess Marine is hoping to use the UK’s last large independent superyacht building facility at Trafalgar Wharf, Portchester, to build Project Nelson.

Described as the ‘best of British’, the project aims to create a modern take on a classic motor yacht that will ‘challenge the conventional way of superyacht building’ using local labour and regional industry expertise.

Promoted jointly by Burgess Marine and Laurent Giles, the project would involve the construction of an 80m vessel capable of accommodating 12 guests and 24 crew.

Burgess Marine MD Nicholas Warren said the project is seeking the involvement of an enthusiastic owner to develop the project: ‘There is a huge opportunity to capitalise on the expertise and passion for shipbuilding in and around this great maritime city.’

And David Lewis, the MD of naval architects Laurent Giles, commented: ‘We’ve designed a superb yacht, to the very highest of modern standards.

With our high level of expertise and experience and with Burgess’s engineering knowledge and knowhow, the end result is sure to be mindblowing.’

To advertise in the Telegraph contact: Tom Poole T: 020 7880 6217 E: tom.poole@ redactive.co.uk

Yachts has once again secured by F far the largest share of the superyacht market in 2013, and continues to increase the lead it has held over other yacht brokerage houses for the last four years.

The report reveals that the company sold 50% more yachts than its closest competitor and closed 30% more deals than in 2012 — a substantial increase compared with other brokerage houses.

The increase began after the Monaco Yacht Show in September 2013. In the last four months the company has sold 24 yachts, and in January alone three of the yachts sold were in in-house deals, with the latest being the 60m Ulysses.

The statistics also show that the total number of yachts sold in 2013 increased by over 30% compared with the number of yachts sold in 2012.

This is by far the largest year on year increase since the recession hit and a very good sign for the industry as a whole.

‘Newbuild classic’ is proposed

sailing yacht M5 — formerly F Mirabella V — being put through Pictured above is the 75m

her paces off Falmouth while a new carbon rig was tested during sail trials last month.

The ‘performace sloop’ has undergone an extensive refit at the Pendennis yard, which included

replacing the main engines, generators, switchboards and sewage treatment plant and a 10-year DNV survey.

During several hours on the water with challenging sea conditions the remodelled yacht performed well, reaching 17.7 knots in 18 to 23 knots of wind.

19/02/2014 18:16

March 2014 | nautilusint.org | telegraph | 09

NEWS

Derbyshire families launch new drive to cut bulk carrier deaths lost their lives when the bulk A carrier Derbyshire sank in the South

Relatives of the seafarers who

China Sea in 1980 have launched a new charity to campaign for safer ships.

Formally launched at the Merseyside Maritime Museum last month, the MV Derbyshire Trust Fund has been created to help prevent loss of life at sea — and to step up the pressure for further measures to reduce bulk carrier losses.

Founding members including

chairman Paul Lambert, secretary Captain Dave Ramwell and treasurer Rev Peter McGrath told the launch event that while improvements in construction and inspection have been made since the Derbyshire sank with the loss of 44 lives, more work is required. In the 15 years to 2004, there were 869 deaths in 173 bulker sinkings, they pointed out, and in the past decade, statistics show that 192 seafarers have died in 66 losses — with cargo liquefaction being a major problem.

Mr Lambert, whose brother Peter was among the Derbyshire victims, said the Trust wants to make sure safety rules are updated so bulk carriers do not ‘return to the days of being called coffin ships’.

Seventeen people from the Liverpool area were onboard the Derbyshire when it sank. Merseyside Maritime Museum has a close relationship with the Derbyshire families and opened a permanent display dedicated to the disaster in 2012.

MV Derbyshire Trust Fund chairman Paul Lambert Picture: National Museums Liverpool

Experts warn on windfarm safety Conference hears call for action on vessel design, training and crew levels

P ‘Appy’ new year for Warsash students (WMA) has launched a A learning app to offer seafaring

Warsash Maritime Academy

students the chance to receive constantly updated training material.

Available to download free, the app offers access to updated course materials, career progression charts, WMA’s maritime course offering, news and a wide range of training FAQs via an iPad. Students already enrolled on the academy’s commercial yacht and engineering courses are able to access their course materials via a user name and password — even when offline. And access to course notes will shortly be rolled out to students undertaking unlimited certification, starting with phase one officer cadets.

‘With its modern look and feel and ease of use, anyone who is looking to pursue a career in the maritime industry will benefit from the information available from the app,’ said WMA director Andrew Hair.

‘The ability for Warsash students to constantly receive updated material is invaluable and means they can access their course material easily whilst they are onboard and working globally.’

The new app follows Warsash Superyacht Academy’s successful launch last year of a learning app for the large yacht sector.

The Warsash apps are available through the Apple App Store and future developments include an android version for non-Apple tablets.

Trinity House exhibition Maritime Museum is to stage F a special exhibition to coincide with The London-based National

the 500th anniversary of Trinity House this year.

Opening in April, the Guiding Lights exhibition will showcase the centuries of work by the Corporation of Trinity House to help seafarers navigate safely, featuring 70 rarely seen objects from Trinity House and the museum’s own collection.

09 news.indd 9

Displays will tell the history of Britain’s lighthouses through models, film and the personal effects of lighthouse keepers. Lightvessels, buoys and yachts are illustrated through a selection of watercolour sketches by the marine artist William Lionel Wyllie. g The exhibition opens on 16 April and runs until 4 January 2016, and admission is free. For further details: www.rmg.co.uk.

Nautilus International’s concerns over the safety of marine operations in the offshore wind sector have been echoed by health and safety experts in a speech last month.

Addressing the RenewableUK Health & Safety conference in Birmingham, David Cantello and Andrew Wilde from the offshore QHSE consultancy TÜV SÜD PMSS called for more stringent enforcement of UK Merchant Shipping legislation and guidance applicable to such vessels — especially on manning, hours of work and qualifications.

They warned that the safety of workboat crews and the windfarm technicians they carry is being threatened by fatigue, under-manning and ‘errors of watchkeeping potentially instigated as a result of the complex-

ity of navigation, monitoring and communications equipment, as well as the ergonomics of the bridge layout’.

They told the conference how demands on windfarm support vessels (WFSVs) and their crews are increasing as offshore windfarm developments move further out to sea. Crew transfer vessels must be able to cope with the demands of transit times of anything between two to six hours to and from offshore sites, remain stable during transfer of technical personnel and equipment onto wind turbines and maintain strong sea-keeping performance for all times in between.

Most WFSVs in operation are manned by just two to three crew, they pointed out, and this means that the working day can be as long as 12 to 14 hours.

A number of recent incidents involving WFSVs have been attributed directly to the failure of masters to simultaneously navigate the vessel with appropriate care and to manage the complex onboard systems, they said.

PMSS has also raised the concern that small crew sizes often mean that masters do not have qualified support in the operation of the ship’s communications equipment and systems.

The company says that in order to avoid major incidents in future, vessel design and manning levels need to take into account issues such as the workload, competence and qualifications of operating personnel, increasingly strenuous operating environments, fatigue, and management of working hours.

‘A vessel is only as good as the

crew operating it,’ said Mr Wilde.

‘Any factor that limits the performance of the crew will inevitably affect the performance of the vessel and threaten the safety of personnel onboard.

‘We simply cannot ignore the potential for under-manning leading to fatigue to cause a major incident in the near future,’ he added.

‘Designers and regulators need to start taking these human factor limitations into account as a new generation of WFSVs starts to enter the water,’ Mr Cantello added.

‘They should form an integral part of the codes governing vessel design to ensure human safety is a priority and safe working conditions are employed to meet the demands of rapidly evolving technologies.’

Inspectors’ concern at propulsion and auxiliary machinery defects have warned over the poor F condition of propulsion and auxiliary Port state control authorities

machinery on many ageing vessels.

They have urged owners to do more to maintain standards in response to the preliminary results of a three-month concentrated inspection programme carried out late last year.

The campaign was developed in response to inspection data showing that propulsion and auxiliary machinery deficiencies in previous years accounted for an average of around 7% of all detentions within the European and SE Asian port state control regions.

Special checks were carried out on more than 4,000 ships during the campaign and 68 vessels were

detained as a direct result of the programme.

More than half of the detained ships were over 20 years old and some 50% were general cargo/ multipurpose ships, 13% were bulk carriers and 13% were containerships.

Analysis revealed that most of the deficiencies related to main engine propulsion (20%), cleanliness of the engineroom (18%), emergency source of power/emergency generator (12%) and emergency lighting, batteries and switches (12%).

‘This outcome illustrates that wear and tear of propulsion and auxiliary machinery remains an issue which should be adequately addressed by shipowners,’ said Paris MOU secretary general Richard Schiferli.

19/02/2014 17:32

10 | telegraph | nautilusint.org | March 2014

NEWS

Breaking gets cleaner towards higher standards of F scrapping, according to a new report Shipowners are moving

which reveals a 24% reduction in the number of vessels being beached at substandard facilities in south Asia.

Figures released by the NGO Shipbreaking Platform last month showed that 1,213 ocean-going vessels were dismantled around in the world in 2013, of which 645 were sold to substandard beaching facilities in India, Pakistan and Bangladesh — down from 850 in the previous year.

‘More shipowners have opted for cleaner and safer solutions in 2013 compared to previous years — this is

UK puts £2m on offer for efficient ship proposals &Technology Laboratory (Dstl) A is offering £2m worth of funding The UK’s Defence Science

for innovative ideas to cut ship emissions.

The money is being put forward under the second stage of a collaborative research and development competition on vessel efficiency and will fund projects addressing voyage performance management and vessel system technologies across all sectors of the UK marine industry.

The Dstl funding aims to focus on system technologies such as emissions reduction systems and management, innovative energy production, management and storage reduction of onboard power demand, as well as fuel consumption monitoring and optimisation, and minimal-loss propulsion systems.

Technology Strategy Board chief executive Iain Gray said: ‘There is a breadth of expertise in the UK’s marine industry and it is important to build on this strong position and fully embrace opportunities worldwide in this sector. The funding from Dstl will provide additional support for UK businesses to work together on innovative ideas and rise to the challenge of improving vessel efficiency.’ f For more information visit: www. innovateuk.org.

breaking last year, of which 238 — almost two thirds — ended up on a South Asian beach, the organisation claimed. Owners in Greece and Germany disposed a record-high 80% of their end-of-life ships in India, Bangladesh and Pakistan.

NGO Shipbreaking Platform praised ‘best practice’ examples set by Norwegian shipowners Grieg and Höegh Autoliners, and Canada Steamship Lines (CSL) and Royal Dutch Boskalis who recycle their ships only within OECD countries. Dutch company Van Oord has also recently pledged to no longer beach any of its ships.

Warning over impact of ballast water measures Nautilus urges IMO to ensure that ‘human factor’ concerns are addressed in new convention

P

With the world inching towards implementation of the international Ballast Water Management (BWM) Convention, Nautilus has raised renewed concerns about its potentially adverse impact on masters and officers, and shipowners have stalled on their support for the proposals.

Some 38 countries, representing 30.38% of world merchant tonnage, have now ratified the convention and last month’s meeting of the International Maritime Organisation’s pollution prevention and response sub-committee discussed issues including guidelines for its implementation and advice on the use of ballast water management systems during stripping operations.

Speaking on behalf of the International Federation of Ship Masters’ Associations,

Nautilus professional and technical assistant David Appleton told the meeting: ‘IFSMA welcomes this additional guidance. However, we have concerns that the “human element” has not been given due consideration in accordance with the rules of the operation of this organisation — in particular safety and health, plus additional workload. This should be given fuller consideration.’

IFSMA is also supporting the development of a manual entitled Ballast Water Management — How to Do It. However, said Mr Appleton, it is also important that this guidance addresses human element concerns which have so far been ignored — including the potential criminalisation of ship masters through ballast water sampling and the effects on seafarers’ workloads.

z International shipowners have decided

to stop encouraging governments from ratifying the BWM Convention because of their concerns about the technical aspects of the proposals.

The International Chamber of Shipping said it believed governments should wait until outstanding implementation problems have been resolved — hopefully at the IMO’s marine environment protection committee in April — before signing up to the convention.

ICS chairman Masamichi Morooka explained: ‘In principle ICS fully supports the eventual entry into force of the convention and wants to make it work as soon as possible in order provide protection against invasive species.

‘But the industry still has very serious concerns with respect to the lack of robust-

ness of the current IMO type-approval standards for the very expensive new treatment equipment that will be required, as well about the criteria to be used for sampling ballast water during port state control inspections.’

He added: ‘Governments need to understand that the industry cannot support the immediate entry into force of a regime that will require billions of dollars of investment without any confidence that the new treatment equipment will actually work, or that it will comply with the standards that governments have set for killing unwanted marine micro-organisms.’

However, Mr Marooka said, the ICS believes that the legal changes needed to make the ballast regime ‘fit for purpose’ are relatively small and can be agreed in principle by governments quickly.

Writing@Sea results show seafarers’ storytelling skills Nautilus/Marine Society A Writing@Sea competition, and the The results are in from the

judges say they are delighted with the strength and breadth of the entries.

Entrants were invited to submit poems or short stories for the creative writing competition, on the theme of ‘life at sea’. Up to two entries per person were allowed — and by the closing date of 31 December 2013, 306 entries had been received from 210 individual entrants.

The judging panel was led by Mark Windsor, the head of lifelong learning at the Marine Society. The four other judges were poet Jeremy Reed, novelist Howard Cunnell, retired shipmaster and author Colin Darch, and retired engineer officer and author Bob Jackman. Following gruelling deliberations and much heartfelt debate about the relative merits of the entries, the judges have agreed the results as follows: z The overall winner of the Writing@ Sea competition, who will receive the Marine Society Prize of £1,000,

10 news.indd 10

good news for the environment and the workers, and also for those ship recycling yards globally that have invested in better practices,’ said Patrizia Heidegger, executive director of the lobby group.

But, she warned, the figures show that EU owners were responsible for 40% of the vessels sent to substandard breakers. NGO Shipbreaking Platform is calling for regulations to prevent EU-flagged ships from switching registries to dodge EU regulations on ship recycling which came into force on 30 December 2013.

European shipowners sold a total of 372 large commercial vessels for

is William (Ken) Davies, for his story Only Us. The judges all agreed that this was the outstanding entry of the bunch, and Howard Cunnell praised Mr Davies’s ‘skilful use of language and authentic nautical background’.

Awards were also made by category, and the winners and runners-up listed below will each receive a Kobo Aura e-reader. z Poetry prize for serving seafarers: winner Jack William Metcalfe, for Sail Away With Me; second place Marc Rattle; third place Christopher Stevenson z Story prize for serving seafarers: Philip Mack, for The Watchkeeper’s Arms; second place Matthew Winwood; third place Buchanan Bailie z Poetry prize for entrants not serving at sea: winner Roy Cockcroft, for Finisterre; second place Ellen Cranitch; third place David Broadbridge z Story prize for entrants not serving at sea: Robert Francis Harris, for A Titan’s Case; second place Kevin Field, third place Robert Ogden

z Poetry prize for entrants aged 12-18: Amy Bales, for We’re Here, second place Lucas Ferrar z Story prize for entrants aged 12-18: Caitlin Vinicombe, for Story With No End; second place Clementine Thompson All the winners will be invited to an awards ceremony later in the year.

Extracts from some of the winning entries will be published in next month’s Telegraph and the Marine Society’s quarterly magazine. Plans are also underway for the winning entries, and a selection of other highly-commended stories and poems from the competition, to be published in full in an anthology. g Have you had your say yet in the Nautilus/Marine Society Book of the Year survey? Lots of Telegraph readers have already taken part in our 10-minute online quiz about seafarers’ reading habits and favourite books, but we want to hear from as many people as possible. There’s more information on page 16, or visit www. nautilusint.org.

novelist Martina Cole, who A visited the Marine Society in

Pictured above is bestselling

London last month to help launch the Reading Agency’s Six Book Challenge for 2014.

Ms Cole is the official ambassador for this year’s Six Book Challenge, which encourages less-confident adult readers in the UK to develop a love of reading.

She is keen to support the Marine Society in rolling out the challenge to seafarers, as her own father was in the Merchant Navy and inspired

her to read by bringing a new book home from every voyage.

During her visit, the author delivered an exciting selection of books destined for ships’ crews, and heard first-hand from seafarers what last year’s Six Book Challenge had meant to them.

Just as they will this year, the Marine Society sent out Challenge books to over 40 containerships in 2013 so crews could take part — picking six reads of their choice and completing a reading diary in order to get a certificate.

19/02/2014 18:00

March 2014 | nautilusint.org | telegraph | 11

NEWS

Concerns voiced over Polar Code Clyde Group MD Joyce Downie with Sean Maitland, Glasgow Warriors & Scotland rugby international , and MSP Fergus Ewing

Nautilus, insurers and green groups warn of shortcomings in IMO proposals

Ministerial opening for Clyde Marine’s new headquarters

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Nautilus has added its voice to concern about the slow progress being made on the development of an international Polar Code for shipping in Arctic and Antarctic waters.

The final draft of the Code — which covers issues including ship structure, stability and subdivision, life-saving and crew training — has been agreed by the International Maritime Organisation’s ship design and construction committee and is set to gain final approval by the maritime safety committee in November.

The Code aims to address concerns over safety raised by the growing amount of shipping operations in polar waters as a result of global warming. Last year alone, traffic in these areas increased by around 50%.

Regulators have finally come up with a Polar Code to cover the structural and operational issues of the increasing traffic in the Arctic and Antarctic regions — but environmentalists claim the proposal has not gone far enough.

The code also covers communications, search and rescue, pollution prevention, machinery installations, passage planning and ice navigator qualifications and training.

The Transport & Environment lobby group has criticised the code’s failure to address the use of heavy fuel oil and black carbon emissions — claiming that ‘environmental protection has essentially been put on the back-burner through the active lobbying of the shipping and cruise industry, which consistently dismisses ecological concerns’.

Nautilus senior national secretary Allan Graveson said work on the Code had been ‘little more than a paper exercise in order to justify the indefensible — namely, the operation of ships in

enterprise minister Fergus A Ewing officially opened the new Scotland’s energy and

The Russian research ship Akademik Shokalskiy trapped in ice in the Antarctic in January Picture: Reuters

polar waters in which they were not intended to operate’.

Mr Graveson pointed out that the International Federation of Ship Masters’ Associations had placed on record the necessity for helicopter landing decks on all vessels operating in such waters, as well as a life boat seat for all onboard.

‘The inadequacy of the intended Polar Code, together with the slow progress that has been made, has been recognised by the insurance market which are insisting on additional precautions, including the possibility of cruise vessels operating in pairs,’ he pointed out.

Mr Graveson expressed additional concern at proposals to give a period of grace for the application of the Polar Code to existing ships and also stressed the need to ensure that adequate reception facilities are in place in Arctic waters.

Brussels clampdown on illegal waste shipments to develop new rules to clamp F down on illegal waste shipments.

Euro-MPs have backed proposals

The draft regulations would close legal loopholes, increase the number of checks and give inspectors more powers.

Under the plans, EU member states would be required to carry out risk assessments for specific waste streams and sources of illegal shipments and to set out their priorities in annual inspection plans.

The rules are also intended to combat ‘port hopping’ by illegal exporters taking advantage of less stringent checks and controls in some countries to send hazardous waste to

11 news.indd 11

headquarters of The Clyde Group last month — Seaforth House, at Hillington Park, Glasgow.

The new building is the first phase of an expansion plan for the group, which provides a wide range of support services for the shipping industry — including the recruitment of shore-based staff, training, travel management, medical services and uniforms.

Its Clyde Marine Training subsidiary manages the process of selecting and training 50% of the annual intake of UK Merchant Navy officer trainees, while Clyde Travel Management is officially recognised as one of Scotland and the UK’s leading business travel agents.

Other companies within the

developing nations in other parts of the world.

‘Too many member states have been dragging their feet and have not been carrying out any real time inspections and checks on illegal waste shipments from their territories,’ said Belgian MEP Bart Staes.

‘Although the EU Waste Shipment Regulation requires that all waste exported out of the OECD countries is treated in an environmentally sound manner to protect citizens and environment, inspections have shown that approximately 25% of waste shipments within the EU do not comply with the WSR,’ he added.

z Nautilus has attended a

presentation at the IMO by Denmark on its newly-developed ArcticWeb aid to safe navigation in the Arctic.

The net-based service collects and presents relevant maritime information for navigating Arctic waters and makes it possible for ships to coordinate their voyages, carry out risk analysis and retrieve detailed information about ice and weather conditions as well as navigational warnings.

Denmark is introducing mandatory regulations for the everincreasing number of cruise vessels operating in the waters

of Greenland, and plans to have these in place by 2015.

The rules will establish navigation areas within the 3nm zone off the coast and vessels will be required to have ice class in line with the requirements of the draft Polar Code. The master must have at least three months’ Polar experience.

Denmark will enforce coordinated voyages and risk assessments must be carried out every six hours to determine time to rescue in the event of an incident.

There will be mandatory pilotage for all vessels with more than 250 passengers.

group include Topstaff Employment, which supplies staff for the commercial, transport and leisure industries, and Clyde Healthcare, which provides care at home on behalf of local authorities as well as drug and alcohol testing services to the marine and industrial sectors.

Clyde Group MD Joyce Downie commented: ‘This move has been necessitated by the rapid growth of the group and its associated companies since the management buy-out in 2008. This relocation will provide not only for our present but our continued expansion.’

Mr Ewing described the group as ‘a shining example of what a Scottish company can achieve through hard work, diversification and the creation of brands that are instantly recognisable within their individual industry sectors’.

EU GPS is on the way a European Commission A announcement that the EU’s satellite Nautilus has welcomed

navigation service, Galileo, could be up and running by the end of this year.

Following talks with the European Space Agency and the five main companies involved in the scheme, European Commission vice-president Antonio Tajani said last month that the launch of six additional satellites could enable the initial Galileo services to be available late this year or early in 2015.

SEAFARER

BOOK OF THE

YEAR

He said the planned launch of the first Copernicus satellite launch in March will also enable considerable progress in improving maritime security, climate change monitoring and providing support in emergency and crisis situations.

Nautilus senior national secretary Allan Graveson commented: ‘This is good news. Europe needs its own system.’ g Trinity House warns on GPS risks — see page 24.

VOTE FOR YOUR BOOK OF THE YEAR! Tell us your favourite books and authors of 2013 for a chance to win one of 5 Kobo e-readers!

Terms and conditions apply. visit: marine-society.org/seafarerbook

Vote here:

marine-society.org/seafarerbook

A charity registered in England and Wales 313013 and in Scotland SC037808

19/02/2014 17:19

12 | telegraph | nautilusint.org | March 2014

HEALTH & SAFETY

‘Reckless’ master sailed into storm the US coast in October 2012 has been blamed A for taking a ‘reckless decision’ to attempt to sail

The master of a sail training ship which sank off

The tall ship Bounty sinks off the North Carolina coast Picture: USCG

Club concern over seafarers ignoring weather warnings F

Failure to take proper note of weather reports resulted in a tanker accident which cost more than US$44m to clean up, a P&I club has revealed.

The London Club warned last month that the case is just one of an increasing number of incidents in which masters and officers have ignored navigational and meteorological information.

The absence of a system for reading, considering and applying Naxtex information on the tanker — which was at anchor — meant the bridge team were caught out when conditions deteriorated. By the time they got the main engine online the ship had dragged the anchor and was holed on a rocky shoreline, causing an oil spill.

The club says it has seen a rise over the past 12 months in the number of deficiencies relating to Temporary and Preliminary (T&P) notices to mariners, and an increase

in negative findings in relation to the management of radio navigation and meteorological warnings.

‘If T&P notices are not consistently applied to the chart folio, the ship’s navigating officer and officers of the watch may be deprived of valuable passage planning information,’ its StopLoss bulletin warns.

‘T&P notices contain a vast array of information which may influence the planning or conduct of a passage,’ it adds. ‘Efficient passage planning requires the assimilation of goodquality information which ought to leave the mariner better equipped to decide how to conduct the passage of a ship.’

The club concludes: ‘Officers should be reminded of the full extent of the chart and publication folio to which corrections apply, and of the risks of ignoring sources of navigational and meteorological information.’

Officers failed to spot ship was off-course which ran aground while A carrying a cargo of diesel fuel had not Officers onboard a tanker

realised the ship was off course, an investigation has revealed.

The Transportation Safety Board of Canada (TSB) said the 9,215dwt Nanny had grounded on a shoal in the Chesterfield Narrows, Nunavut, after having failed to return to the planned course after deviating to pass an anchored vessel while operating on a fuel supply shuttle run.

As a result of ‘insufficient monitoring of the vessel’s navigation and ineffective bridge resource management’ the bridge team had been unaware that the Canadianflagged tanker had continued on a parallel course which was up to 0.12nm off the charted route as it entered the narrows, the report notes.

The TSB said the master had ‘focussed his attention on manoeuvring the main engine

12-13_h+s.indd 12

controls rather than monitoring the navigation’.

The route deviation was not discussed by the bridge team, nor did they share navigational information throughout the voyage, the report adds.

Investigators said available navigational aids had not been adequately cross-referenced and they had not been optimally set up.

‘If navigational equipment and its associated features, such as alarms, are not optimally configured, potentially useful information to assist in the vessel’s safe navigation may not be available to bridge teams,’ the report points out.

The TSB noted that the tanker’s operator has since introduced improved procedures to reduce the risks of sailing in confined waterways and has enhanced and accelerated its bridge resource management and vessel handling training programmes.

through the forecasted path of a hurricane.

A US National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) investigation into the loss of the tall ship Bounty has concluded that the vessel’s master took a ‘needless risk’ in sailing close to superstorm Sandy during a voyage from Port London, Connecticut, to St Petersburg, Florida.

The 52-year-old vessel — a replica of the original 18th Century British ship of the same name — sank with the loss of two lives after taking on water in 30ft seas and winds gusting up to 90 knots.

The NTSB report, published last month, said that some crew members had expressed concerns before the Bounty sailed — but they had been assured by the captain that the vessel could cope with the adverse conditions. It notes that he could have

delayed the sailing, but his decision to leave port on a Thursday evening had probably been influenced by his superstition about departing on a Friday.

But the 16-page report says the captain’s belief that he could ‘outrace’ the hurricane had been misplaced, and all onboard had failed to anticipate ‘the damaging effect that prolonged exposure to the storm would have on the wooden vessel’.

The report notes that 10 of the Bounty’s 16 crew had worked less than six months on the vessel, and only the captain and four other crew had more than two years of experience on tall ships. It describes how many of them became increasingly affected by seasickness and fatigue as they struggled to keep critical machinery running and pumps operating.

US Coast Guard helicopters managed to rescue 14 of the crew after they abandoned ship when it lost electrical power and heeled sharply to starboard after taking on more than 10ft of water.

‘Although this wooden ship was modelled after an 18th century vessel, the captain had access to 21st century hurricane modelling tools that predicted the path and severity of Hurricane Sandy,’ said NTSB chairwoman Deborah Hersman. ‘The Bounty’s crew was put into an extraordinarily hazardous situation through decisions that by any measure didn’t prioritise safety.’

Investigators found that the Bounty had undergone maintenance and repairs before its final voyage, and questions had been raised about the use of a silicone sealant marked for household use and a decision to paint over rotted woodwork.

The report criticises the failure to ensure that all the ship’s pumps were fully operational before sailing into heavy weather and also points to the lack of effective safety oversight by the company which owned and operated the ship, the HMS Bounty Organisation.

Crew tried to cover up after grounding Accident investigators found falsified logbooks onboard UK-flagged ship

P

Accident investigators have raised concern about a case in which the master and chief officer of a UKflagged ship sought to cover up the causes of its grounding in the North Sea last year.

The UK Marine Accident Investigation Branch (MAlB) concluded that the 1,311gt Douwent had gone aground on Haisborough Sand in the early hours of 26 February after the chief officer — who was alone on the bridge — fell asleep and missed a waypoint.

The Greek-owned ship — which has since shifted to the Liberian registry — was refloated an hour after the grounding, but had to be towed to the Netherlands for repairs because the rudder was lost during attempts to manoeuvre off the sandbank.

The MAIB described the circumstances of the accident as ‘a cause for concern’ and said the actions of the Polish master and OOW demonstrated that considerable work is required by the company to ensure a more positive safety culture.

Douwent was sailing under the UK flag when it grounded Picture: MAIB

The report states that the OOW did not notice that the vessel was heading into danger until it was too late for effective action to be taken. He had probably fallen asleep while alone on the bridge, investigators said.

The ship was sailing in ballast from the UK port of Boston to Amsterdam when the accident occurred. The chief officer had taken over the watch at 2355hrs and had told the AB lookout that he was not required, although the MAIB noted that he had later left the bridge for between four and eight minutes to go to the toilet.

Douwent ran aground at 0256, but the master managed to refloat the ship at 0355, and when the lack of steering was discovered the ship anchored at 0530. The master then called Yarmouth MRCC to say the ship had anchored as a result of a rudder problem, without mentioning a grounding.

The MAIB said the subsequent incident report filed by the master referred to steering problems and also included a report from the AB on watch, stating that he had been on duty on the bridge between midnight and 0400.

But investigators said they had

determined that log entries stating that the ship had anchored at 0245 because of the steering difficulties, and that positions plotted on the paper chart had been made after the ship anchored.

The MAIB said it was clear that the master and chief officer had attempted to cover up what had actually happened ‘by falsifying documents and providing inaccurate accounts’.

Investigators said they were also concerned at other aspects of the accident, including the master’s failure to check the passage plan, charts being old and in need of replacement, plotted positions of two waypoints being some 400m from the positions detailed in the passage plan, and the chief officer’s reliance solely upon GPS and failure to monitor the vessel’s position by any other means.

The bridge watch alarm was also switched off, the report adds, and the chief officer had probably been asleep ‘for an extended period’ before the grounding — possibly for more than two hours.

RNLI reports a record number of launches than 8,300 times around the UK A coast last year — with 50% of call-outs RNLI lifeboats launched more

to assist people out on the water for fun.

The life-saving charity said the overall number of lifeboat launches in 2013 was broadly in line with the previous year — 8,304 times compared with 8,346 times in 2012.

The volunteer crews launched 3,069 times into darkness and 124 times into winds above a Force 7 and rescued a total of 8,384 people.

The biggest cause of call-out for

the RNLI was machinery failure, with lifeboats launching 1,596 times to boats with mechanical problems.

Launches to commercial shipping or MoD vessels accounted for 270 callouts, while 517 were made to fishing vessels.

Operations director George Rawlinson commented: ‘It’s been another challenging year for the RNLI and the figures show that our dedicated volunteer crew, lifeguards and flood rescue teams are ready to save lives whatever the weather throws at them.’

The Mitsui OSK Lines bulk carrier C.S. Sunshine rescued 24 crew members after they abandoned the sinking bulk carrier Rich Forest because it had flooded and lost power 700km west of Guam last month Picture: MOL

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March 2014 | nautilusint.org | telegraph | 13

HEALTH & SAFETY

Crew get blame for ferry crash MAIB points to ‘complacency’ as cause of missed chances to avert accident

P

A 22,382gt ro-pax ferry was holed when it hit a berth in the UK port of Harwich at 7.5 knots after a propulsion control back-up system was mistakenly activated.

A Marine Accident Investigation Branch report on the incident points to ‘complacency’ amongst crew members as a key factor behind the failure to identify the error until almost two hours after the heavy contact occurred.

The accident took place as the Danish-flagged DFDS ferry Sirena Seaways was arriving in Harwich on 22 June last year after a voyage from Esbjerg with 431 passengers and 58 crew onboard.

No one was injured, but the ship suffered ‘considerable damage’ to its fore-end — including penetrations above and below the waterline — and a linkspan was demolished, along with damage to mooring towers, walkways and the concrete berth.

About half an hour before the accident, the vessel’s speed was cut from 19 knots to 23 knots — equivalent to a setting of about 63% on the CPP system.

Investigators said that the back-up control button was probably inadvertently switched on at this time, as the bridge console lights-up button was activated.

About 15 minutes later, the duty second engineer noticed that the engine control room indicator light for the starboard

A crew member surveys the damage after the Sirena Seaways struck the berth in Harwich last year Picture: Isla Reynolds/RNLI

shaft back-up control system was lit. He asked why, but the chief engineer was unable to explain it and no further action was taken.

Investigators said the activation of the back-up control system meant that any subsequent

attempts to control the starboard CPP with the combinatory levers on the centre on wing controls were bypassed — with records showing the system had remained set at about 63% ahead throughout the incident and dur-

ing attempts to tow the ship off the berth.

The MAIB report highlights previous incidents in which poor ergonomics associated with the design of the propulsion control indicators were a factor, and it said both the original design and subsequent modifications had ‘provided a false sense of security to the operator’.

But the report also refers to the ‘complacency’ that resulted in a ‘readily diagnosable error’ being effectively ignored — with both bridge and engineering teams missing the potential to identify the incorrectly operated back-up button.

Insufficient attention had been paid to check that correct buttons had been operated and that correct indicator lights were lit, the MAIB said.

There had also been a failure to test the bridge wing combinatory levers and the pitch feedback indicators and vessel speed, to monitor gauges and indicators to ensure they matched the commands being given, to repeat and verify helm and propulsion orders, and to ensure the ship’s speed was appropriate.

The report notes that DFDS has taken a series of measures to address some of the problems identified in the accident, and it also recommends that the company should review the need for regular bridge and crew resource management training.

Singapore collisions concern urgent warnings to shipping last A month after a spate of collisions in the Authorities in Singapore issued

area.

The Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore (MPA) said it was ‘gravely concerned’ after three collisions within the space of three weeks resulted in oil spills, and said it would implement ‘several measures with immediate effect to minimise future marine incidents’.

In the first incident, the Hong Kongflagged chemical tanker Lime Galaxy

collided with the Chinese-flagged containership Feihe some 2.7km south of Jurong Island. On the following day, the Panama-flagged containership NYK Themis hit the barge AZ Fuzhou in the East Keppel Fairway, and just under a fortnight later the Liberian-flagged containership Hammoia Thracium collided with the Panama-flagged chemical tanker Zoey off Seborak Island, resulting in an 80-tonne bunker spill.

The MPA said it is investigating the causes of all three collisions and would

examine whether there were ‘systemic issues that need to be addressed’.

The Authority set up a series of safety navigation briefings with the local shipping community and said its port operations control centre would be making special broadcasts to highlight ‘the importance of safe navigation and vigilance in Singapore waters’.

Chief executive Andrew Tan said the MPA was gravely concerned about the incidents and is ‘enhancing its navigational alerts to masters and

pilots to help improve their situational awareness’.

Singapore is one of the world’s busiest ports and traffic in the area has increased sharply. The number of vessel transits of the Malacca Strait increased to a record of 77,973 last year, passing the previous high of 76,381 in 2008. The number of VLCCs transits through the straits totalled 4,825 last year, an average of 13.2 a day.

Containership transit numbers are still lower than the peak of 26,359 in 2008, totalling 24,658 last year.

Carnival Triumph hit a dredger after breaking free from its moorings in a US dock last year Picture: USCG

Cruiseship damaged after bollards failed blamed for a fatal accident A which resulted in US$2.9m worth of Corroded bollards have been

damage when a Carnival cruiseship broke free from its moorings and drifted across a dock last year.

The 101,509gt Carnival Triumph was undergoing repairs at the BAE Systems shipyard in Mobile, Alabama, when successive mooring bollards failed under pressure caused by winds gusting at up to 65mph.

The ship — which had lost all connections with the shore, including electrical power — drifted across the Mobile River, colliding with a dredger and damaging a tug that had gone to its aid. One shipyard worker was killed when a section of a pier collapsed during the incident.

A National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) investigation

determined that substandard mooring bollards were to blame for the incident. It said an engineering assessment carried out for the shipyard in 2010 had identified serious shortcomings in the condition of the mooring hardware. However, the report notes, the company did not act on recommendations to conduct further checks on the mooring capacity in heavy weather conditions.

BAE Systems responded to the NTSB report by challenging the conclusions and stating that further ‘metallurgical and meteorological assessments’ of the bollards would show that ‘the sequence of events and the actual cause of the breakaway are different than the conclusions the NTSB reached with its limited investigation’.

Seafarers warned over anchoring near cables against anchoring near power A and communications cables following Seafarers have been warned

a court case in New Zealand.

Ship master Colin Cooper was fined NZ$4,000 (€2,434) for anchoring his vessel in the Cook Strait Cable Protection Zone (CPZ) — an offence which carries a maximum fine of NZ$25,000 and potential forfeiture of the offending vessel.

The cables form part of the inter-island link which transfers

power between the North and South Island, and the Transpower company warned that damage can put the security of the country’s energy supplies at risk.

Transpower communications manager Rebecca Wilson said there had been previous incidents where trawling equipment, other fishing gear and anchors have caught on the undersea cables and these had caused damage costing up to $60m to repair.

The Tube, 86 North Street Cheetham Hill, Manchester M8 8RA

DELIVERY WORLDWIDE

New alert over cargo liquefaction risks liquefaction have come from a leading P&I club A following two recent ship losses.

Fresh warnings about the risks of cargo

The London P&I Club says the losses, and the lifting of a ban on iron ore exports from Goa, India, have raised renewed worries about the ‘challenges’ involved in the safe transport of cargoes with high moisture content.

The club said it had previously issued a number of

12-13_h+s.indd 13

warnings about the dangers of cargo liquefaction — particularly in cases involving the carriage of iron ore fines and nickel ore from places such as India, Sierra Leone, Guatemala, Indonesia and the Philippines.

Total losses in recent months involved a ship carrying Indian iron ore fines and a second carrying nickel ore. Investigations into both cases are at an early stage to establish precisely the cause of the sinkings, the club added, and while no links between

these incidents and the cargoes have yet been established, it stressed the need for ‘great care’ to be take.

‘Ships can be offered cargo which is unsafe due to their moisture content being above the Transportable Moisture Limit,’ it pointed out. ‘This can lead to liquefaction, and is a particular problem in locations such as parts of India, when the cargoes are exposed to monsoon rain.’

Q Braids Q Work Wear Q Tropical Wear Q Cadet Uniforms Q Officers Uniforms

19/02/2014 17:20

14 | telegraph | nautilusint.org | March 2014

INTERNATIONAL

shortreports US WARNED: the decline in the number of US merchant seafarers threatens to jeopardise the country’s economic and defence strategies, a new report has warned. The Government Accountability Office study said shortfalls in the supply of US seafarers could set back a 30-year policy goal to significantly increase the amount of trade carried by US-flagged ships. It expresses concern over the lack of reliable data on the US maritime workforce and calls for a strategy to identify problems in ensuring the supply of seafarers to meet industry needs.

CONTAINERSHIP CLAIM: the Japanese owner Mitsui OSK Lines has started legal proceedings against Mitsubishi Heavy Industries for damages relating to the break-up and sinking of the containership MOL Comfort in the Indian Ocean last year. MOL is seeking compensation for having to strengthen the hulls of the MOL Comfort’s six sisterships after investigations revealed ‘buckling-type’ deformations in the area where the hull fracture originated.

FRENCH DOWNGRADE: France is to downgrade its participation in the European Union’s Operation Atalanta counter-piracy force in response to the reduction in attacks off Somalia. Defence minister Jean-Yves Le Drian told parliament that the move should save around €10m a year and will help to strengthen protection for shipping in the Gulf of Guinea.

CAPTAIN JAILED: the commanding officer of a French navy frigate has been jailed for 12 months and fined €10,000 for harassing an officer who committed suicide onboard the ship in June 2010. Witnesses told the court that there had been ‘an atrocious atmosphere’ onboard the vessel, La Fayette, while under the command of Captain Éric Delepoulle.

GUARDS DEBATE: a long-awaited plan to allow armed guards to be deployed on French-flagged ships is set to be debated in parliament in April. The seafarers’ union CGT said it would prefer to have military personnel than private security teams on merchant ships and has stressed the need for shipmasters to have the ultimate authority on their deployment.

TANKER DIVERTED: a Turkish-flagged products tanker was ordered to divert to the French port of Dunkirk last month after it was alleged to have been spotted causing pollution off the port of Le Havre. The Deniz-S was escorted into port by a customs vessel to enable inspections and investigations to be carried out.

UASC ORDER: the United Arab Shipping Company (UASC) has exercised options for six 14,000TEU vessels to be built at the Hyundai Heavy Industries (HHI) yard in South Korea. The orders mean UASC now has 16 ships worth more than $2bn being built, with deliveries due from late 2014 to the first half of 2015.

PORT PROTEST: the biggest French oil port, Fos-Lavera near Marseilles, was closed by a 24-hour strike called by the CGT union last month. The strike was the second within a fortnight and was staged to protest about proposed reforms to port services.

NZ union warns on licensing shake-up Country’s new certificate regime puts cost-cutting before safety, says Guild

P

New Zealand’s Merchant Service Guild has criticised a new licensing framework for the domestic and international certification of the country’s seafarers which is set to come into force soon.

Transport minister Gerry Brownlee last month signed into law the Maritime Rules giving effect to Maritime New Zealand (MNZ) SeaCert scheme, which will come into effect on 1 April this year.

‘SeaCert provides a new, simpler and competency-based domestic certificate framework as well as increased recognition of New Zealand certificates overseas, making it easier for NZ seafarers to work in other jurisdictions,’ said MNZ maritime standards general manager Sharyn Forsyth.

Described as a robust and practical system designed with seafarers in mind, SeaCert also sets out where seafarers can operate in local and international waters and will replace the old Qualifications and Operational Limits

(QOL) system. MNZ is putting together more than 50 pieces of guidance covering every certificate and endorsement, so no matter what qualification a seafarer holds, there is information designed specifically for it.

‘No seafarer will lose privileges under SeaCert — in fact some will gain privileges as they transition to the new system,’ said MNZ. But the proposals had been opposed by the Merchant Service Guild, the union representing masters, deck officers, pilots and tug masters, and engineers. It argued that the package will have a ‘devastating effect’ on the country’s maritime education and will reduce the level of qualification currently required onboard NZ vessels over 500gt.

The union said SeaCert had nothing to do with raising standards and was instead an exercise to reduce compliance costs for NZ owners and foreign companies operating in the country’s waters.

‘In our view they are also about making the

law fit a culture of exemption and non-compliance,’ it added.

The Guild said it was particularly concerned about a move to expand the current ‘near coastal’ operating limit to the whole of NZ’s exclusive economic zone — weakening STCW certification requirements for masters and officers on ships operating up to 200nm off the country’s coastline.

The plans will mean that all vessels of between 500 and 3,000gt operating anywhere in the NZ EEZ can be under the command of a person holding the NZ Offshore Master qualification — which currently does not permit holders to serve in any officer position on any ship of more than 500gt.

‘Even with the fallout from the Rena grounding still reverberating, Maritime NZ’s SeaCert proposals demonstrate a continued willingness to subordinate such risks to the profits of NZ and overseas shipowners,’ said Guild general secretary Helen McAra.

Cruise firm set up by officers orders a new ship du Ponant has announced a A fourth newbuild for its fleet of ‘yacht-

The French operator Compagnie

style’ luxury cruise vessels.

Set to enter into service in April next year, Le Lyrial will be the last in a series of 10,944gt ‘human size’ vessels carrying up to 264 passengers.

Certified a ‘clean-ship’ — like sisterships Le Boreal, L’Austral and Le Soleal, pictured right —

the French-flagged Le Lyrial will operate an inaugural season in the Mediterranean before heading to Antarctica.

Compagnie du Ponant is the only French cruise company and was launched in 1988 by Jean-Emmanuel Sauvée and a dozen other officers from the French Merchant Navy. It presently operates four ships and carries some 20,000 passengers a year.

Singapore agrees new round of funds to increase officer cadet numbers with a new S$22m (€12.75m) funding scheme A has been welcomed by the country’s maritime A plan to boost seafarer training in Singapore

officers’ union (SMOU).

The five-year Tripartite Nautical Training Award (TNTA) programme aims to increase the number of Singapore nationals serving on Singapore-flagged ships, and will cover training fees and a monthly allowance of up to S$1,400 per cadet during the 31-month training course.

The programme was initiated by the SMOU in 2009 in a bid to develop local seafaring expertise.

The maritime industry is a core pillar of Singapore’s economy, contributing some 7% of the nation’s GDP and providing 170,000 jobs. But only 1,605 of the 20,000 officers serving on the 4,200 Singaporeflagged ships are Singaporeans.

So far, the TNTA programme has supported 130 Singapore nationals through their cadetships, and the scheme is now backed by 13 shipping companies

who have provided shipboard placements, training allowances and long-term jobs.

SMOU general secretary Mary Liew welcomed the decision to commit the funds for the next five years of the programme, through the Singapore Workforce Development Agency (WDA) and the National TUC’s Employment & Employability Institute (e2i). ‘These well-paying jobs should go to the locals in order that our maritime industry can remain vibrant for years to come,’ she added.

Subsidy row threatens SNCM reorganisation operator SNCM has agreed a A reorganisation plan which aims to French Mediterranean ferry

increase the profitability of the fleet and includes plans for efficient new environmentally-friendly LNGpowered vessels, pictured left.

However, unions are concerned that the plan could be threatened by the decision of the European Court’s attorney-general to uphold a controversial order for the Marseilles-based operator to repay €220m of subsidies given during its privatisation and restructuring between 2002 and 2006.

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19/02/2014 18:28

March 2014 | nautilusint.org | telegraph | 15

INTERNATIONAL

Brittany set to launch a ‘no frills’ operation A

The French operator Brittany Ferries is launching a new ‘no-frills’ service linking Portsmouth with Le Havre and Santander.

Branded Brittany Ferries économie, the service will begin operations on 25 March using the 26,904gt French-flagged ferry Norman Voyager — pictured right — on charter from Stena Line.

The company says the ship will be run with unchanged crewing arrangements following an agreement with the unions on conditions across the fleet.

About 100 full-time equivalent

jobs will be created by the service.

A Brittany Ferries spokesman said the new operation will be

different from the company’s usual ‘cruise-style experience’ and customers can expect a limited

choice of good quality French catering, cabins with en-suite facilities but without carpets, and reserved lounge seats on overnight crossings. One-way fares for a car plus two will start at just £79 to France and £169 (including reclining seats) to Spain.

Group commercial director Mike Bevens commented: ‘We feel that there is an opening for a no-frills, great-value service which will appeal to those who are on a tight budget and may not have even considered travelling by ferry before.’

Union concern over Newhaven service Fears for future as council decides not to award contract for Dieppe route new French law requiring all A ships sailing between the country’s

by Jeff Apter

Corsica Ferries has criticised a

S

French maritime unions have expressed concern at the shock decision not to award a new public service contract for operating the NewhavenDieppe ferry service.

The Seine-Maritime district council last month rejected the bid submitted by the MyFerry Link (MFL) company — via its owner, the Scop/SeaFrance cooperative — to take over the service when the current contract runs out at the end of this year.

MFL was the only remaining candidate for the eight-year contract after DFDS — which currently operates the service under the Transmanche Ferries banner — withdrew from the process because it did not believe it could satisfy the conditions laid down by the Seine-Maritime council, which provides around €14m a year in financial support for the service.

Peder Gellert Pedersen, vicepresident of DFDS’s shipping division, commented: ‘Among other things, the conditions contain an exclusivity requirement, which means that we can’t pool our general resources, our procurement volumes, large fleet and other resources in order to benefit from economies of scale.

ports to apply the French labour code to crews — irrespective of the flag flown by the vessel.

Corsica Ferries operates under the Italian flag, and company MD Pierre Mattei claimed it would be impossible to impose French law on an Italian vessel. He said the firm would contest any moves to apply the French code on his vessels — arguing that the conditions for seafarers under the Italian second register are ‘equal to or better’ than French terms.

But French seafaring unions hotly dispute his claims. Frédéric Alpozzo, the CGT delegate at the French operator SNCM, said Corsica Ferries employed very few Italians. Seafarers came from Greece, Portugal, Romania, Bulgaria, Lithuania and the Czech republic, he said.

Picture: Eric Houri

‘This would be needed in order to achieve the required improvement in the route’s financial performance,’ he added. ‘The tender’s current economic model therefore does not allow us to submit a reasonable offer for the route.

If the situation were to change we would be willing to submit an offer under different conditions.’

The Seine-Maritime council has operated the service since

2001 via a public company, SMPAT. It said last month that it had decided against extending the present public service concession under existing conditions and would consult public and private interests to assess the situation and develop a new project for the link.

The FOMM-CGT merchant navy officers’ union said it was concerned at the failure to select

an operator for the route and warned that it will be watching closely for any changes to crewing arrangements and conditions of employment Concerns about the future of the Newhaven-Dieppe service have been raised following news that it ran up a €13.8m deficit last year. Although it carried 276,000 passengers, a 3.5% increase on 2012, freight volumes fell 3.4%.

France urged to speed up new law to extend flag rules for oil shipments concerned that their government is failing F to implement an agreement to put more of the French maritime unions are increasingly

country’s oil cargoes onto national flagged ships.

The unions fear ministers are dragging their heels on legislation to update a 1992 law which requires 5.5% of crude oil imported for refining in France to be carried on French flagged vessels. The updated law would require a similar proportion of refined products to be transported under the same conditions.

Jean-Philippe Chateil, deputy general secretary of the FOMM-CGT officers’ union, said the government had made no progress in putting

14-15 int.indd 15

the law on the statute book despite the changes being backed by the unions and owners’ association (AdF). ‘During that time, tankers continue to quit the French flag and Maersk is ceasing to operate from here. All the unions are concerned that no decision has yet materialised on this crucial subject,’ he added. ‘It’s the oil companies that make the law in France, not the government.’

Prime minister Jean-Marc Ayrault said in December that parliament would amend the law and it is set to form part of a draft energy bill earmarked for debate in parliament in autumn this year. Some government sources indicate this could be bought forward to the spring.

Three French seafaring unions called off a planned 48-hour strike at Maersk Tankers France following talks with management last month.

The CGT, CFDT and CFE-CGC unions said they decided not to go ahead with the industrial action after management agreed to improve the redundancy plan for its 95 seafarers and shore staff affected by the company’s gradual withdrawal of product tankers from the French flag.

The CGT officers’ union expressed concern that nobody had yet come forward to take over Maersk Tankers’ activity in France, and said the case highlighted the urgency of enacting the government’s promise to update the law.

shortreports LIMBURG CHARGES: the Pentagon has announced that it is bringing charges against a Saudi national suspected of planning the attack on the French-owned tanker Limburg off Aden in 2002. Ahmed Mohammed Ahmed Haza al-Darbi will be tried by a special US military court after being accused of planning, aiding and carrying out the attack in which a Bulgarian seafarer was killed and 12 other crew members wounded. The damage to the tanker was estimated at around US$45m.

MERGER PLANS: the German containership company Hapag-Lloyd and the 140-year-old Chilean operator CSAV have announced plans to merge. The two firms have signed a memorandum of understanding which could lead to the creation of the world’s fourth largest box operator, carrying almost 7.5m TEU a year.

TRAINING REVIVAL: a new facility to train merchant seafarers has opened in the Sri Lankan port of Trincomalee. Based at the Naval & Maritime Academy, the centre will end a 30-year gap in seafarer training in Sri Lanka and will help former naval personnel to retrain for careers in merchant shipping.

SOMALIA SERVICE: the French container shipping company CMA CGM has launched a new service between the Middle East and Somalia. It is using the Panamanian-flagged vessel CMA CGM Kailas to run the route, which links the Somali port of Mogadishu with Jebel Ali, Khor Fakkan, and Salalah.

TUG ‘FAILED’: the French ecological association Robin des Bois has called for checks to be carried out on a Greek tug which, it claims, failed to provide proper support for the stricken Dutch cargoship Victoriaborg after it suffered problems in heavy weather off the French coast in January.

BILBAO BOOST: the Dutch multi-purpose ro-ro operator Transfennica has increased capacity on its Zeebrugge-Bilbao route with the 24,688gt sisterships Stena Forerunner and Forecaster, running two sailings a week in each direction.

TWELVE DIE: twelve Indian seafarers died last month after a Yemeni-owned general cargoship carrying car tyres and parts sank off the coast of Yemen during a voyage from the United Arab Emirates to the Yemeni port of Al Mukalla.

ADRIATIC ADDITION: Italian ferry operator Grimaldi has launched a new twice-weekly service linking Ravenna and the Greek ports of Igoumenitsa and Patras using the 32,682gt ro-pax Euroferry Olympia.

SENEGAL TRAINS: Senegal’s national officertraining academy (ENFM) has taken on 140 cadets this year, with an intake drawn from counties including the Congo, Gabon, Cameroon, Benin and Guinea-Bissau.

TANKER BLAST: seven workers were feared dead after an Indian oil tanker exploded at a repair yard in China’s Zhejiang province last month.

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19/02/2014 18:26

16 | telegraph | nautilusint.org | March 2014

YOUR LETTERS

What’s on your mind?

Tell your colleagues in Nautilus International — and the wider world of shipping. Keep your letter to a maximum 300 words if you can — though longer contributions will be considered.

Use a pen name or just your membership number if you don’t want to be identified — say so in an accompanying note —

Book of the Year survey teamed up with the Marine C Society to answer the big question Nautilus International has

of 2014: Which book is the number one read among seafarers?

Everyone working at sea can have a say, simply by taking part in a fun online survey about seafarers, their reading habits, and their favourite books.

During the 10-minute quiz, avid readers have the chance to share their knowledge and views on all kinds of literary matters, from good authors to e-readers and shipboard libraries. And if people don’t like reading onboard ship, they can say why not.

The Seafarer Book of the Year survey will run for a few months, and then the seafarers’ favourite books and authors will be revealed to the world — drawing public attention to shipboard life and maritime culture.

In addition, the information collected about seafarers’ reading habits will be put to good use by Nautilus and the Marine Society, who will work with maritime employers to ensure crew members have access to the right books, in the right format. g To take part in the survey, please go to the Nautilus website www. nautilusint.org and follow the link from the homepage.

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The system may be tough, but it’s the same for all in the February Telegraph P headlined ‘Should grades trump With reference to the letter

experience?’ The author of this letter must be aware that the academic standards now required for seafaring certificates of competency are demanding.

A prospective employer can only gauge an applicant’s likelihood of a successful career based on past achievement; practical experience has long since been discounted as an entry qualification.

I would also suggest that having a clear-cut intention as to the shipboard discipline that one would wish to pursue would gain weight in a CV. This correspondent then raises the question regarding ‘Officer’ or ‘Rating’ entry application. I have to say — and this is from personal experience rarely reflected upon in these pages — during my final pre-retirement years, I became involved with engineer officers, who on their own merit had achieved promotion from

Have your say online Last month we asked: Would you move to a different shipping company if it offered better internet access for its crews at sea?

motorman to officer status and without exception these people were like gold dust to the engineering team.

The reason for this, of course, was that they brought with them ‘direct on-hands’ experience.

Apart from the familiarity gained from the close contact with machinery, they were capable of stripping purifiers, overhauling cylinder heads, cleaning plate coolers, as well as expertise with hand and machine tools and also working within the constraints of the vessel’s operating schedule.

It was certainly evident that for some of them, despite their best endeavours, certification was going to be a substantial challenge, but at least the gateway had been opened.

If, therefore, your desire is to go to sea to become integrated with, and contribute to shipboard life and the safe and efficient operation of the vessel, be prepared to accept the entry level that may be offered. You may be grateful.

Name & no supplied

I am writing in response to the letter in the February Telegraph re the grades required to start a cadetship (the member fell short on grades required).

The education system in the UK uses grades gained in national examinations to determine the level of suitability of an individual to a particular course, and sets a level that must be achieved in order to progress.

Although this may not seem fair to some, it is a standard that is applied to ALL students regardless of background and experience.

If a student does not possess the level of grade required, normally the best solution is to re-sit the examination in question and work to achieve a higher grade through night school or similar.

If the individual is finding it hard to obtain a cadetship, it’s an even tougher road when it comes to the SQA written examinations for the senior CoCs! ALASTAIR SMITH mem no 191082

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Elfyn Hughes (right) met Able Seaman Peter Gibbs Picture: MVS

Warm welcome at the Wellington for MVS Volunteer Service (MVS), who C form the National Council, meet The trustees of the Maritime

formally at least four times a year.

These gatherings have been hosted by the RNR in HMS President for many years.

But with the additional commitments of the reserve forces it was decided to try a new venue and HQS Wellington, home of the Honourable Company of Master Mariners, was available for the January meeting.

The meeting was facilitated by a new member to the MVS fold, Matt O’Crowley, who — like deputy chairman Richard Upton — is a member of the HCMM. Two new faces were welcomed: Tony Minns, who formally signed the due declaration to become a trustee, and Julian Butcher.

During a short break, MVS chairman Elfyn Hughes met Able Seaman Peter Gibbs, the last surviving Wellington veteran.

Elfyn’s late father, Captain Gwilym Hughes, sailed in coasters throughout the war and was awarded the Atlantic Star. Capt Hughes was at Dunkirk and Normandy.

Elfyn, who, like his late father, served in the Merchant Navy for a number of years and is a Master Mariner, said: ‘It was impressive to hold a council meeting afloat and then to meet the last Wellington veteran really put the icing on the cake. I was honoured to meet such a man as Peter and to meet him onboard Wellington.

‘Many of our members, like myself, are former Merchant Navy people,’ he added. ‘We even have a few members who are still serving and find time to help their units when they are ashore. So please visit our website — www.mvs. org.uk — and feel free to contact us if the idea of helping to change lives and support our communities appeals to you.’

Where’s my Telegraph?

Yes 81% No 19%

This month’s poll asks: Do you think the European Maritime Safety Agency should withdraw recognition for Filipino seafarers’ certificates?

Give us your views online, at nautilusint.org.

16-17_lets_SR edit.indd 16

but you must let the Telegraph have your name, address and membership number.

Send your letter to the Editor, Telegraph, Nautilus International, 1&2 The Shrubberies, George Lane, South Woodford, London E18 1BD, or use head office fax +44 (0)20 8530 1015, or email telegraph@nautilusint.org

If you have moved recently, your home copy may still be trying to catch up with you — particularly if you gave us a temporary address such as a hall of residence.

To let us know your new address, go to www. nautilusint.org and log in as a member, or contact our membership department on +44 (0)151 639 8454 or membership@ nautilusint.org.

19/02/2014 18:34

March 2014 | nautilusint.org | telegraph | 17

YOUR LETTERS

THE VIEW FROM MUIRHEAD

Bringing back the clerks would let us do real work I wish to wholeheartedly agree with Terry Foskett (Telegraph letters, January) regarding the idea of bringing back captain’s clerks and pursers to do administrative duties.

He is totally correct: if shipowners could get away with having no crew at all, they would!

It’s about time, if companies are genuinely interested in safety and running ships properly, that they recognise the burden of paperwork that is not safety-related. What prevents accidents are the skilled, highly motivated, well qualified and

vastly experienced seafarers who run ships.

Removing the burden of paperwork, whether that be the captain’s or the chief engineer’s, and allowing them to do what they do best — navigate, fix broken machinery, run a department even — I am sure that very positive results would be achieved.

It is absolutely amazing what time is taken these days to fill in reports, logs, stores orders and so forth. In fact, onboard this vessel we actually spend 11 hours in a 35-day trip — yes, that’s

one entire day of work — to fill in a log which simply records and monitors the vessel’s fuel performance and consumption against the rest of the fleet!

Let’s roll back the clock, take back onboard some of the good ideas of the past and then get back to the future of shipping in a safe and efficient way.

Now, I’m sorry, I’ll have to close, I need to get back to those pressing stores orders, fuel records, log book, outstanding maintenance, err...

NEIL B. NISBET Chief Engineer

Why should they pay expenses?

It was with disbelief that I read member 136752 bemoaning firms not paying travel expenses for prospective cadet interviews. Indeed, I wonder what travel expenses the mentee received when he interviewed for his four-year university course? Please tell me what UK companies do pay travel and accommodation expenses

Support from Nautilus was worth my long subscription I have been a member for 42 years and had never had the need to call on the Union’s services. This all changed when I had problems with a manager who spent an inordinate amount of time trying to get me to leave the company due to personal differences.

I had to ask Nautilus for support, and attending a meeting with industrial organiser Lisa Carr and company representatives was a good example of how to make the best of a bad situation. Starting from a point where the company thought that it was going to be a simple meeting

resulting in me leaving with minimum compensation, it ended with the company having to eat humble pie and try to avoid an industrial tribunal.

The end result was that an agreement was reached with me receiving an acceptable level of compensation that I am sure would not have been possible without Lisa’s help.

Many thanks for all your assistance and I will speak highly of your services to all that I meet. You have earned every penny of my subscription over these 42 years in one day.

Name & no supplied

company for 12 years I can confirm they are not, having sponsored me to gain my Chief Mates & Masters certification.

The member is quite happy to ‘name and shame’ but won’t put his name on his letter; shame.

ANDREW BARKER mem no 184508

Nodding Ducks could generate many benefits P

If ever we needed reminding of the power of the sea, the past few weeks will have provided stark examples. The destruction of the railway line at Dawlish does highlight the essential

Giving you a voice on your future Worried about your retirement? Join us!

The Nautilus Pensions Association is a pressure group and support organisation that: z provides a new focal point for seafarer pensioners — increasing their influence within, and knowledge of, the Merchant Navy Officers’ Pension Fund and other schemes within the industry z serves as a channel for professional advice on all kinds of pensions, as well as offering specific information on legal and government developments on pensions, and supporting the Union in lobbying the government as required z provides a ‘one-stop shop’ for advice on other organisations providing support and assistance to pensioners z offers a range of specialised services and benefits tailored to meet the needs of retired members z operates as a democratic organisation, being a Nautilus Council body — with the secretary and secretariat provided by the Union 1 & 2 The Shrubberies, George Lane, South Woodford, London E18 1BD t +44 (0)20 8989 6677 f +44 (0)20 8530 1015 npa@nautilusint.org www.nautilusint.org

16-17_lets_SR edit.indd 17

for those travelling for interview.

Prospective companies must see a number of candidates who turn out to be unsuitable. Why should that be at their cost? A successful cadetship will set up anyone in a proper, well-paid, career for life. Something that a fouryear university course clearly did not...

As an employee of a listed ‘stingy’

futility of fixed sea defences unless an extraordinary amount of effort is put into continuous maintenance.

Perhaps a more subtle approach could be considered.

Google ‘Salter’s Nodding Ducks’ and some interesting information is presented.

Professor Salter’s wave power generators (Nodding Ducks) were put forward primarily as efficient wave power generation devices, but, as a seaman, I could not help noticing the effect on sea conditions in the lee of the arrays.

The calming effect on waves was remarkable; a great deal of the raw energy of the waves was extracted, leaving an area of much calmer water.

Is it too much of an imaginative leap to consider providing a first line of defence by means of offshore arrays of wave power generating devices?

These would diminish the power of waves approaching vulnerable areas, while generating useable power. This would mean that fixed sea defences could be lighter and cheaper.

An additional benefit could also be new and continuing work for steel construction firms such as ship builders, and on-going maintenance work for engineers and seamen. Relatively calmer inshore shipping routes for coastal and leisure shipping would be another by-product.

The Guardian reported years ago that Professor Salter’s ideas were assessed by the Atomic Energy Agency, who assigned outlandish costs to the hardware and considered the idea to be uneconomic. I doubt that any incidental benefits were considered. Words such as ‘turkeys’ and ‘Christmas’ come to mind and the judgement did seem to be superficial and self-serving. The result was that the ideas were dropped, and wave power research disappeared from public view.

Weather patterns are unlikely to improve. Costs for construction of fixed sea defences will only increase.

Martial arts emphasises the idea of using an opponent’s strengths against him. Could we not do the same?

Captain A. IAN HALE mem no 89709

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telegraph STAFF editor: Andrew Linington deputy editor: Debbie Cavaldoro production editor: June Cattini-Walker senior reporter: Sarah Robinson web editor: Deborah McPherson ADVERTISING Redactive Media Group 17 Britton Street, London EC1M 5TP. Display adverts: Tom Poole tel: +44 (0)20 7880 6217 Recruitment adverts: John Seaman tel: +44 (0)20 7880 8541 tel: +44 (0)20 7880 6200 email: info@redactive.co.uk website: www.redactive.co.uk Although the Telegraph exercises care and caution before accepting advertisements, readers are advised to take appropriate professional advice before entering into any commitments such as investments (including pension plans). Publication of an advertisement does not imply any form of recommendation and Nautilus International cannot accept any liability for the quality of goods and services offered in advertisements. Organisations offering financial services or insurance are governed by regulatory authorities and problems with such services should be taken up with the appropriate body.

Incorporating the merchant navy journal and ships telegraph

ISSN 0040 2575 Published by Nautilus International Printed by Redactive Media Group 17 Britton Street, London EC1M 5TP.

GENERAL SECRETARY Mark Dickinson MSc (Econ) HEAD OFFICE 1&2 The Shrubberies George Lane, South Woodford London E18 1BD tel: +44 (0)20 8989 6677 fax: +44 (0)20 8530 1015 www.nautilusint.org NETHERLANDS OFFICE Schorpioenstraat 266 3067 KW Rotterdam Postbus 8575, 3009 AN Rotterdam tel: +31 (0)10 4771188 fax: +31 (0)10 4773846 NORTHERN OFFICE Nautilus House, Mariners’ Park Wallasey CH45 7PH tel: +44 (0)151 639 8454 fax: +44 (0)151 346 8801 SWITZERLAND OFFICE Gewerkschaftshaus, Rebgasse 1 4005 Basel, Switzerland tel: +41 (0)61 262 24 24 fax: +41 (0)61 262 24 25 DEPARTMENT EMAILS general: enquiries@nautilusint.org membership: membership@nautilusint.org legal: legal@nautilusint.org telegraph: telegraph@nautilusint.org industrial: industrial@nautilusint.org youth: ymp@nautilusint.org welfare: welfare@nautilusint.org professional and technical: protech@nautilusint.org Nautilus International also administers the Nautilus Welfare Fund and the J W Slater Fund, which are registered charities.

19/02/2014 17:58

18 | telegraph | nautilusint.org | March 2014

YOUR NEWS

Farewell to a dashing shipmate Captain Tony Minns recounts the rich life of his exuberant and well-liked former colleague Charles Rice Nelson, who died on 16 January 2014...

P

I will attempt to describe Charles Rice Nelson, master mariner, husband, father, brother, friend, committed radical socialist, Bob Dylan fan, gifted amateur artist, character, one-time café owner and joke shop owner, and shipmate.

Charles was born in Caversham near Reading in 1943, but the family moved to Dover soon after, where his father was involved with the building of the wartime hospital in the Castle.

Following a spell at Dover Grammar School, he went to Cadet School and studied at the Edward VII Nautical College, ‘King Ted’s’, in London, going on to serve his deck apprenticeship with Alfred Holt & Co of Liverpool, trading to the Far East and Australia.

After obtaining his second mate’s ticket, Charles spent 18 happy months working on a Dutch canal barge. He then went back deepsea and took a third mate’s berth in a typical tramp

ship company, Medomsley Shipping, part of the Van Ommeren Group, a job he got at the London pool.

As Charlie amusingly described in an article he wrote for the magazine Sea Breezes, this was something of a culture shock after the more sophisticated surroundings he was used to in the Blue Funnel Line. Apparently even the shipping master asked him if he was really sure he wanted to join such an outfit and warned him take his own knife and fork with him! His first voyage with this company lasted nearly 18 months, which at least enabled him to get in enough sea time to sit the examination as First Mate FG. He continued to sail deepsea, in chemical tankers with Buries Markes and tramping in such ships as the Brecon Beacon and others belonging to various London Greek shipowners, and obtained his Masters FG Certifi-

cate in London in 1968.

Charles would hold the attention of seafarer and non-seafarer spellbound with his adventures.

He was once caught in a typhoon in the Far East and also experienced severe damage to the foc’sle when struck by a rogue wave off South Africa. Rather poignantly,

he had a distressing experience in Vietnam when forced to give up stowed-away US soldiers trying to escape the horrors of war. He also spoke of Communist China when the ship was occupied by Red Guards and each crew member was obliged to accept and read a copy of the Little Red Book of the

thoughts of Chairman Mao. Although his early career involved trading all over the world, he returned to Dover in 1972 by joining Townsend Thoresen, which later became P&O Ferries, before retiring in 1995. He sailed in many of the fleet’s well known vessels. Many of us will remember Charles’s job description of a chief officer loading a Spirit Class vessel. That class of vessel had limiting stability conditions dependent upon the passenger load and the required C1 or C2 sub-division. The piece was a priceless masterpiece in cynical humour!

Charles will be remembered for his dashing, raffish good looks, the fine head of hair and the gold ‘sick bay shackle’ he wore in his ear. His image was completed with the long overcoat he used to wear, together with a long knitted Doctor Who scarf and the yellow Citroen 2CV with canvas seats that he used to drive around with great panache — heeling over about 20° when turning corners! But above all, we will remember Charles for the twinkle in his eye, his good humour and his readiness to pass the time of day with everyone, especially with his old colleagues of all ranks.

Over the last 20 years or so

Charles enjoyed developing friendships, honing his painting skills, and enjoying the second home he and Klara made for themselves on the beautiful island of Brac (Bratz), offshore from Split in Croatia. Captain Jas Martin recalls: ‘A few years ago, my partner and I were invited to stay there and I had the pleasure of Charlie’s company for a few days.

We arrived as foot-passengers aboard the ferry from the mainland, in pouring rain, to be met by Charlie with an umbrella for each of us — a typically thoughtful action. It was noticeable that he seemed to be as well known and well liked on the waterfront there as in Dover.’

The depth of respect and friendship was sounded by the number of those friends and work colleagues who mustered to bid him ‘bon voyage’ on his final journey.

Charles leaves his widow, Klara, son Rupert, devoted family and a great void in the character of Dover. We will all miss him greatly.

f Captain Tony Minns would

like to acknowledge the kind assistance from Captain Jas Martin, and many friends and members of Charles’s family, for their valuable contribution to this tribute.

Picturing a career at sea A photographic competition aiming to highlight the job opportunities in the maritime and engineering sectors has been staged by SeaVision and the Institute of Marine Engineering, Science and Technology (IMarEST).

Running from September to December 2013, the Picture This competition attracted more than 350 entries from all over the world in three categories: 11-14 yearolds; 15-18 year-olds; and industry professionals.

Entries were judged by representatives from IMarEST, the Marine Society & Sea Cadets, Seafarers UK, TMC Marine and Trinity House. Judges were looking for the best images that ‘illustrated the link between the worlds of

18_your news_SR edit.indd 18

engineering and maritime’.

The competition was initiated by SeaVision and encouraged young people to find out a little about the maritime and marine professional world whilst also giving those who work in the sector the opportunity to show off their work environment.

From a strong field, the winning entries were chosen as: 11 to 14 — ‘Steered by technology’ by Chloe Morling; 15 to 18 — ‘Plotting the fix’ by Craig Shewry; and in the professional category — ‘High speed productivity 24/7’ by Andrew Sassoli-Walker, each winning a Nexus 7 tablet.

fMany of the best entries can be seen at: www.seavision.org.uk/ competitions/picturethis

19/02/2014 18:00

March 2014 | nautilusint.org | telegraph | 19

MARITIME CAREERS While the colleges are looking ahead to the autumn intake, Nautilus has been busy visiting the ‘freshers’ from January

“

”

Turnout defies downturn A

During the launch of the new maritime careers mapping project last month, European transport commissioner Fotis Kararmitsos told the audience that the shipping industry is struggling to attract a new generation of seafarers.

But his comments were challenged at the meeting by Nautilus — and talking to new and prospective trainees at a couple of the UK’s biggest maritime colleges, you get a very different perspective from the official line.

Warsash Maritime Academy welcomed some 750 visitors to its careers–at–sea open day on Friday 24 January, in one of the busiest open days the centre has ever staged. Potential cadets from the UK and overseas met shipping companies and crewing agencies to discuss training programmes and the careers available to them after qualifying as a navigation, engineering or electro-technical officer.

Visitors came from over 40 different counties around England, Northern Ireland, Wales, Scotland and the Channel Islands, as well as from Slovakia, Finland, France, Italy, Greece and Turkey. Companies at the event included Anglo-Eastern (UK) Ltd, Bibby Ship Management (WE) Ltd, BP Maritime Services, Carisbrooke Shipping Ltd, Carnival UK, Chiltern Maritime, Clyde Marine Training, Maersk, Princess Cruises, Royal Fleet Auxiliary, Ship Safe Training Group, Viking Recruitment and Wilsonhalligan Large Yacht Recruitment.

‘We are really encouraged to see record numbers of visitors at the academy’s open day, which is great news for the shipping industry,’ said WMA director Andrew Hair. ‘The maritime industry remains buoyant and offers exciting career opportunities for the right candidates. British ships’ officers have an excellent worldwide reputation and career prospects at sea or back on land are superb.’

South Tyneside College, home of South Shields Marine School, also reported a busy day when it staged its annual MN careers event on 8 February. More than 300 potential trainees came to the Westoe Campus to meet

19 warsash+edits sr.indd Sec1:19

Young people in Europe don’t want to go to sea any more, a top-level meeting in Brussels was told last month. But the evidence from some of the UK’s maritime colleges tells a different story…

Cadets currently studying at Warsash Maritime Academy highlight that young people are still interested in a life at sea Picture: Deborah MacPherson

shipping companies and tour the facilities, including full mission bridge simulators and engineroom simulators.

One of the largest sponsors of cadet training at the college is the Ship Safe Training Group and MD Ian Spreadborough said: ‘We are pleased to support the college and expect to be sponsoring a considerable number of deck, engineer and ETO cadets at South Shields Marine School this September.’

A

While the colleges are looking ahead to the autumn intake, Nautilus has been busy visiting the ‘freshers’ from January. At Warsash, on day four of their course, the almost 60-strong group met Nautilus head of recruitment and membership Garry Elliott and Martyn Gray, chairman of the Union’s Young Maritime Professionals’ Forum as part of a morning of curriculum induction week activities designed to introduce

them to life at college and explain what to expect from life at sea.

The cadets were aged between 17 and 30 and sponsored by companies including Carnival, Holland America Line, Evergreen, Trinity House, Chiltern Maritime, Rio Tinto and even the Kingdom of Brunel via Shell.

During informal chats afterwards they revealed a variety of interesting reasons for choosing a maritime career. One

of the older students had enjoyed several years in the hotel and hospitality industry on his round–the–world travels. He had also worked on yachts, which had helped him feel comfortable about a maritime career — even as an older student.

A younger cadet said previous positive work experience onboard a yacht had helped him decide on a maritime career, while a cadet from Malta was supported by his parents, who

have useful contacts for sea time in the industry.

In answer to a question during the lecture on how many of the cadets had came from seafaring families, more than a third raised their hands, highlighting the continued importance of that route to a maritime career .

Martyn — himself a graduate from Warsash last year and now serving with Maersk as a fourth engineering officer — gave some well received insights into what it meant to transition from student life to a career at sea.

‘Time-keeping is a very important part of the job,’ he explained. As if on cue, and amid ironic laughter, nine students slipped back in several minutes later than they were briefed to return after the break.

Martyn told the new trainees about such aspects of life at sea as the quality of food at sea. ‘On the first vessel I worked on, a petrochemical tanker, there were two cooks on back to back rotation but their culinary skills could not be further apart,’ he said. ‘One cook loved using the deep fryer on everything, including the salad! On the other hand, the other cook had worked in Michelin starred restaurants and always made sure the steak was cooked the way you want it.’

Asked what the first phase is like, Martyn described going to sea for the first time as a ‘completely alien experience’. His key advice for coping is: ‘When you first get onboard, open yours eyes and your mind. Pay attention, ask lots of questions and try not to hurt yourself.’

The need for tolerance is also crucial, he said. ‘You need to be able to get along with the sometimes annoying habits of others and be able to tolerate them on a daily basis. This is why the colleges sometimes make you live in together.’

Whilst there is lots of optimism, Martyn told the cadets about the problem of some trainees being ‘beached’ by a handful of tonnage tax companies at the end of their training, So, belonging to a supportive union from day one of college is an important consideration, he pointed out.

‘That is why the union is here: to help you develop in the industry and to keep the industry alive.’

19/02/2014 17:33

20 | telegraph | nautilusint.org | March 2014

SEAFARER TRAINING

Bound for success?

The Outward Bound Trust has teamed up with the Merchant Navy Training Board to host a free taster event in March.

MARC OAKLEY, head of The Outward Bound Trust Eskdale, explains the organisation’s maritime roots and how it is helping cadet retention today…

K

If you were to ask a bunch of ordinary people what they know about Outward Bound, it’s a fair guess that most of them would tell you that it’s an organisation that provides outdoor education for young people — and this would certainly be true. But it is only part of the story. What fewer of them may realise is that Outward Bound has a long and continuing link with the sea and with the maritime industries.

In fact, The Trust was cofounded in 1941 by Lawrence Holt, chairman of the Blue Funnel Line. Initially, the organisation was conceived as a survival school for merchant seamen enduring the North Atlantic convoys of WWII. At that time, young men were taught the skills of resilience, teamwork and leader-

ship, using the experiential methods that were to become The Trust’s hallmark. The training was designed to equip them with the skills needed to cope with any number of difficult situations and conditions they might face around the world.

The initial concept of The Trust, in developing seafarers, remains a part of its work today.

Besides working with schools, young people and early talent from a wide range of sectors, the organisation continues to partner with a number of marine bodies in an effort to tackle one of the industry’s most pressing issues.

With mixed retention rates across the shipping industry, residential programmes with The Trust have become a key step in preparing candidates for their first sea phase.

Keeping talent onboard is a key objective of the residential programmes run by the Outward Bound Trust

Does your ISPS certification comply?

As of 1 January 2014, new STCW 2010 requirements mean that all crew employed or engaged in any capacity on vessels to which the ISPS code applies will require approved security training.

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· Proficiency in Security Awareness · Proficiency in Designated Security Duties · Ship Security Officer

Dates Please call for available dates 17 March, 14 April, 12 May, 16 June 2 April, 2 June

Book your place now.

Find out more: www.warsashacademy.co.uk/security For all enquiries contact us: E: wma@solent.ac.uk T: +44 (0)1489 576161

20_outward bound trust_proofed.indd Sec2:20

For the Merchant Navy Training Board (MNTB) and the Maritime Educational Foundation (MEF), Outward Bound programmes have helped to manage candidates’ expectations of life in the industry and given them the resourcefulness to cope with the sea time component of their training and to better deal with challenge. In doing so, The Trust has supported other company efforts to boost overall retention rates.

As MEF training manager Kate Gillespie says: ‘I believe the Outward Bound course was instrumental in preparing these trainees for college and instilling values such as resourcefulness, respect, and responsibility.’

K

Meanwhile, Maersk has chosen to use Outward Bound programmes in a slightly different way. Its course brought together senior staff and new cadets, enabling managers to get to know their new talent and assess their strengths, potential and areas for improvement.

The groups undertook some real challenges in outdoor wilderness environments, mimicking some of the conditions that the cadets were likely to encounter at sea.

A high, narrow gorge, with gallons of loud, distracting water pouring down as the group attempted to climb, provided the perfect background for building communication skills and resourcefulness. And an overnight expedition deep in the mountains also proved an effective vehicle for rapidly improving personal effectiveness and resilience.

In this way, Maersk was able to assess the true working potential of their new talent. As Graeme Thomson of Maersk explains, determining when to send cadets to The Trust was really important

as the company needed to ensure that cadets would support each other when they go to different colleges across the UK and to fully prepare them, as best one can do ashore, for what can be expected during their training.

‘We wanted to instil the Maersk core values and show the cadets that we are an employer who invests in our talent,’ he adds. ‘So we decided to run the programme before the cadets commenced their training.

‘When the cadets go away to Outward Bound for the week, they learn what life is like to live and work in close quarters with other people they have never met. If, at this stage, they feel they don’t want a life like this and can’t be away from home they have the option to resign from the programme.’

Mr Thomson is keen to point out that this strategy works very well — not only improving expectations for future cadets but also meaning that if individuals decide not to continue, the company can save around

£12,000 in course/sponsorship fees which would have been written off had the cadet dropped out at the first sea phase.

While the desired outcomes of each course are unique to individual clients, and are designed to address their specific needs and investment focus, many clients identify key periods of transition as times when they wish to develop certain crucial skills.

So, for instance, The Trust has recently become a key partner to the MEF and has been working to increase the retention of officer trainees, preparing them for the challenges of securing future employment with UK shipping companies. In this case, The Trust works with officer trainees right from the start as they are finding their feet in the maritime industry and then again when they reach the end of the training programme. The focus of courses with this group is preparation for their officer roles and progression to becoming captains and chief engineers.

As part of this ongoing commitment to developing talent in the maritime industry, The Outward Bound Trust has joined forces with the MNTB to present a taster event on 18-19 March. The course is open to talent management and learning and development professionals in the maritime industry. Taking place in beautiful and dramatic surroundings in the heart of the English Lake District, it is completely free of charge.

Participants will spend a day in the great outdoors, finding out how an Outward Bound programme can support the recruitment, retention and development of their cadets. They will be taken on a journey on land and on water, being shown first hand, the impact and value of outdoor experiential learning.

As well as being a fantastic experience, the event will provide practical advice on implementing or improving the talent development process in the marine and maritime context.

The outdoor adventure aspects of the event will be complemented by time for reflection, discussion and networking whilst enjoying some first class hospitality. g To register or find out more, visit www.obtrust-events.org or call Lucy Tonkin on +44 (0)1931 740002.

Maritime Educational Foundation trainees during one of the Outward Bound programmes

19/02/2014 17:21

March 2014 | nautilusint.org | telegraph | 21

MARITIME CAREERS

Finding the way ashore Seafarer recruitment and education needs to go beyond the idea that a maritime career begins and ends at sea, argues a new industry report

I

Europe needs to wake up to the economic gains that could be generated through greater support for the training and employment of maritime professionals, Nautilus told a top-level conference in Brussels.

Senior national secretary Allan Graveson was part of a shipping industry panel discussing the findings of the new report on maritime career mapping — a study to investigate the potential problems and barriers facing EU seafarers seeking to move to work ashore.

‘Forget the rhetoric about young people not wanting to go to sea — there is an opportunity here for Europe,’ he told the meeting. ‘The support put in for seafarer training is repaid many times over, not only by sustaining our maritime clusters but also on a global basis.’

Report author David Dearsley, former secretary-general of the International Shipping Federation and an ex-ship’s officer himself, said people with seagoing experience could be found in many different jobs ashore, ranging from running ports and harbours to being the president of Inmarsat or the president of Romania.

He said the study — which was based on feedback from almost 2,000 serving and retired seafarers — updates and expands original research conducted a decade ago. It explores the reasons why seafarers choose their careers, how long they plan to work at sea, the shore-based jobs they are looking to move into, and the barriers to mobility.

‘If young people could see that the sea is a passport to a rich and varied career elsewhere, more will apply to train and more will remain in the maritime cluster where their skills and expertise are vital,’ Mr Dearsley pointed out.

Shipping companies should not be surprised by the key finding that most seafarers anticipate a seagoing career of around 15 years, he added. ‘Once they have got to the top of their profession, as

The maritime career mapping discussion panel, from left: report author David Dearsley; Nautilus senior national secretary Allan Graveson; European Community Shipowners’ Association director Christophe Tytgat; Antwerp Maritime Academy general manager Capt Patrick Blonde; Danish Shipowners’ Association vice-president Pia Voss; Justin Stares, of EU Maritime Watch; and UK Merchant Navy Training Board head Glenys Jackson Picture: Andrew Linington

a master or chief engineer officer, they are looking for a new challenge,’ he pointed out. ‘That is the kind of people they are, and you wouldn’t want it any different.’

However, Mr Dearsley added, the research identified some of the factors driving the move to jobs ashore — and there is scope for the industry and the regulators to address some of these to improve retention. ‘Poor social life and the lack of communication with home, red tape and bureaucracy, and the idea that you do your job, go to the canteen and then go back to your cabin — it’s not a very nice way to live for six months,’ he stressed.

With 75% of seafarers wanting to remain in the maritime cluster when they move ashore, Mr Dearsley said some progressive shipping companies are making positive steps to help their seafarers make the transition from the sea with such policies as rotation between ship and office and internal promotions to senior shore-based posts.

On the positive side, more than 30% of seafarers had experienced no problems in finding work ashore and only 10% had reported major problems in making the move. Once in a job ashore, however, there may be problems — with many seafarers experiencing a 40% to 50% reduction in net pay and having to relocate to cities with a high cost of living.

Mr Dearsley said the report had set out a series of recommendations to improve career mobility in the maritime

sector, with calls for greater cooperation throughout the maritime cluster, coordinated recruitment campaigns and better integration of seafarers’ qualifications within national vocational structures.

He said the report had also called for debate on changes to seafarer training, certification and manning structures.

Illustration from Changing Course by Michael Grey, quoted in the career mapping report

Existing divisions between officers and ratings and deck and engineering created potential obstacles to career mobility, he suggested, and although there does not appear to be any great interest in changing onboard arrangements, there

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could be scope for reducing the waste of talent and improving operational efficiency by making ratings’ jobs more interesting and rewarding.

Improved information about training and career opportunities — including better onboard internet access for seafarers — is also vital, Mr Dearsley stressed.

EU transport commissioner Fotis Karamitsos said the report’s findings were significant because Europe is still the world’s largest shipping region and maritime expertise is essential for many shore-based industries and services.

More must be done to tackle the growing skills shortage, he said, and some countries need to follow the examples of the EU member states with the most structured and coherent programmes for retaining seafaring experience within the maritime cluster.

Patrick Verhoeven, president of the European Community Shipowners’ Associations, warned of the challenge the industry faces to communicate career opportunities to young people in the face of problems such as piracy and criminalisation.

Pia Voss, from the Danish Shipowners’ Association, said 75% of seafarers go on to work ashore, and her country had developed the Blue Denmark initiative as a way to bring together all the various elements of the ‘maritime cluster’ to help demonstrate the range of the sector and the opportunities it offers. Wages and productivity in the sector are higher

than the national average, she noted.

Captain Patrick Blondé, from the Antwerp Maritime Academy, said his college attracted students from more than 20 different countries and guaranteed that they would get a job at the end of their studies. ‘At the moment, we do not have a problem finding people,’ he told the meeting. ‘In fact, the number of students at the academy has tripled in the last seven years.’

And Glenys Jackson, head of the UK Merchant Navy Training Board, said shipping companies are reporting more than four times as many suitable applicants for the cadet vacancies they offer. But there is still work to be done to address the long-standing ‘confusion’ over the career prospects in the sector, she added.

But Jean-Philippe Chateil, from the French union CGT, said the number of officers in his country had declined in recent years and 40 out of 70 students from a class of trainee deck officers were still out of work after completing their studies last year. He said it was hard to see a future for French seafarers when companies are continuing to replace them with eastern European or Filipino nationals.

Mr Graveson suggested that demand for skilled seafarers will remain strong in high-tech, high-value, high-risk sectors of the industry such as cruiseships, LNG carriers and offshore exploration.

However, he argued, Europe must do more to ensure the sustainability of sectors such as ferries by regulating to protect it from unfair competition.

I

Europe should also harness the opportunities offered by the new generation of satellite communications, by supporting the introduction of powerful onboard communication systems that could dramatically improve seafarers’ access to educational and training materials while at sea.

Christophe Tytgat, from the European Community Shipowners’ Associations, backed this up: ‘Europe can do more to support seafarers — and it could do this easily by reducing the administrative burden and the threat of criminalisation that they face.’

Mr Dearsley said he hoped that the report would not be allowed to gather dust. ‘If young people can see that there is a good career ahead of them, it will encourage them to look at seafaring as a serious option. It’s clear that shipping ticks many of the boxes that young people are looking for when deciding what to do — international work, good pay and meeting people.’

Over the next 12 months a state of the art training and conference facility will be built in Dover, Kent, perfectly located for links to the UK and Europe. The Academy will specialise in STCW training and professional development courses for everyone involved in the maritime industry.

Courses currently running include:

• 5-part Basic Safety Training • Crisis Management & Human Behaviour

• Crowd Management

• Security Awareness • Designated Security Duties • ISPS Ship Security Officer • GMDSS Training

Viking are able to arrange flights, local accommodation & airport transfers for delegates

19/02/2014 17:22

22 | telegraph | nautilusint.org | March 2014

SEAFARER WELFARE

Time to end the bullying culture at sea Nautilus has played a pivotal role in the development of a new European project to combat bullying and harassment at sea. DEBBIE CAVALDORO heard owners and unions unite to support its launch…

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A new online video and accompanying training workbook has been launched as the latest in a 14-year European campaign, initiated by Nautilus, to create a zero-tolerance approach to bullying and harassment in the maritime industry.

Nautilus general secretary Mark Dickinson joined other European maritime unions, EU government officials and shipowners to launch new guidelines and training resources to tackle bullying and harassment at sea.

He called on the meeting’s 100 delegates to initiate a culture shift onboard EU-flagged vessels in the future.

‘The safe and efficient operation of any ship relies on good teamwork, and crew morale can be severely affected by a culture of harassment and bullying,’ explained Mr Dickinson.

‘It does not just affect those to whom it is happening; it affects those who witness it and those having to manage or work with bullies and their targets.’

The EU-funded project, by the European Transport Workers’ Federation (ETF) and the European Community Shipowners’ Associations (ECSA), has resulted in a 20-minute video produced by maritime training and education company Videotel; a workbook with training exercises, discussion topics and guidance for difference

Unions, working seafarers, shipping companies and shipowner representatives attended the launch

stakeholders; guidelines for shipping companies and wristbands to enable seafarers to carry the information with them.

The new video and guidelines are an update to a training package originally produced in 2004 which itself originated from a Nautilus survey of women members published in 2000.

UK representatives from the unions and shipowners ‘organisations who were credited with originally raising t

Philippe Alfonso, political secretary for maritime transport at the ETF, thanked Nautilus and the Union’s UK partners for bringing the issue of bullying and harassment in the maritime industry to the fore 10 years ago and championing the work that has happened ever since.

‘What the British social partners have been doing in the last decade has been absolutely essential, and what we are launching today is a tangible result of their work,’ he said.

The Union and the social partners have committed to keeping bullying and harassment on their agenda for future meetings to monitor the effectiveness of the dissemination effort, and will be calling on the wider maritime community to consider an amendment to the MLC to promote the guidelines.

‘We have subtitled the video into several of the working languages of Europe so that we can ensure the message is conveyed to the largest number of EU maritime workers as possible,’ continued Mr Alfonso.

‘We want to work with as many organisations as possible over the next few years so that we can ensure as wide a distribution as possible. We are also committed to evaluating and re-evaluating the project in the European social dialogue committee and at national level to see

what else can be done.’

At the meeting, representatives from ing Nautilus, the Chamber of Shipping an Navy Training Board committed to inves incorporating bullying, harassment and training and awareness into cadet tra Gemma Griffin, human resources and c at DFDS, attended the launch as a shippin resentative and also as a representative o committed to using her position within D nate the training to all shore and seafari doing what she could to convince others of Shipping to do likewise.

‘When we go back to our workplaces training we should do so together, with ou our workplace reps standing side by side will make it clear to all that we are unite and it is not just talk.’

g The materials can all be downloaded fr website at www.nautilusint.org. The vid found on YouTube. Members are encou these materials on social media using ha ping and sayno2bullying.

Union paves the way F

General secretary Mark Dickinson with the reports which contributed to the new project

22-23 spread_bully_19.2.indd 22

‘This project actually began back in 2000,’ explained Mark Dickinson, launching the report at a meeting in Brussels at the end of January. ‘Nautilus International conducted a survey of our women members to understand the issues around equal opportunities in the shipping industry. From this we produced the Fairplay report.’

The report highlighted alarming levels of harassment, a lack of faith in reporting systems or the implementation of policies where they existed, and that no training was taking place on these issues onshore or at sea. And it concluded that there was a need to address gender issues in recruitment and retention.

‘Out of this came a joint industry commitment to develop guidelines and training materials, and I was delighted that colleagues at the Chamber of Shipping were immediately onboard with us to progress the findings of the report,’ Mr Dickinson continued.

‘We agreed on the need to provide guidance to the industry and for resources to assist companies looking to tackle bullying in their workplaces, and for seafarers themselves to develop the confidence to speak out when they witness or experience it themselves.’

The first set of guidance was produced in the UK in 2002, and very soon after the ETF also gave the guidance its support. In 2004 the Guidelines to Shipping Companies on Eliminating Workplace Harassment & Bullying were produced in 15 languages with an accompanying training video.

‘Was this job done?’ Mr Dickinson asked the audience of representatives from the European maritime industry. ‘We were certainly very proud of what had been achieved and hoped we had taken the first steps on the path that would ultimately lead to bullying being eradicated from the industry.

‘But fast-forward to 2010 and a South African female cadet called Akhona Geveza. She died in suspicious circumstances onboard the UK-registered Safmarine Kariba following an allegation of rape. It was a shocking incident and it seemed outrageous that it could happen in the modern shipping industry.

‘This was a wake-up call for me personally, and for my Union. We launched an immediate response which, along with demanding a thorough investigation by the UK government, included conducting a new survey on bullying, discrimination and harassment to find out what the current situation was in the industry and whether these previous initiatives were having an impact.’

The new survey went to male and female members and found that while many did report positive experiences of shipboard life, nearly half had personally experienced bullying, harassment or discrimination in their workplace.

Following this report and developments in other areas of the industry, including the imminent arrival into force of the Maritime Labour Convention (MLC), the social partners (the ETF and the employers’

representatives) agreed to launch a new provide updated guidance and also ens dissemination of the information to the The new training video builds on the footage and is now available online and The accompanying workbook challenge about what they have seen, asks them h respond to the situations covered, and e them to talk about their own workplace questions about how the whole culture can be changed in the future.

‘The key difference between this new the previous project is that this one is pr dissemination,’ Mr Dickinson continued been successful in defining the problem developed guidance and some excellen materials to address the problem, but w not eliminated the problem. There has b awareness of the materials and guidanc produced.

‘This is where you come in,’ he added all seafarers, wider maritime workers a to spread the word using every possible can. Social media can play a vital role in materials are all there in a much more a than ever before. Please share them on your colleagues and tweet about it — w get shipping trending. Let’s make “Say N Say No to Harassment” an industry phra

19/02/2014 18:30

March 2014 | nautilusint.org | telegraph | 23

SEAFARER WELFARE

One scene tackles the old adage that it was ‘good enough for me’ whereby senior seafarers excuse abrupt treatment…

“

”

Scenarios highlight the stress of harassment

sing the issue

from the UK, includng and the Merchant nvestigating ways of and discrimination t training schemes. and crewing director pping company reptive of ESCA, and she hin DFDS to dissemieafaring staff, and to hers in the Chamber

three dramatised scenarios and A discussions between crew, aimed at The 20-minute video features

laces to deliver this ith our HR teams and y side,’ she said. ‘That united on this cause

ded from the Union’s video can also be encouraged to share ng hashtags (#) ship-

ay h a new project to so ensure better to the industry. on the original ne and on USB fobs. llenges individuals hem how they would , and encourages kplaces and ask ulture of the industry his new project and e is primarily about inued. ‘We’ve oblem, and we have cellent training but we have clearly e has been insufficient uidance that were added. ‘We need kers and employers ssible method we ole in this and the more accessible way em on Facebook, email t — we could try and “Say No to Bullying, y phrase.’

We have subtitled the video into several of the working languages of Europe so that we can ensure the message is conveyed…

“

22-23 spread_bully_19.2.indd 23

”

provoking discussion in a training environment.

The video opens with a reminder that the most efficient and safe ships are the ones where teamwork is central and team members are judged by their ability to do their jobs, not by their religion, nationality, colour, age, gender or sexual orientation.

In the first story, a young cadet on a general cargo vessel is being picked on by an aggressive and bullying chief engineer. In the first scene he is with another cadet cleaning, and although the two are working on the same piece of equipment, the manager only reprimands one for not performing to an undefined standard. The cadet’s nerves begin to show when he drops ball bearings on the floor with the chief engineer standing over his shoulder observing his work. And when the cadet finally plucks up the courage to approach the captain it takes just one glance from the passing officer to make him keep it to himself.

The workbook then asks viewers to consider not only what is wrong with the chief engineer’s attitude but also the effect on other crew such as the cadet who isn’t being bullied but often witnesses it; how the master could have been more aware of the cadet’s reluctance to speak once his manager had appeared and even how the cadet could have raised the matter differently — such as arranging a meeting with the captain in his office so there was no risk of the chief engineer walking past.

The second story focuses on a newly employed cruiseship hotel worker who is harassed by an overbearing manager and frequently reduced to tears. The manager suggests that it is the worker’s Turkish origins which are to blame for her inability to maintain high standards and speaks to other staff about her

disappointment. The manager instructs the cabin cleaner to remake the beds in a number of cabins but does not specify why they were not up to standard.

The final fictional tale is set onboard the Royal Fleet Auxiliary vessel Sir Galahad. A female supply officer lends a CD to a fellow male officer who has knocked on her cabin door. He moves to grab at her chest and she instructs him to leave immediately. This more obvious sexual harassment is then compared with more subtle forms including an officer making repeated advances to a female officer, and she explains that this is still unpleasant and unwelcome harassment.

The RFA officer arranges a meeting with the captain in his office and explains what has been happening.

She has to reiterate several times that the attention was unwanted and unpleasant but the captain does agree to take action.

Interspersed in these main stories are shorter conversations between crew. In a short but dramatic scene, the video describes the extremely damaging act of cyber bullying through social media sites, mobile phone, text and email.

One tackles the old adage that it was ‘good enough for me’ whereby senior seafarers excuse abrupt treatment of younger or less qualified officers because this was the way they had been taught. It asks if their treatment as cadets was acceptable and how it actually made them feel at the time.

Another encourages a male officer to consider his treatment of female officers by asking how he would feel if it was his daughter on the receiving end.

All crew are then encouraged to challenge and report bullying and harassing behaviour, and to support other colleagues who have experienced it.

19/02/2014 18:30

24 | telegraph | nautilusint.org | March 2014

SAFETY AT SEA

Poor seamanship, tighter shipping lanes and GPS vulnerabilities are posing a serious threat to shipping off the UK coast, Trinity House warns

M

Over-reliance on electronic navigation systems is presenting ‘really worrying’ challenges to safety in shipping lanes around the UK, politicians were warned last month.

In a presentation to the AllParty Parliamentary Maritime and Ports Group, experts from Trinity House spoke of the issues raised by the increased use of e-navigation and the vulnerability of GPS, and the impact of offshore windfarms on navigational safety.

Captain Roger Barker, director of navigational requirements with the General Lighthouse Authority, pointed to incidents such as the loss of the car carrier Tricolor in the Channel in 2003 and warned that windfarm developments around the coast are ‘squeezing’ shipping traffic in some key areas.

At the same time, he added, there are disturbing signs of poor seamanship — with deepsea pilots telling some remarkable and hair-raising stories of atrocious standards.

Capt Barker told the MPs of one case in which a navigator on a 292m vessel used an old passage plan stored on a USB stick to take his ship through an area where two adjoining windfarms had restricted the searoom. And in another case, the bridge team had to ring management ashore to request a minor course deviation.

Pointing to AIS track data analysis of ship movements in busy sealanes, Capt Barker said there are concerns over the way in which some mariners ‘stick to the red line’ with rigid reliance upon GPS. ‘We are often asked whether we still need to provide physical aids to navigation,’ he added. ‘I

Project uses AIS records to help plan for the future Identification System (AIS) data showing A vessel transits in the English Channel over a Pictured above is ship Automatic

28-day period — produced as part of a project to investigate the use of AIS in long-term maritime policy planning and development, navigational risk assessments and marine licensing. would say that we need to provide spatial awareness for mariners for many years to come.’

He told the meeting how the first round of windfarm developments had paid scant atten-

Carried out by ABPmer, the study was commissioned by the UK Marine Management Organisation (MMO) to investigate methods of analysing and displaying shipping activity using a national dataset supplied by the Maritime & Coastguard Agency.

Project director Stephen Hull commented:

tion to establishing shipping routes. However, navigational issues are now better reflected in the approval process and some sites have been amended to take account of shipping patterns.

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‘This was a really exciting project for ABPmer and represents a major breakthrough in the use and application of AIS data. While AIS data has been collected for a number of years, the potential of this data to inform and support marine decision-making has not previously been realised.’

With new developments planned for the North Sea, Capt Barker said it was important to ensure that the corridors between adjacent windfarms are appropriate for the volume of traffic and the type of traffic.

Don Cockrill, chairman of the UK Marine Pilots Association, said he was concerned about the way in which the lights on windfarm developments can ‘camouflage’ lighting from shipping. Capt Barker agreed that the current situation is ‘a real mess’ — with the proliferation of white lights posing a particular problem — and work is underway via the Nautical and Offshore Renewable Energy Liaison (NOREL) group to address the potential confusion caused to mariners by aviation lights on turbines.

Although 2018 will see ‘all’ ships mandated to carry ECDIS, Capt Barker pointed out that the requirements will not apply to existing cargoships of less than 10,000gt or new cargoships of less than 3,000gt.

It is therefore important to consider all aspects of electronic charting, he argued, and to recognise the limitations of ECS and the vulnerability of systems.

M

Martin Bransby, research and radio navigation manager with Trinity House, said the potential of e-Navigation to consolidate ship and shore navigation systems had been recognised almost a decade ago — with the International Maritime Organisation now publishing a high-level implementation plan for the concept.

But, he stressed, while systems need to be resilient — especially in terms of position-fixing — they are vulnerable to both deliberate and accidental jamming, spoofing and interference.

The threat is increasing, because of the widespread availability of GPS jammers online for as little as £30, capable of causing complete outages across all receivers

currently on the market.

Mr Bransby said Trinity House had conducted shipboard trials to examine the effects of GPS jamming and interference.

‘These showed hazardously misleading information being displayed by the systems,’ he added.

‘That is worse than it not working at all.

‘Reversion to traditional means of navigation requires training, knowledge and practice,’ he pointed out. ‘Demands on marine navigation continue to increase and awareness of the vulnerability of GPS is growing, yet electronic systems at sea have not evolved at a sufficient pace to meet these challenges.’

Trinity House has explored alternative systems, he explained, and eLoran had been shown to be the best form of back-up. The high-power, low frequency terrestrial system was the only one that could demonstrate the full benefits of effective mitigation against GNSS disruption, and trials had shown it could provide seamless operation to help prevent confusion on the bridge if GPS is compromised.

Mr Bransby said the GLA is now rolling the system out, with seven differential eLoran stations set to provide alternative position, navigation and timing (PNT) information from autumn this year. The rollout will replace the equipment in two prototype stations at Dover and Harwich, and five new stations will be deployed in the Medway, Humber, Middlesbrough, Firth of Forth, and Aberdeen.

Full operational capability covering all UK ports should be achieved in 2019, he added.

International interest in eLoran is also increasing, Mr Bransby said, with South Korea, the US, China, India, Russia, Norway, France and some Gulf states looking closely at its potential.

Governments are also looking at the way in which it could also be used as a safeguard for the many land-based systems that depend on GPS.

19/02/2014 17:57

March 2014 | nautilusint.org | telegraph | 25

SEAFARER TRAINING As work begins on ambitious plans to build a new seafarer training centre in Dover, the team behind the scheme tell of their vision for a maritime ‘centre of excellence’...

Left to right: Mark and Matthew Jaenicke, and Paul Russell are overseeing the development of the Dover-based Maritime Skills Academy

Dover growth for Viking J

It may be little more than a building site right now, but in barely one year’s time the first phase of the Maritime Skills Academy in Dover will be complete — serving as a major milestone towards the realisation of an ambitious project to boost seafarer training capacity in the UK. Work on the £6.5m scheme — which has been developed by Viking Recruitment — got under way last month. The first phase will involve the construction of specialist fire-fighting and sea survival facilities, including a wave pool, classrooms and administration area.

It will be followed by a second phase which will see the construction of a state-of-the-art maritime training facility and 120-seat conference centre with the ability to train up to 2,000 students a year.

With the help of an initial interest-free £1.3m Regional Growth Fund loan, the maritime ‘centre of excellence’ project aims not only to help boost local employment but also to form part of wider work to regenerate the East Kent area.

‘It will be good for seafarers, good for shipping companies, good for the area and good for UK plc,’ promises senior marine training consultant Paul Russell.

The project is a natural extension of the training work that Viking has been undertaking since 2005 for companies such as Holland America Line, Seabourn and Windstar Cruises, with seafarers coming not just from the UK, but also from countries including the Netherlands, Germany, New Zealand and South Africa.

‘We now look after around 4,000 officers and crew and we have been running a growing range of courses for our clients,’ says recruitment and HR director Mark Jaenicke.

‘We started with crisis management and shipboard security officer, and we are now doing crowd management, security awareness, designated security duties, GMDSS and PSSR as well,’ he adds. ‘We have been an MCAapproved training centre since 2005 and we are also the only commercially-run Marlins testing centre.’

The idea of creating the Maritime Skills Academy came from Dieter Jaenicke, who founded Viking 25 years ago. ‘He had been talking about it for at least 10

25_viking.indd 25

A computer-generated image of the £6.5m training centre which is due to be completed early in 2017

years, and with the new STCW 2010 training requirements and with the growth of the cruiseship and superyacht sectors, the potential was clear,’ says Viking MD Matthew Jaenicke. ‘We were starting to struggle to find the capacity for our courses and recognised that things would only get harder.’

Matthew, Mark and Paul stress that the scheme is not seeking to compete with established UK maritime training colleges. ‘With all the new regulations, there are more than enough people out there needing training, and there’s a bigger cake for everyone to share,’ says Paul.

‘The big colleges do a really great job in the initial education and training,’ he adds. ‘When it comes to short courses and professional development, they do the best they can within the constraints of a large institution that draws from public funds — but we can operate outside those constraints and offer a unique level of flexibility and cost-effectiveness.’

‘We are not saying the colleges can’t do it, but we can do it differently and we want to work together with them and not against them,’ Matthew says. ‘The aim is to provide additional capacity for the UK because if we cannot fulfil the demand, people will go elsewhere. We are blessed in the UK with a good training infrastructure and certificates that are respected around the world — so we want to get more people coming here, which can only be good for Britain.’

Using ‘travelling trainers’ means that courses can be delivered onboard ships and at other locations, Mark points out. ‘We are very client-driven and nine times out of 10 we can deliver the course when they want it and where they want it.’

When complete in 2017 — neatly in line with the full implementation of the STCW 2010 Manila amendments — the Maritime Skills Academy will offer courses ranging from basic safety training, first aid, yacht hospitality and catering, to bridge and engineroom simulator training, ECDIS, enclosed spaces and refresher sessions for qualified seafarers.

Viking has worked closely with the architects to ensure that the building can be used to the fullest extent — for instance, using machinery areas for enclosed spaces training — and to enable additional courses to be added at a later date, such as helicopter underwater escape training.

The concept of creating a ‘hub’ extends to plans to offer seafarers the opportunity to have their ENG medical examinations at the Academy, to use the catering training facilities to showcase the work of cruise and superyacht chefs, and to include a couple of generic cabins to help with housekeeping training.

With a relatively new highspeed train link to London and flights to the Continent from Manston airport, the Doverbased Academy is well-placed to

attract students from a wide radius, says Mark.

And while the company is aiming to attract students from all over the world, it also sees scope for the Maritime Skills Academy concept to be exported to other countries on a sort of franchise basis.

J

But Viking also has a clear philosophy of keeping things local — tapping into Dover’s long seafaring heritage and using the Academy as a showcase for maritime careers for young people.

The company works with other local businesses, such as Smye

Rumsby for its GMDSS training and Dover Harbour Board for water training, and it believes students coming to the Academy will also help to boost local hotels and B&Bs. Nearby Walmer College was the first school to teach the GCSE-level maritime skills qualification, and Viking wants to develop partnerships with other local schools, colleges and universities as part of a programme of attracting more young people into the maritime industry.

‘We have made tremendous progress despite some early struggles, and we’ve had great support from the Maritime & Coastguard Agency, Dover District Council and Kent County Council,’ Matthew adds.

‘We’re trying to do something different here and we think this is what the industry should be about — modern, fresh and dynamic,’ he says. ‘This is the biggest thing we have ever done but we don’t want it to be huge, though, as we want to be able to continue providing a personal touch that you can’t do on a massive scale. We want to build on what Viking has been doing for the last 25 years — reacting quickly to the needs of our clients and of the industry.’

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19/02/2014 17:22

26 | telegraph | nautilusint.org | March 2014

MARITIME WELFARE

Updating seafarers’ welfare a

What’s the connection between a person under sail being issued with enough lemon juice to stop their teeth loosening with scurvy, and a modern seafarer being able to Skype home free whenever they’re off watch?

Is there an enduring link between ensuring a barque crew will have enough raisins in the plum duff to gladden their hearts, and helping the team on a post-Panamax to access trauma counselling and get bridging loans following a piracy attack? Should everyone still have the legal right to desert an unseaworthy ship?

The strand running through the conference, titled The Health and Welfare of Seafarers: Past, Present and Prospects, was whether there is a continuum between the needs of seafarers on 18th century vessels and those of today’s mariners.

Over the space of three days 30 speakers shared knowledge of the past as well as ideas about the future. They included maritime historians, stakeholders who now provide support for seafarers, and experts on modern seafarers’ lives. Many brought knowledge from their direct experience as workers on the world’s oceans; they really knew about both whales and welfare.

Session topics fruitfully jumped back and forth from Scandinavia and the US to China and Britain, from defensive navies to merchant services, from sail to steam, and from welfare providers to welfare recipients.

The focus included what policies had developed, why, and what their impact was on seafarers and their wider societies. Adhering to Samuel Plimsoll’s line saved perhaps millions of lives. Could a similar international consensus on safety be created today? In a keynote speech, Helen Sampson, from the Seafarers International Research Centre at Cardiff University, pointed out that the problem was enduringly that if seafarers were out of sight they were (conveniently) out of mind. She offered an illuminating survey of what seafarers today were suffering from, explaining how stress builds up because of many ordinary small things like lack of control over light and noise.

Alston Kennerley (University of Plymouth), a veteran historian of seafarers’ conditions, impressed everyone with his extensively researched outline of the scope of support for seafarers’ welfare and health.

Facilitator Richard Gorski Pictures: Jo Stanley

26 health.indd 26

Polina Baum-Talmor from Cardiff University said isolation is a major problem for seafarers

Maritime historians and crew care professionals took part in a conference at Hull University on the past, present and prospects of seafarer health and welfare.

Dr JO STANLEY reports on the event…

Commodore Barry Bryant addresses the conference

writing was welcomed as a way to understand the real subjects.

Veteran seafarers’ historian Alston Kennerley

He commented on what a ‘massive amount’ had been done by so many generous people over the centuries — and still continues to be done.

At the plenary, speakers commented upon their realisation that the fundamentals of seafarers’ health and welfare had essentially changed very little.

‘Welfare’ was a term causing some speakers unhappiness. But what the word represents was also seen as intrinsically problematic. ‘Welfare has been the second-best option when health is too difficult to ensure’ — that was the useful definition from Dr Tim Carter (Norwegian Centre for Maritime Medicine, University of Bergen) .

The seafaring labour force is still on the fringes of a society beset by sea blindness. Seafarers are still isolated and scattered. And their lives are still endangered, affirmed Martin Wilcox (Greenwich Maritime Institute). Richard Gorski, the conference facilitator, agreed ruefully that such ‘constants win out’ — again and again over time.

Many nods greeted Tim Carter’s point that shipowners provide millions to high-profile wings at maritime museums. But what’s urgently needed is also just a few ordinary smackers for a disabled deckie’s physio sessions.

Most interestingly throughout the conference, comparisons were made between the two navies. At one end, ex-RN Commodore Barry Bryant commented on the financial basis: that the Queen’s shillings were flung fairly readily at warships, because the point was ‘to fight and win.’ Money doesn’t come into such decision-making as it does in commercial shipping.

So were RN seafarers normally better looked after?

Most speakers thought so, for all that statistical problems made accurate comparison impossible.

It might be imagined that modern developments necessarily bring improvements. But attendees pointed out that globalisation hasn’t removed obstacles to changing seafarers’ conditions. Instead it’s made them more complex to challenge.

Seafarers’ own accounts of their conditions were clearly needed. Too often accounts come from above and can be patronising to the ‘object of study’. So the Marine Society’s initiative in encouraging memoir

a

Organiser Richard Gorski confided he’d feared in advance that the conference would simply ‘demonise the industry and cast seafarers as victims.’

That didn’t happen.

But a consistent problem over the last few centuries has indeed been that seafarers were ‘othered’ in the minds of the public, including providers. Too often ‘Jack’ was seen as guileless, childlike (‘naturally deficient’ said Tomas Nilson of Gothenburg University), and a figure incapable of looking after himself.

Many speakers argued that in fact seafarers were not so far different from land-dwellers. They did sometimes need special help. But they had agency,

Welfare was a term causing some speakers unhappiness… seen as intrinsically problematic.

“

”

had valuable transferrable skills and were very good at coping with periods of unemployment.

Michael Quinlan from Sydney’s University of New South Wales number-crunched to demonstrate just how much informal dissent existed, and how much rebels were put down. Even though they might be legitimately protesting that their ship was unfit to sail, they were punished, not the owners. In the period 1790-1900 four-fifths of seamen convicted were jailed. Today would they even dare to resist?

Who will help them now and in the future?

a

‘Donkey’s breakfast’ mattresses and ancient salt meat may be horrors of the past. But food and hygiene are still problems not being adequately

addressed on some ships, especially in the Chinese and Indian fleets. Helen Sampson (Cardiff University) pointed out that even under last year’s Maritime Labour Convention it’s still not mandatory to provide clean bedding.

Several speakers focused on scurvy (now eradicated) and the quest for cures. Private treatments with herbs and remedies from home, as well as measures imposed by the Admiralty, had mixed effects. In today’s world a problem is lack of medical drills and senior officers who are under-confident in opening the medical chest.

Historically there was a failure to offer healthy enough conditions and treatment to seafarers — especially ‘expendable’ merchant mariners. But there was also the — predictable — failure to present accurate data about the appalling situation.

Past attempts at welfare included wellintentioned free treatment of seafarers with sexually transmitted diseases. But such special rights meant again that seafarers were cast as not only different to landspeople, but more linked to promiscuity, which further accentuated their status as a breed apart, argued Tim Carter.

‘What shall we do with a drunken sailor?’ asked Thomas Nilson (Gothenburg University) as have thousands of concerned people before him. A problem was that seafarers were too often cast as people ’who can’t not be drunk’. This made them seem unlike most human beings and thereby heightened isolation.

a

Today’s young people are habituated to instant contact through texts. So they suffer when not able to access regular, cost-free and unsupervised internet contact with home, pointed out Helen Sampson. Unfortunately there was no historian there to underline this need for connection by discussing the joy of those under sail when family letters arrived once a year.

Isolation is a major problem for seafarers, several speakers argued. But Polina Baum-Talmor (Cardiff University) refreshingly contended that to think of ships in sociologist Erving Goffman’s terms as ‘total institutions’ (like monasteries or jails) was to omit some complexity.

This is perhaps a partial product of improved shipto-shore telecommunications. Geographically far from home and living in separate time zones, seafarers can ‘experience contradictory feelings of contained freedom.’ They can belong to what might be called ‘pretend families’ onboard. And of course they can still feel lonely.

Sarah Simons (Cardiff University) argued that victims of piracy suffer an enduring legacy, which ripples into the seafarers’ worried families back home. It worsens as the duration of hostage-holding periods increases. She pointed out that seafarers are at the extreme end of a process that treats them as commodities.

Action for seafarers’ health and welfare continues.

It’s about justice and it’s also essential to the future of the maritime industry. And it’s better informed and less beset by moral strictures than in Victorian times.

But is it — and will it be — more effective than all those past efforts investigated by this conference?

g Summaries of the papers can be read at:

http://seafarers2014.wordpress.com/summaries

19/02/2014 17:56

March 2014 | nautilusint.org | telegraph | 27

MARITIME CULTURE Rotterdam Maritime Museum is staging an adults-only exhibition called Sex & The Sea, in which visitors are invited ‘to feel the same emotions of homesickness and sexual desire as seamen are faced with when they are at sea for months on end’. JO STANLEY went to investigate…

Nautical (s)exhibition M

‘In Hamburg my shipmates shoved me into a small room, telling me it was time I became a proper sailor,’ said young officer cadet Wesley Smits. Familiar story, told with wry laughter? Yes, but this time it’s not being shared in a bar but in the Netherlands’ oldest maritime museum.

The Sex & The Sea exhibition seeks to tell visitors about desire and homesickness, love and longing — and also casual R&R in foreign ports. It’s about seafarers, for the general public, not necessarily for mariners. However, there was a ‘dating event’ on Valentine’s night to bring the two worlds together.

Such an exhibition might be expected to be a turn-on. But actually it’s an oddly homely experience, a rather heartwarming story of strangers making almost-friends via bodies, albeit with unequal purchasing power.

One definition of erotica is that it seeks to celebrate sexuality. Pornography, by contrast, seeks to thrill by deliberately objectifying participants. This exhibition (for people 16-plus) has both.

But the porn is mainly as innocuous as girly tattoos and a poster Popeye with such a major extension to his anatomy that a ship’s doctor doing Short Arm Inspection might well faint with shock.

The funniest artefacts are the Staffordshire china dogs. Dutch seafarers’ wives used to place them on window-sills in a particular position to indicate to their lovers ‘My husband’s come home, so keep away’ or ‘The coast is clear.’

You wander round exhibits from the museum’s collection such as ships’ figureheads baring proud bosoms, desiccated ‘mermaids’, scrimshaw art depict-

Seafarers’ suitcases take a starring role... Pictures: Maritiem Museum / Marco De Swart

ing couplings — some improbable, some endearing — and suggestive cocode-mer nuts.

They’re all evidence of what one’s thoughts can turn to, especially when lonely on a ship far from home.

The saddest items are perhaps in the showcase about the historic treatments for sexually transmitted diseases, including medical syringes the size of grease guns. Yep, unprotected sex can sure have revolting consequences, it implies.

They’re displayed along with an arrangement of suspended contraceptive sponges which float in flickering light like natural growths on a seabed.

Exhibits in the Sex & The Sea show include manatees and mermaids

27_sex and sea.indd 27

You’d almost expect coral and jellyfish too.

M

Prominent, above all, are the endless battered suitcases that accompanied seafarers from home to foreign ports. Out of them spill all sorts of private revelations. They include testimonies to domestic affection, such as batches of clean underwear carefully packed by a mother, to stashes of saucy seaside postcards and fabricated lyrical record cards telling how mariners drowned.

Exhibition curator Rinske Jurgens’s challenge was how to find a way to make the existing artefacts speak really tellingly of lust, the exhibition’s initial working title. Staff conducted interviews with 10 seafarers who spoke frankly, on the record, and sometimes gave stories so hair-raising that they’re still under wraps.

As curators often do, she brought in artists to interpret — in this case the British film director Peter Greenaway and Dutch multimedia director Saskia Boddeke, who created a striking central installation that conveys the sensuality of seafaring life.

It used nine images projected on canvas screens 10ft high, showing rolling seas, High Art images like Hokusai’s The Great Wave off Kanagawa, and soundscapes. Along with these suggestions of what the sea means are clips of interviews (with English subtitles) and seafarers’ snaps, including ‘happy’ group scenes in Thai brothels.

So you watch these sitting on an iron bedstead with a suitcase full of condoms and Playboys lying beneath it, listening

on headphones to the sound effects. It’s a way of experiencing by proxy the yearnings someone might have in their isolated cabin.

The film makes poetry of the desire in seafarers’ lives, including homosexual attraction. This is an exhibition that deliberately embraces (sorry, no pun intended) the whole spectrum of possible relationships, as do most people on ships.

These filmic elements of the exhibition seem to suggest that seafarers’ love of the sea is somehow bound up with sex with women in foreign ports, and with the oceanic feelings that can accompany intercourse.

It may be that some seafaring visitors feel that that’s pushing it, squire.

The sea’s a job. Early romantic ideas about the ocean’s lure don’t necessarily endure. Isn’t sex just what many people with loosened home ties do in airport environs and in red light areas near rail and bus termini? It’s functional, not transcendent.

Isn’t it just what seafarers on fast turnarounds sometimes do, quickly? Less of the ecstasy, more of the fitting it in, if you can afford it, between drinking, sightseeing, shopping, Skyping home from the seafarers’ mission and faxing the employment agency about contract problems? That story’s yet to be told.

Some of the interpretive aspects could seem to have been over-influenced by a limited, stereotypical and landlubber-ish understanding of seafarers as roaming boyos with the hots: the Girl/ Boy in Every Port (cor, lucky thing) Syndrome.

It might also be argued that the focus here is too much on sex in foreign ports.

A fruitful but absent twin story is sex on ships, with all its complexities including intensified rivalries and the way participants see extra-marital sex aboard as something that doesn’t really count as infidelity.

And how does a curator evidence that?

Nevertheless, this exhibition is to be highly recommended. It’s delightful, thought-provoking, clever and mounted with great tact.

A bit of public hostility (of the ‘No sex on our rates’ kind) was expressed beforehand — but the reality has been greeted with widespread acclaim, not opprobrium.

This Sex &The Sea exhibition complements the two related ones, now finished, in other maritime museums: Tattoos & Scrimshaw: The Art of The Sailor at Vancouver; and Zeerotica: about love and passion on the coast, in Belgium’s Oostduinkerke (East Dunkirk) National Fisheries Museum .

For three museums to mount exhibi-

The Rotterdam exhibition features many ships’ figureheads

tions about seafarers as human beings is a welcome change in a field overpreoccupied by cold rivets. Perhaps it’s a sign that future exhibitions could be about seafarers’ other personal but political concerns, such as working conditions and the safety threat posed by cuts in crew levels.

gSex & The Sea exhibition runs to 19 December 2014, from 1000-1700hrs daily (except Sunday 1100-1700). Maritiem Museum Rotterdam, Leuvehaven 1, 3011 EA Rotterdam. Tel: +31(0)10 413 2680. www.maritiemmuseum.nl

Suggestive coco-de-mer nuts are among the items on show

19/02/2014 17:23

28 | telegraph | nautilusint.org | March 2014

SEAFARER WELFARE

Ronald Hope: a class above Former Marine Society director BRIAN THOMAS pays tribute to a passionate pioneer of education and support for seafarers…

N

Dr Ronald Hope, latterly of the Seafarers' Education Service and The Marine Society, died on 23 January. Generations of seafarers owe a debt of gratitude to his passionate, unyielding commitment to their well-being.

I didn’t know Ronald especially well at a personal level. He was retiring from The Marine Society as I joined it. But we often spoke after his retirement, met from time to time, and I shall be for ever grateful for his wise counsel.

I left The Marine Society last year, having been privileged to serve it for 26 years. My role was to look after what Ronald cherished as the Seafarers' Education Service — the College of the Sea, Seafarers' Libraries, and the vari-

ous support operations which made life for those who serve at sea that much more bearable.

Ronald Hope’s career was remarkable by any standards. At the age of just 16 in 1937 he appeared on television enthusing about a new charity called Ship Adoption whereby schools ‘adopted’ ships and the seafarers who sailed them — commonplace nowadays, but unprecedented at the time.

A year later he spent six weeks voyaging to Canada in a Cunarder.

The outbreak of war saw him take up a scholarship at New College, Oxford, graduating with first class honours in 1942. He then joined the Royal Navy and saw active service in a number of theatres, including a daring operation against the battleship Tirpitz.

War over, he was drawn to academia, taking a post as lecturer in economics amongst the dreaming spires at his alma mater in Oxford. But the call of the sea was powerful.

In 1947, aged just 26, Ronald became director of the Seafarers' Education Service (SES), an initiative begun in 1919 by Albert Mansbridge, who had earlier founded the Workers' Educational Association.

The SES was akin to a WEA for seafarers, based around the provision of libraries of books to around 2,000 ships throughout the world, but its jewel was the College of the Sea — a very early example of what today we would call a distance learning operation, offering tuition to around 1,000 seafarers in an impressive range

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28-29_hope+ifsma_proofed.indd 28

of academic subjects.

During the post-war decades the SES became the pre-eminent provider of charitable services to seafarers. The Marine Society, of which the energetic Ronald had become a trustee in 1962 and chairman by 1970, had a relatively low profile. In 1976 the two charities merged, with Ronald taking the helm of the combined charity.

Ronald believed fervently that nobody ought to be denied access to education on account of their calling. For Ronald, those who served at sea and endured all its deprivations and hardships were amongst the most deserving in society.

So it was that this tall and distinguished economic historian, a university don, was attracted to the cause espoused by the SES, even though he apparently had no intention of staying at the helm of the SES for long.

Ronald was to stay for 40 years. During that time he stoutly defended the interests of seafarers and was fearless in his advocacy of their rights. By nature a mild mannered, considerate and courteous man, he cared not whose feathers might be ruffled by his often strident interventions in the daily schedule of the bean-counting shipowner or feckless politician: he was a true champion of seafarers’ rights.

That Kipling verse ‘If you can walk with the crowd and keep your virtue, or walk with Kings — nor lose the common touch’ could have been written for Ronald. That he could command an audience with the mightiest in the land; engage with the finest minds in industry and politics; and yet take huge and genuine joy from teaching and discourse with common men remains one of his most endearing attributes.

O

Late last year I happened upon former deputy prime minister John Prescott and mentioned the Marine Society. His face lit up.

‘Hope’, he enunciated with obvious passion; ‘an inspirational man’. It had been Ronald who encouraged the young Prescott and helped him get his first academic qualifications.

There were no lengths to which he would not go to help a seafarer: nothing would be too much trouble.

Mentoring is now fashionable throughout industry and commerce, and the maritime sector has embraced it with aplomb, often packaging it in a grandiose wrapper. But Ronald was mentoring seafarers for years. He personally tutored seafarers on a

Dr Ronald Hope, when he was director of the Marine Society Picture: Tony Othen

one-to-one basis in economics throughout his career, and was forever reaching out to them, offering friendly advice on any matter of concern. He oft said this was the most enjoyable part of his work. He was an inspiring teacher in the finest tradition.

That word inspirational crops up time and again. Julian Parker, founding secretary of the Nautical Institute, knew Ronald well.

He first came across him in 1960 when the fresh-faced Blue Funnel midshipman signed up for a correspondence course in literature.

‘Ronald did so much to raise the profile of seafaring,’ Julian recalls.

‘He authored books, ran competitions, promoted poetry, arranged sea-going tutors, organised lectures, provided libraries of books and films, and of course correspondence courses — he even commissioned a sea symphony!’

Ronald was a colossus in seafarers’ education

“

”

Another with fond recollections is the renowned sailor Sir Robin Knox-Johnston, who was encouraged by Ronald to take an A Level in mathematics whilst serving at sea running between Bombay to Basra. ‘Later, when I decided to try and sail solo nonstop around the world, Ronald phoned and asked if I was taking any books. I thought this was a great idea. We agreed the broad topics that interested me and he delivered them to me personally

in the Surrey Commercial Docks as I was setting off.’

Gill Dunsdon worked with Ronald for 29 years. She recalls ‘a strict but a very fair and lovely boss’ who she ‘could ask and talk to about absolutely anything’.

Just like he respected and admired the seafarers he worked for, Ronald’s colleagues had huge respect and admiration for him.

N

Ronald’s influence in the dissemination of education and the promotion of what we call today distance learning permeated every facet of national discourse. In 1965, Jennie Lee, as education minister, was tasked by prime minister Harold Wilson to establish a model that would widen access to higher education.

The College of the Sea had more experience of learning at a distance than most. So it was — alongside university vice-chancellors, broadcasters, and educationalists of international repute — that Ronald became an influential contributor to the planning committee that led to the foundation of The Open University.

Ronald was a colossus in seafarers’ education and a champion for the well-being of those who go to sea professionally.

His influence shone as a beacon throughout the second half of the 20th century and it would not be an exaggeration to say that much of the considerable maritime charity infrastructure which exists today owes a great deal to his legacy.

gBrian Thomas is an independ-

ent education professional, these days focusing on a portfolio of projects that hold especial personal interest. He left The Marine Society last year after 26 years heading its education and seafarer services. http://bthomas.me

19/02/2014 17:24

March 2014 | nautilusint.org | telegraph | 29

SHIPPING POLICY

Building bridges to the IMO In his second special report for the Telegraph, International Federation of Ship Masters’ Association (IFSMA) secretary-general JOHN DICKIE reflects on some of the biggest issues facing members right now…

K

This second article is being written before there has been any feedback from the readership in respect of the article that appeared in the February issue.

So I hope that it was well received by those that read it!

IFSMA is presently gearing up for its 40th Annual General Assembly, which is being held this year in Sandefjord, Norway on 5 and 6 June. This is a major event not only because IFSMA has managed to reach the grand old age of 40, but also because there will be elections for the officebearers who make up the executive council. These are one president, one deputy president and seven vice-presidents. All office-holders will stand down and a number of them have decided to retire, so the majority of office bearers will be new to the post after the elections are completed.

Any member of IFSMA — whether an individual member or a member of any association in the IFSMA family — can stand for any post. It is hoped there will be a number of people putting themselves forward to bring new knowledge and expertise to IFSMA and to be active members as the association moves forward with its agenda.

One of the important points which has to change is the perception that IFSMA is a male-dominated association.

There is work going on to identify all of the female members and hopefully have one or more stand in the elections and become a member of the executive council.

This would be great step forward.

One of the important pieces of

28-29_hope+ifsma_proofed.indd 29

work that IFSMA is engaged in is increasing the number of branches around the world by creating new branches in countries where we have not been represented. The global footprint is an important asset so that masters can have an immediate contact point and person to call upon in times of trouble. Having people on hand who can speak the local language and are able to offer assistance to masters and

The most important thing is to bring these issues into the light for discussion

“

”

their crew is important, due to the ever-increasing numbers of criminalisation cases.

In January the first of the new International Maritime Organisation (IMO) subcommittees held its initial meeting. The ship design and construction (SDC) subcommittee had a heavy agenda which resulted in long hours being worked, especially in the working groups who continued on until late in the night to move matters forward. It is hoped that

the efforts of all who took part are appreciated. In many cases the work that the IMO does is not understood or there is only limited knowledge of how it operates and what it achieves.

This perception is being challenged and there is work going on to identify what the actual perceptions are and to find solutions to change these and ensure that there is a better relationship between those who work onboard the ships and the organisation. This will also be applied to those who have left the sea and work in the maritime industry in shoreside positions.

The IMO will have held three sub-committee meetings by the time you are reading this. IFSMA is always present at the IMO, and the support of Allan Graveson from Nautilus International is greatly appreciated, as it eases the workload.

IFSMA’s position is to look at everything that the IMO does and make interventions where applicable. These interventions are to pass comment on the subject matter being discussed — and while the main focus is on the position of the shipmaster, wherever possible the inclusion and support to matters affecting all seafarers is made. After all, the shipmaster is only as good as his or her crew.

The maritime press has a plethora of publications and it is difficult to keep up to date with everything that is going on. What is apparent is that there are a number of underlying problems in the industry which are being reported but cannot be substantiated, and as a result no action can be taken.

IFSMA took part in the IMO's ship design and construction sub-committee Picture: STX Europe

One website that has been set up to record these facts is www. cruiselawnews.com. It makes for harrowing reading and casts an ugly dark shadow over this sector of the maritime industry, even though some of the reports are not substantiated.

The most troublesome part of this scenario is the fact that the vast majority of officers and crew will be honourable professionals doing their job and acting with

proper decorum. But as such reports increase, it will have a lasting and damaging effect on this important part of the industry. There is also the issue of people being falsely accused and the effect it will have on them and their careers.

Action needs to be taken, but how to go about ridding the industry of this problem is going to be difficult. The most important point is to bring the

issues into the light for discussion instead of hiding in the shadows and being allowed to continue.

I hope this column will raise awareness that such issues exist and bring them to the attention of those who can resolve them. It is also important that seafarers are aware of what goes on in the industry that they work in and how the public perceives all of us when they read such articles.

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19/02/2014 17:24

30 | telegraph | nautilusint.org | March 2014

MARITIME WELFARE

Commodore Malcolm Williams

Restoring wrecked lives, then and now

As the Shipwrecked Mariners’ Society enters its 175th anniversary year, chief executive Commodore Malcolm Williams looks back at the history of the charity and its vital work today…

I

Life at sea is just as hard and dangerous as it was 175 years ago, and the Shipwrecked Mariners’ Society’s purpose has always been the same — to relieve distress among the seafaring and ex-seafaring community.

The charity aims to provide financial help to merchant seafarers, fishermen and their dependants who are in need. Support is provided either as regular grants or as one-off payments to meet particular needs.

On Sunday 29 October 1838, 11 fishing vessels manned by 26 men left Clovelly heading for

30-31_shipwrecked mariners'.indd 30

the Bristol Channel. A terrible storm meant that only two vessels returned and 21 men were lost. As a result of this, Charles Gee Jones — a former Bristol pilot and landlord of the Pulteney Arms in Bath — suggested to John Rye, a medical man of the city, that something should be done to help those affected by shipwrecks.

A meeting was held on Thursday 21 February 1839 and it was reported in the following day’s Morning Post that: ‘A public meeting was held at the London Tavern, Bishopsgate Street, for the purpose of forming a fund for

The Jeune Hortense, shipwrecked at Long Rock, Cornwall, in 1888 Picture: National Maritime Museum

the relief of shipwrecked mariners and fishermen, or in the case

of loss of life, for the widows and orphans of that interesting class of our fellow subjects...’

Admiral of the Fleet Sir George Cockburn was in the chair and became the first president of the Shipwrecked Fishermen and Mariners’ Benevolent Society. Queen Victoria became the first patron and that royal connection has continued ever since, with the Princess Royal being our present patron.

Incorporated by Act of Parliament in 1850, the word ‘Royal’ was brought into the title, and the Society’s purpose was described as ‘the giving of relief and assistance to the widows and orphans of fishermen and mariners … who should lose their lives by storm and shipwreck, on any part of the coast of the United Kingdom, whilst engaged in their lawful occupation and also to render necessary assistance to other poor persons as shall suffer shipwreck upon the said coasts…’

The charity’s purpose has remained the same over its 175year history, and it is still providing financial help to merchant seafarers, fishermen and their dependants who are in need. We pay an immediate grant to the widow of a serving seafarer who dies, whether death occurs at sea or ashore. Regular grants are paid to retired or permanently disabled seafarers and widows. Special grants are made to meet crisis and specific needs from essential household electrical goods to utility bill arrears and clothes to mobility aids.

The Society’s distinctive flag — a St George’s Cross, with a crown in the centre and the initials S, F, M, S in the quadrants — was introduced in 1844. A distinguishing number was placed in the centre of the cross to identify the vessel to which it was assigned. Arrangements were made through private telegraph stations and then the coastguard to report the

numbers of the flags displayed by vessels passing their stations, and these in turn were reported in the Shipping & Mercantile Gazette.

This was later extended when homeward bound vessels would report en route sightings upon arrival at a UK port.

From 1851 the Society operated lifeboats at Lytham, Rhyl, Porthmadog, Tenby, Llanelli, Teignmouth, Hornsea and Newhaven, but it was subsequently agreed that it would be wiser if one organisation concentrated on rescuing lives at sea while the other helped the survivors or their bereaved families.

So, in 1854, the Society transferred its lifeboats to the RNLI.

By 1939 it was estimated that the Society had helped over 850,000 people

“

”

Losses from shipwrecks in the 19th century were staggering.

Typically in the middle years of the 19th century the Society would be helping 12,000 to 13,000 people every year, including 8,000 widows, orphans and aged parents and up to 4,000 from shipwrecks.

The scale of ship losses at the time just around our own coast can be difficult for us to comprehend. In 1859, a particularly bad year, 1,416 ships were lost on our

coasts, and with them 1,645 lives.

In 1882, a not untypical year, 445 British owned vessels — fishing vessels and merchant ships — were lost on our shores.

During WWI the Society assisted some 51,000 sailors and over 8,000 parents. In WWII we assisted over 60,000 seamen, over 6,000 widows, 8,000 orphans and 4,000 parents of victims. Of the 60,000 seamen, 35,000 were survivors from convoys landed at UK ports, and we would provide clothing, accommodation and rail warrants.

By 1939 it was estimated that the Society had helped over 850,000 people and, as the work continues, this number has risen to a total of over one million people since the charity was established.

With a volunteer network of more than 200 Honorary Agents throughout the British Isles, the Society handles several hundred applications for assistance each year and distributes over £1m in dealing with around 2,000 cases.

The Society relies on legacies, an annual Christmas appeal, investments and grants, principally from Seafarers UK and Trinity House, as well as donations to meet its commitments. You may also have seen our large redpainted WWII mines, which act as large collecting boxes, on many sea fronts.

Our title now is more of a metaphor for what we do; although shipwrecks do still occur these are normally single-manned fishing vessels.

The majority of people we assist these days — more than 2,300 last year — are retired and finding it difficult to make ends meet, or are below retirement age and unable to work as a result of an accident or ill health, for compassionate reasons or because they cannot find employment in their 50s after a life spent at sea.

Since 1851, the Society has presented annual awards for outstanding acts of ‘Skill and gallantry at sea’ and this continues to this day with the Edward & Maisie Lewis Award for an outstanding Air-Sea rescue, the Emile Robin Award for an outstanding sea rescue and the Lady Swaythling Trophy for an outstanding feat of seamanship. In our archives we have a unique record of heroism at sea. An interactive map on our website enables visitors to discover the stories behind our awards.

As relevant today as it was when it was set up, the Society will continue to support seafarers and their dependants in need. gTo find out more, contact us at: 1 North Pallant, Chichester, West Sussex PO19 1TL, visit our website www.shipwreckedmariners.org.uk, follow us on Twitter @ShipwreckedSoc or visit our Facebook page www.facebook.co.uk/shipwreckedmariners

19/02/2014 18:06

March 2014 | nautilusint.org | telegraph | 31

MARITIME WELFARE

Credit where it’s due K

Since 1851, we have been giving awards for outstanding acts of skill and gallantry at sea. They recognise heroes whose courage, fortitude, determination and skill have saved the lives of fellow mariners.

The sea can be unforgiving, and those who help seafarers in difficulty know what fate awaits them if they fail. The awards are a reminder that the valuable work carried out by our seafaring communities can be just as dangerous now as it was 162 years ago when the awards began.

Last year’s ceremony saw crews and individuals from four sea rescues honoured. The crew of Super Puma Rescue Bond 1 from Bond Offshore helicopters were recognised for their outstanding professionalism, teamwork, courage and determination. Helmsman Damien Bolton was awarded for his outstanding leadership, skill and judgement during dangerous sea conditions. RNLI Helmsman Barry Gourlay was recognised for his outstanding seamanship during a rescue, and Sergeant Rachel Robinson for her heroic actions when saving a

…those who help seafarers in difficulty know what fate awaits them if they fail

“

”

seriously injured fisherman.

Every year, the recipients represent many examples of those who put their lives at risk every day in order to keep seafarers and members of the public safe. The qualities shown by the men and women nominated and the courage displayed in helping those in distress is quite remarkable.

An example of previous winners include those who put their lives at risk to save the 15 crew members onboard the Bahamas-flagged merchant ship Green Lily when it began drifting in force 11 winds off the Shetland Islands after experiencing engine problems on 19 November 1997.

Coxswain Mechanic Hewitt Clark of Lerwick lifeboat was awarded the Emile Robin Award for demonstrating enormous courage and determination in rescuing the first five men from the ship.

Captain John Gade, master of the AHTS Maersk Champion, was recognised for his role in the rescue and outstanding seamanship and presented with the Lady Swaythling Trophy.

Without his efforts, the helicopter rescue would not have been possible.

And the Edward & Maisie Lewis award was presented to the crew of Coastguard helicopter Lima Charlie, without whose skill, dedication and heroism the remaining 10 crew of the Green Lily would not have survived. The ship was rolling violently as huge waves broke around the deck, and winchman Bill Deacon had ensured that the last two survivors were securely harnessed and winched to safety.

Tragically, before he could be winched off, Bill Deacon was swept overboard and lost.

g Read about this, and all our

other award stories dating back to 1851, on the website and the interactive map at: www. shipwreckedmariners.org.uk

Help us honour brave mariners Society awards for skill and F gallantry are presented annually at a The Shipwrecked Mariners'

ceremony held at Fishmongers’ Hall, London. This year the ceremony will be on Tuesday 7 October. The Society is currently seeking nominations for the following awards:

z The Edward and Maisie Lewis

Award — for an outstanding air/sea rescue or casevac

z The Emile Robin Award — for an

outstanding sea rescue by a British Captain or chief officer of a vessel of any nationality, or the Captain or chief officer (of any nationality) of a British owned or flagged merchant vessel

30-31_shipwrecked mariners'.indd 31

Commodore Malcolm Williams pays tribute to previous winners of the Shipwrecked Mariners’ Society awards for skill and gallantry, and invites Telegraph readers to make nominations for this year’s awards…

The rescue of the Bahamas-flagged Green Lily in 1997 Picture: MAIB

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z The Lady Swaythling Trophy — for an outstanding feat of seamanship.

z Individual commendation — for outstanding individual acts of skill and gallantry.

Nominations for this year’s awards — for incidents that took place between 1 April 2013 and 31 March 2014 — should be submitted to the charity by Friday 9 May, for consideration by the awards committee, which includes former Royal Naval officers with ship and helicopter command experience and Merchant Navy master mariners.

OUR FEES ARE AS FOLLOWS: Annual Return ......................................................................................................... £195.00 inclusive of VAT at 20%

No commission charged on refunds gained.

NAUTILUS members in the UK sailing under a foreign flag agreement on gross remuneration can obtain a 10% reduction on the above enrolment fee by quoting their NAUTILUS membership number and a 5% reduction on re-enrolment.

or ite, now r W ne pho more for ails: det

Elgin House, 83 Thorne Road, Doncaster DN1 2ES. Tel: (01302) 364673 - Fax No: (01302) 738526 - E-mail: info@seatax.ltd.uk www.seatax.ltd.uk

19/02/2014 17:24

32 | telegraph | nautilusint.org | March 2014

OFFWATCH ships of the past

by Trevor Boult true yacht — a gift to King F Charles ll. Samuel Pepys wrote Mary was England’s first

that ‘she is one of the finest things I ever saw for neatness and room in so small a vessel’.

The king’s passion for sailing was born during the English Civil War, when he escaped aboard a frigate from Oliver Cromwell’s vengeful Roundheads. It was nurtured during 14 years of exile, largely spent amongst the seafaring people of the Netherlands.

In May 1660, during the first leg of Charles’s triumphal return to England after Cromwell’s death, the king had been so captivated by his borrowed fleet of small Dutch vessels, called jachts, that the Dutch East India Company presented him with Mary. His enthusiasm was such that he and his brother James, Duke of York, ordered the Admiralty to build two more such craft — Catherine, and Anne.

The siblings engaged in friendly rivalry, arranging a race between the two vessels whose generic term was to become anglicised to ‘yacht’. Others had raced boats for pleasure, some had raced yachts, but this was the earliest contest to be recorded. It is regarded as the birth of what has long since become a global sport.

Charles was a physically tough man: a suitable father for such a sport. He was to become so smitten with yachting that he eventually commissioned 30 swift pleasure craft as successors to Mary. If the king was sporting about on the water, nobility were obliged to follow suit.

Yachts came down the ways in London, Bristol, Portsmouth, and elsewhere. The custom spread abroad. By the early 1800s yachting had taken a firm hold among the blue bloods of a dozen lands.

While the two original royal

Royal yacht was England’s first

yachts were utterly unlike the sleek racing machines of modern times, they were not as frivolous as their sumptuous appointments and decorations made them appear. A 17th century yacht represented the apex of contemporary nautical architecture: a relatively fast seagoing vessel, originally designed for wartime use as an advice boat and scout. Catherine, and Anne, were perfect examples of the type. Both were patterned after Mary, and they were well matched.

On 1 October 1661, a procession of vessels moved grandly down the River Thames.

The two royal yachts dominated

the fleet. Charles strode the deck of Catherine; his brother did likewise on Anne. A retinue of other craft danced attendance.

Lavishly attired gentlemen of Charles’s court lounged about the decks, gossiping or playing cards. Servants tendered goblets of wine and silver platters of food. Courtiers who sought respite utilised an ornate great cabin. If the royal brothers tired they relaxed in their spacious, panelled staterooms which featured four-poster beds. To anyone watching from shore it appeared a fabulous royal pageant.

Unlikely as it evidently seemed, the two yachts were

Telegraph prize crossword The winner of this month’s cryptic crossword competition will win a copy of the book Light Upon the Waters: The History of Trinity House (reviewed in last month’s Telegraph).

To enter, simply complete the form right and send it, along with your completed crossword, to: Nautilus International, Telegraph Crossword

Competition, 1&2 The Shrubberies, George Lane, South Woodford, London E18 1BD, or fax +44 (0)20 8530 1015. You can also enter by email, by sending your list of answers and your contact details to: telegraph@nautilusint.org.

50 YEARS AGO The Ministry of Transport has circulated proposals to replace the existing recommendations governing the packing, marking and stowage of radioactive material when carried by ships. The recommendations are designed to ensure the health and safety of seafarers and to minimise the risks of carrying radioactive material, as distinct from irradiated fuel. The recommendations cover the measures to be taken in the event of fire or other mishap, and it is envisaged that help and advice would be speedily available from the shippers — and, if necessary, with suitably qualified personnel to be sent to check radiation and contamination hazards. The MNAOA has emphasised that such arrangements may be all right if the ships are in port, but when at sea if anything untoward happens seafarers would be required to deal with the situation themselves MN Journal, March 1964

25 YEARS AGO The European Commission is being urged to take steps to stop the development of ‘ports of convenience’ which flout international antipollution regulations. A report drawn up by the European Parliament’s transport committee calls for better waste reception facilities in ports, tougher policing of the rules and a crackdown on ships caught breaching regulations. The study warns that differences in the way in which various EU member states apply the MARPOL regulations are creating ‘distortions of competition’ between European ports and shipping companies. It claims that the cost of using waste reception facilities in some European ports is ‘more expensive than discharging the substances illegally and paying any fines’, while in other countries the facilities are provided for free and in some it is impossible for ships to dispose of waste legally because there are no facilities The Telegraph, March 1989

10 YEARS AGO Euro-MPs have been urged by maritime unions including NUMAST to switch their shipping safety initiatives to the importance of skilled seafarers. In a presentation to the European Parliament’s hearing on maritime safety last month, European Transport Workers’ Federation representatives warned that the response to the Prestige disaster is in danger of missing the key issues.

Unions told MEPs that the prime causes of tanker disasters are usually not structural but ‘human’ and more needs to be done to tackle problems such as fatigue, training and employment conditions. The ETF said penalties should be directed at shipping companies rather than seafarers and flag states should be pressed to develop improved mechanisms to ensure that ‘quality pays’ in shipping The Telegraph, March 2004

THEQUIZ 1

What percentage of the current world orderbook of 6,800 ships of 188m gt is accounted for by containerships?

2

How many new cruiseships were built around the world between 2000 and the end of 2013?

3

What percentage of global cruiseship passenger numbers come from North America?

4

Which is the world’s largest P&I Club?

5

How many LNG carriers are there in the world fleet?

6

Which passenger shipping company used to give its ships names ending in ‘-ic’?

J Quiz answers are on page 42.

Name: Address:

Telephone:

Membership No.:

Closing date is Wednesday 12 March 2014.

QUICK CLUES

32_offwatch.indd 32

engaged in a contest of speed, from Greenwich to Gravesend and back. A £100 wager between the protagonists rode on the outcome. Moving so slowly, the attending craft powered by oars easily paced them. The king lost the first leg of the race. The Duke’s yacht proved able to sail slightly closer to the wind. They agreed to start afresh for the homeward leg. As often happens, the boat that sails badly up-wind does better when running before it. The race ended diplomatically in a draw.

Through the succeeding centuries racing under sail for pleasure has become a much more demanding enterprise, and a much more democratic one.

Yet until relatively recent times it continued to be primarily a rich person’s sport that numbered royalty among its most avid participants.

Arthur Clark, a 19th century ship’s captain, has termed yachting as ‘the poetry of the sea’, opining that ‘no other sport or past-time has been so interwoven with romance and countless memories of daring deeds and glorious achievements’. It has also been stated that, in the name of sport, racing yachtsmen have pushed the development of fast sailing vessels far beyond the levels of refinement achieved over thousands of years by working mariners.

It is also now generally accepted that fore-and-aft rig was largely developed by the Dutch and came into general use in Britain during the Restoration, and greatly stimulated by the fine example of the yachts of Charles II. Mary was wrecked in March 1675 near the present Skerries Lighthouse in Wales, several miles from Holyhead, Anglesey. She was rediscovered by members of the British Sub Aqua Club in 1971, after which a considerable number of artefacts were recovered.

1.

9.

10.

11.

12.

15.

16.

18.

20.

22.

24.

25.

Across TV comedy (4,4) Score (6) Column style (5) Petitioner (8) Author (7,7) Church office (6) Touched down (6) Church office (6,8) Remedy (8) Court hammer (5) Position (6) Actor (8)

1.

2.

3.

4.

5.

6.

8.

13.

Down Privation (8) Consumer (4) Part of face (6) Tiff (4) Crime organiser (10) Spells (6) Rare (9) Send home (10)

14.

17.

18.

19.

21.

23.

Bubbly (9) Table (4-4) Tiny (6) Nap (6) York river (4) Privileged guests (4)

CRYPTIC CLUES Across 7. Assemble iron and lead-edged mast from another mineral (8) 9. More than one friend has swallowed incomplete bait (6) 10. More than one friend has swallowed incomplete bait (5) 11. Confirm London museum has cap with Lawrence’s initials (8) 12. Make special effort to outdo Bannister (2,3,5,4)

15. Medics joining what in Spain is a holy place (6) 16. Munch away — frightened reaction to the theft (6) 18. Not as crisp, i.e., when she passes it onto neighbour (7,7) 20. From the table, a cherry finds itself in hot seat (8) 22. Bending over backwards, neither here nor there (5) 24. Tale-teller, but not for McCarthy witch-hunt (6) 25. Take care, a bit spreads germs (8)

Down Principal with accommodation and space in car (8) 2. What journalist does with story when tide turns (4) 3. Hedge with one pence and a pin (6) 4. Gem an acquaintance put on ring (4) 1.

5. Shuffle cards and equip runners and walkers with what they’ll need (10) 6. Unnerve with baby’s toy (6) 8. Sue’s text oh so endearing (9) 13. Rotisserie with only a lamb’s tail can be welcoming, in a dugout (10) 14. May be anonymous but can make a spirited contribution (9) 17. May now ease memorisation of names in class — for example (8) 18. Barker gets pass with tall story (6) 19. ‘------ the roaring waters with my silks’ (The Merchant of Venice) (6) 21. Dear, home is where it is — or so they say (4) 23. Join compiler and alien (4) J Crossword answers are on page 42.

19/02/2014 17:25

March 2014 | nautilusint.org | telegraph | 33

books

OFFWATCH

Wartime disaster tale breaks years of silence Death in the Baltic

By Cathryn J. Prince Palgrave Macmillan, £16.99 ISBN: 978 02303 41562 maritime disaster, chances are you would get K the names Titanic or Lusitania. It’s certainly very If you ask most people to name the worst

unlikely that you would hear the name Wilhelm Gustloff in reply.

Yet this passengership — the victim of a Soviet submarine in January 1945 — accounts for the greatest loss of life in a single ship sinking. No one knows for sure the true total of fatalities, but most research puts the figure at around 9,000 — compared with an estimated 1,517 from Titanic and 1,195 from Lusitania.

Cathryn Prince explores the reasons why this terrible loss has never had the recognition it merits, setting the attack in the strategic context of the Russian advance on Germany and the desperate

rush to evacuate from East Prussia — now part of Poland — as the Red Army moved forward.

Launched by Hitler in 1937, Wilhelm Gustloff had been designed and built to provide holiday cruises for the German working classes, and had sailed up the Thames in April 1938 to serve as a floating polling station for Germans living in the UK. The ship spent much of the war as accommodation for U-boat trainees, but was pressed into service along with hundreds of other vessels as part of Operation Hannibal to take people across the Baltic to the relative safety of Kiel.

The well-paced narrative draws from contemporary accounts and interviews with survivors to provide a vivid account of the horrific attack. The packed ship had only 22 lifeboats and lifejackets for fewer than half the people onboard.

Some people were trampled to death in the rush to escape, while others committed suicide rather than drown in the icy waters.

It tells how Ellerman had a key role in pioneering containerisation in the 1960s and how the company also diversified into a broad portfolio of other transport, travel and leisure operations. This is closely followed by the sad story of the company’s gradual demise, following a series of sales and amalgamations in the 1980s.

But the actual history is disappointingly short — amounting to just 36 pages — with the remainder of the book taken up with fleet lists and photographs. One senses there could be a much deeper and extensive story to be told, with even the cursory details given in the fleet lists hinting at some remarkable tales — not least during wartime.

Intriguing UK company Titanic sister history skimps ship has a on the detail moment in the sun Ellerman Lines: Remembering a Great British Shipping Company

By Ian Collard The History Press, £16.99 ISBN: 978 07524 89636 fwww.thehistorypress.co.uk a great name in British K shipping history, but was also a Ellerman Lines is not just

company of immense significance in the development of the maritime industry — and this new book makes it clear from the outset how the company fitted into the professionalisation of ship management and operation that had begun with the move to steam.

Ian Collard has produced many fine maritime histories, and this account of the rise and fall of Ellerman Lines is good at demonstrating the shipping company and maritime developments that helped to shape its remarkably rapid expansion following its launch in 1902

by John Reeves Ellerman, 10 years after he left home at the age of 14.

The book untangles the complex web of relationships between Ellerman and other companies, as well as its extensive involvement in both world wars and the network of services to the Mediterranean, India, South America and East and South Africa.

33_books.indd 33

The Unseen Britannic

By Simon Mills The History Press, £20.00 ISBN: 978 07524 97716 fwww.thehistorypress.co.uk

publisher’s dream: a book K that links the Titanic with the First The Unseen Britannic is a

World War. Two recent centenary commemorations for the price of one! Fortunately, this book is not as crass as that sounds, and while there’s clearly a marketing reason why it’s being published this year, it’s actually a decent ship history that would be of interest at any time.

The Britannic, the author explains, was a lesser-known sister ship of the Titanic and Olympic, which was still under construction when war broke out in 1914. Given the sudden drop in demand for transAtlantic liners, a new purpose had to be found for the vessel, and in 1915 it was launched as a hospital ship.

After several missions to bring home casualties from the Mediterranean and Middle East,

Cathryn Prince explains the strategic context of the attack — not least the ruthless Nazi decision in 1939 to ignore international law on war at sea, as well as previous attacks on merchant ships such as Athenia and Lusitania, and the dissent between the civilian and military captains onboard Wilhelm Gustloff over the best route and manoeuvres to minimise the risk of attack.

In questioning the legitimacy of the attack, the book also touches on the fact that the ship was carrying more than civilians desperate to escape from the Russian advance — onboard were Nazi Party officials, soldiers, sailors and perhaps even top-secret weapons — and explains how secrecy and sensitivities on both sides created a wall of silence around the incident which lasted well beyond the war.

Well-researched and very readable, the book

the Britannic was sunk in 1916 by an explosion in the Aegean Sea, caused probably by a torpedo or underwater mine. And although the vessel went down more quickly than the Titanic, many more lives were saved, as more lifeboats had been carried, the water temperature was warmer and rescuers were closer to hand.

All this is interestingly recounted in The Unseen Britannic, along with a wealth of related stories, such as the biography of the ship’s master Captain Bartlett. And for those who have already read Simon Mills’s two previous works on the Britannic, there is the promise of something new in the shape of ‘rare photographs’ — which are wellpresented throughout the book.

These days the Britannic sits peacefully on the seabed near the Greek island of Kea, having been re-discovered in 1975 by the marine explorer Jacques Cousteau. As a designated war grave, the Britannic enjoys official protection from the Greek and British governments, and is reportedly now owned by Simon Mills himself, who has pledged to ‘leave it as it is’. This is in sharp contrast to the fate of the Titanic wreck, which has been sullied by looting and damage from inappropriate diving missions in recent years.

occasionally lapses into somewhat speculative scene-setting portrayals of the key characters. But it also poignantly captures the post-disaster trauma of those who did survive and raises powerful questions about the morality and reality of war.

On the whole, then, the Britannic seems to have a worthy champion in Mr Mills, and if the timing of his latest publication is rather opportunistic, we probably shouldn’t begrudge him the chance to drum up some more interest in the vessel he loves.

New edition of guide marries tradition with technology Passage Planning Guidelines Witherby Publishing Group, £25 ISBN: 978 18560 96096 fwww.witherbyseamanship.com superintendent Captain David K Salmon produced a guidebook

Back in 1997, former navigation

for officers on the preparation of passage plans. Now Witherby Seamanship has re-written and expanded this work in a timely new edition.

Barely a month goes by without a marine accident investigation report highlighting navigational shortcomings, and this clear and simple handbook underlines both

A cruise scrapbook filled with enjoyable ephemera The British Cruise Ship — An Illustrated History 1844–1939

By Ian Collard Amberley, £19.99 ISBN: 978 14456 21210 fwww.amberley-books.com

K

As the cover suggests, this book is an unashamed wallow in nostalgia — bringing together almost 270 old photographs, posters, post cards, paintings and other bits and pieces to illustrate the development of the British passenger shipping industry from 1844 to 1939.

The start date is linked to P&O’s launch of deepsea cruising to the Mediterranean, although the author notes earlier forays into the provision of passengership excursions and rival claims for the

title i l off first cruiseship, i hi suchh as the h three-month voyage undertaken by the Francesco 1 in 1833.

But if you’re looking for a detailed and thorough history of the

cruise andd iits i iindustry d ships, this will disappoint you. Mr Collard canters through the first 100 years of British cruising in the space of just eight pages. The remaining

125 are composed of captioned 12 images ranging from the first British im India vessel, the 1856-built Cape In of Good Hope, to the 1939-built Mauretania.

M There’s a particularly strong pphotographic focus on Liverpool aand the Mersey, and it is especially interesting to see the ways in which in cruises have been marketed over cr the years. Old menus also give a th fascinating insight into changing fa ddietary habits: boar’s head for bbreakfast, anyone?

The format of the book means that there is no linking narrative th or chronological structure that ties o the h somewhat disjointed contents together. Whilst there are some terrific pictures and some lovely old adverts, the overall effect is a bit like flicking through a scrapbook.

the regulatory requirements and the underpinning importance of proper appraisal, planning, execution and monitoring at all stages of a ship’s voyage.

The book is divided into two main sections: the first covering traditional and paper-based passage planning and the second being a new addition to the original version addressing what the book describes as the ‘new challenges’ of ECDIS passage planning.

The text is concise and straightforward and is supplemented with useful illustrations and graphics, as well as flagging up critical points and potential problem areas. It also addresses such issues as navigation with a pilot onboard and the circumstances in which deviation from the passage plan can occur.

The book comes complete with handy appendices offering checklists, advice on parallel indexing, examples of passage planning notes, a passage plan pro-forma and relevant sources of additional information.

BOOK SAVINGS Telegraph readers can buy the books reviewed on these pages at a whopping 25% discount on publisher’s price through the Marine Society’s online shop. need to make their purchase g at www.marinesocietyshop.org.

To qualify for this offer, readers

Click on the ‘Books of the month’ button with the Nautilus logo to see the books featured in the Telegraph, and use the promotional code Nautilus when buying your book.

19/02/2014 17:34

34 | telegraph | nautilusint.org | March 2014

NL NEWS Extra ledenvergadering i.v.m. statutenwijziging Nautilus al heeft kunnen lezen is C de oprichting van het Maritiem

Zoals u elders in de Telegraph

Platform Gepensioneerden een feit. Via een brief zijn onze gepensioneerde leden hiervan op de hoogte gebracht. Om het proces rond de oprichting volledig te maken is nog een wijziging van de statuten van Nautilus NL nodig. Een gepensioneerd aangesloten lid van Nautilus is namelijk automatisch en gratis lid van het Maritiem Platform Gepensioneerden. Dit moet echter nog wel in de statuten van Nautilus NL worden opgenomen.

Verder is er een kleine tekstuele

verduidelijking (zonder inhoudelijke wijziging) nodig. Om die reden roept het bestuur een extra algemene ledenvergadering bijeen en wel op 10 april 2014, om 13.30 uur (vanaf 13.00 uur is de zaal open), Pegasusweg 200 te Rotterdam. Wij nodigen de leden van Nautilus NL uit om bij de extra ledenvergadering aanwezig te zijn. De documenten liggen ter inzage op ons kantoor te Rotterdam. g Via infoNL@nautilusint.org kunt u zich aanmelden.

Op die manier kunnen wij rekening houden met uw komst.

Tot ziens op 10 april 2014!

Nieuwe CAO voor werknemers van SwetsODV F

Nadat het Nautilus hoofdbestuur het onderhandelingsresultaat voor een nieuwe CAO met SwetsODV — met een positief stemadvies — aan de leden had voorgelegd, was het laatste woord aan hen. De leden konden tot en met 21 januari jl. hun stem uitbrengen en maar liefst 71% heeft dat ook gedaan. De stemmen zijn inmiddels geteld: 60% heeft voor gestemd en 40% tegen, waarmee de nieuwe CAO een feit is.

De nieuwe CAO heeft een looptijd van twee jaar en loopt van 1 januari 2014 tot en met 31 december 2015.

De onderhandelingspartijen zijn een loonsverhoging overeengekomen van 1,75% per 1 januari 2014, bijna twee keer zoveel als de APC. Daarnaast worden de lonen per 1 januari 2015 met tenminste 1,25% verhoogd.

Naast de loonsverhogingen zullen ook de wachtdagen bij ziekte komen te vervallen.

Flexibiliteit

De leden die tegen stemden, noemden als voornaamste reden de

gevraagde flexibiliteit. De aard van dienstverlening van dit bedrijf — SwetsODV opereert op de uitzendmarkt — brengt met zich mee dat het werkaanbod seizoensgebonden is en soms behoorlijke pieken en dalen kent. Daarnaast speelt mee dat een deel van het werk pas op het laatste moment bekend gemaakt wordt door de opdrachtgever (denk bijvoorbeeld aan vervanging bij ziekte). Met andere woorden, SwetsODV zal altijd een bepaalde mate van flexibiliteit nodig hebben om haar opdrachtgevers te kunnen bedienen. De aard van het werk maakt het om bovenstaande redenen voor de werkgever ondoenlijk om het rooster 28 dagen van tevoren bekend te maken. Partijen hebben daarom met elkaar afgesproken dat de werkgever in ieder geval minimaal vier dagen van tevoren aan de werknemer meldt op welke dagen en tijdstippen hij ingezet wordt.

Het geheel overziend is er voor de komende twee jaar toch een mooi resultaat bereikt voor onze leden werkzaam bij SwetsODV.

Geef uw mening Vorige maand vroegen wij: Zou het aanbieden van een betere toegang tot internet aan boord door een rederij voor u een reden zijn om naar deze rederij over te stappen?

Ja 73%

Uit de dienstgang A

Een van onze leden, een herintreder in de zeevaart, kwam met zijn werkgever uit Noord-Holland overeen dat hij 90 dagen boven de sterkte mocht varen om zo de vaarbevoegdheid van 1e machinist te verkrijgen. Zo gezegd zo gedaan. Uiteindelijk gaat ons lid varen als HWTK en hij heeft het prima naar zijn zin. Maar dan gaat het mis…

Het contact met de rederij verliep gaandeweg slechter. Op kantoor werden voortdurend zaken beslist zonder inspraak of overleg met de bemanning. Ook worden gedurende het verlof, zonder overleg, allerlei cursussen in Nederland gepland. Voor ons lid niet zo prettig aangezien hij in het buitenland woont en hij hierdoor niet van aaneengesloten verlof kan genieten.

Helaas is de rederij zo soepel als een loden deur; de werkgever bepaalt simpelweg wat er gebeurt en verwijt de werknemer zelfs dat hij slecht communiceert en manipuleert om zijn zin te krijgen. Dit alles wordt door ons lid weersproken. Op een gegeven moment verslechtert de arbeidsrelatie zodanig dat ons lid het voor gezien houdt en de arbeidsovereenkomst opzegt.

bijvoorbeeld niet onder studiekosten. En ook de reiskosten van het schip naar huis zijn niet voor rekening van ons lid, aangezien hij niet (verwijtbaar) was ontslagen. Uiteindelijk is de rederij meegegaan in onze argumenten en heeft ons lid de definitieve eindafrekening gekregen: hij hoefde geen € 1.000,- terug te betalen, maar kon nog een nabetaling van € 1.680,- netto tegemoet zien!

Jammer

Deductions

Zoals bij elk einde van een dienstbetrekking volgt altijd de eindafrekening. Deze geeft onder meer een overzicht van de nog te ontvangen gage, vakantietoeslag en de (eventueel) te verrekenen studiekosten. Ons lid werd onaangenaam verrast met een bedrag van € 1.000,- netto dat hij zou moeten terugbetalen aan de rederij. Op de eindafrekening stond een bedrag van € 4.200,- netto onder de noemer deductions.

Er werd echter niet aangegeven wélke inhoudingen het betrof. Ons lid heeft de rederij (meerdere keren) schriftelijk om uitleg gevraagd. Helaas tever-

De poll van deze maand is: Bent u van mening dat het Europees Agentschap voor Maritieme Veiligheid de erkenning van Filippijnse zeevaart certificaten moet intrekken? Geef ons uw mening online, op www.nautilusnl.org

34-35_nl_march 14_19.2.indd 34

Nabetaling

Wij hebben de zaak direct opgepakt en in een brief aan de rederij om opheldering gevraagd. Na een week volgde een reactie waarin de werkgever liet weten wat de inhoudingen waren, namelijk: de gemaakte studiekosten, hotelkosten (tijdens een cursus) en de reiskosten. Bij nader inzien zou dit, na aftrek van de vergoedingen van het O&O-fonds*, een positief saldo van € 194,30 opleveren. Hiermee gingen wij niet akkoord; hotelkosten vallen

*Studiekosten mogen weliswaar — pro rato — verrekend worden, maar dan wel onder aftrek van de ‘subsidie’ van het O&O-fonds.

Het O&O fonds heeft tot doel het bevorderen, ontwikkelen en subsidiëren van scholing en opleiding in de zeescheepvaart.

Oproep: ga in bezwaar tegen verhoging AOW-leeftijd! andere bonden en de Stichting Belangen F Gedupeerden AOW-Gat, een civiele procedure aan

zeevarenden mee te doen aan de procedure dan wel een eigen procedure te starten.

tegen de Nederlandse staat met als inzet dat het verhogen van de AOW-leeftijd zonder deugdelijk overgangsrecht in strijd is met het Europese Verdrag tot Bescherming van de Rechten van de Mens en de Fundamentele Vrijheden en het Internationaal Verdrag inzake Burgerrechten en Politieke Rechten.

De procedure zal specifiek betrekking hebben op ambtenaren en werknemers in de private sector die eerder met werken zijn opgehouden in de veronderstelling dat ze vanaf hun 65e AOW zouden krijgen. De FNV vindt dat het kabinet de ingangsdatum van de AOW voor deze groep, die gezien de huidige stagnatie op de arbeidsmarkt bijna geen kans meer op het vinden van betaald werk maakt, niet mag wijzigen. Nautilus International is van mening dat deze procedure ook van groot belang voor haar leden is en onderzoekt momenteel de mogelijkheden om specifiek voor

Uitspraak laat op zich wachten

De FNV spant, samen met een aantal

Het zal helaas enige tijd duren voordat de rechter uitspraak doet. Intussen zullen de rechten van al degenen die 65 jaar worden en geen AOW ontvangen veilig gesteld moeten worden. We adviseren iedereen die in 2014 65 jaar wordt AOW aan te vragen zodra de mogelijkheid daartoe geboden wordt (in 2014 vier maanden voor de 65e verjaardag) en in de aanvraag te vermelden dat de AOW direct bij het aanvragen van de leeftijd van 65 jaar moet ingaan. De aanvraag kan worden gedaan via DigiD of door het bij de Sociale Verzekeringsbank (de instantie die de AOW uitvoert) te verkrijgen aanvraagformulier in te vullen en per post te versturen.

Bezwaar aantekenen

We raden u aan tegen de (afwijzende) beslissing die u van de Sociale Verzekeringsbank ontvangt

bezwaar aan te tekenen. U kunt hierbij gebruik maken van het voorbeeld bezwaarschrift dat van onze website is te downloaden. In de beschikking van de SVB is te vinden bij welke vestiging van de SVB het bezwaarschrift ingediend moet worden. Zorg ervoor dat het bezwaarschrift aangetekend wordt verzonden en bewaar het verzendbewijs, zodat u altijd aan kunt tonen dat er bezwaar is gemaakt.

Heeft u hulp nodig bij het opstellen of indienen van het bezwaarschrift mail dan gerust naar infoNL@ nautilusint.org.

Zoals aangegeven in het voorbeeld bezwaarschrift zullen we de komende tijd met de Sociale Verzekeringsbank in overleg treden om te bespreken wat er met de bezwaarschriften moet gebeuren. Ons voorstel is de bezwaarschriften aan te houden tot de civiele rechter uitspraak heeft gedaan. Op deze manier blijft de administratieve rompslomp beperkt en kan alle energie in het civiele geding gestoken worden.

Kijk regelmatig op onze website voor het laatste nieuws over het AOW-gat. Wordt vervolgd.

Wet ten behoeve van private beveiliging aan boord van Nederlandse koopvaardijschepen op zijn vroegst pas volgend jaar van kracht piraterij werd medegedeeld dat het kabinet F in april 2013 had aangekondigd te zullen voorzien In het laatste artikel in de Telegraph over

Nee 27%

geefs, want een antwoord bleef uit en ons lid wendde zich vervolgens tot Nautilus voor hulp.

Ons lid betreurt het proces dat hem uiteindelijk geen andere keuze liet dan ontslag te nemen.

Wel waardeert hij het nog altijd dat de rederij hem de mogelijkheid heeft geboden om te herintreden. Het is jammer dat de rederij geen heldere uitleg gaf over de eindafrekening en dat er pas duidelijkheid kwam toen Nautilus zich ermee ging bemoeien.

in wetgeving, die het voor reders mogelijk maakt gewapende private beveiligers in te zetten aan boord van koopvaardijschepen onder Nederlandse vlag.

Nautilus International werd als één van de belanghebbende partijen in september 2013 uitgenodigd op de ministeries, die verantwoordelijk zijn voor het maken van de wetgeving, om haar zienswijze te geven op de wetgeving.

Ook andere partijen uit de maritieme en beveiligingssector, zoals de KVNR (mede namens de Vereniging van Waterbouwers), de NVKK, de verladersorganisatie EVO en private security bedrijven, waren uitgenodigd om hun mening te geven. De input van alle belanghebbende partijen is door de ministeries meegenomen in hun wetsvoorstel. Tevens is bij het opstellen van het wetsvoorstel gekeken naar de wetgeving op het gebied van private security in omringende landen.

De komende maanden vindt een consultatieronde plaats, waarin de hiervoor genoemde betrokken partijen hun inbreng mogen geven op de voorlopige beleidsuitgangspunten van het wetsvoorstel.

Vervolgens zullen deze, na behandeling in de ministerraad, ter advisering worden voorgelegd aan de Raad van State.

Concurrentiepositie

De bedoeling was om het wetsvoorstel voor de zomer van 2014 bij de Tweede Kamer in te dienen.

Nu is echter bekend geworden dat het wetsvoorstel pas eind dit jaar zal worden ingediend. De wettelijke regeling kan dan pas in 2015 ingevoerd worden. Dit is voor alle betrokkenen een enorme tegenslag.

Inmiddels heeft ook Frankrijk toestemming verleend voor de inzet van private gewapende beveiligers waarmee Nederland binnen Europa een eenzame positie inneemt, wat zeer nadelig is voor de concurrentiepositie. Reders lopen hierdoor inkomsten mis en schepen worden niet meer onder Nederlandse vlag gebracht of uitgevlagd,

met alle negatieve gevolgen van dien voor de werkgelegenheid voor Nederlandse zeevarenden.

Bovendien kunnen reders, in de gevallen waarin geen VDP team kan worden ingezet (bijvoorbeeld als het schip te klein is om een VPD team van 11 personen te plaatsen of de aanvraagtermijn te kort is), hun bemanning geen legale private beveiliging garanderen. ISO-gecertificeerde private beveiligingsbedrijven werken namelijk niet mee aan het beschermen van schepen onder een vlag die wettelijk gezien private beveiliging niet toelaat.

Wanneer tenslotte met een privaat team wordt gevaren dat wettelijk niet is toegestaan, is de kapitein civiel aansprakelijk als de situatie verkeerd loopt.

Interim regeling

Om de periode tot aan de invoering van de wetgeving te overbruggen heeft Nautilus International daarom samen met de KVNR aangedrongen op een interim regeling die het mogelijk maakt om in aanloop naar de wetgeving gebruik te maken van private partijen.

Wij houden u op de hoogte.

19/02/2014 17:59

March 2014 | nautilusint.org | telegraph | 35

NL NEWS

Jaarvergadering 2014 A

Nog altijd geen compensatie voor verlies individuele ziektekostenbijdrage P&O NSF zijn het beu!

C Al sinds de invoering van

De leden in dienst van

de zorgverzekeringswet in 2006 zegt de werkgever onderzoek te doen naar de mogelijkheden om werknemers te compenseren voor het verlies van de individuele bijdrage in de ziektekostenverzekering. Nu, zeven jaar later, is er nog altijd geen goede oplossing en de leden gaan dan ook niet akkoord met het eindbod voor een nieuwe CAO 2013. Sterker, maar liefst 83% zegt bereid te zijn tot actie als de rederij niet snel boter bij de vis doet.

Wat is er aan de hand? Het eerder bereikte principeakkoord voor een nieuwe CAO werd eind oktober door de leden verworpen.

Hierop is opnieuw overleg met de werkgever geweest.

De werkgever kwam met een nieuw eindbod. Dit eindbod is aan boord van de schepen besproken. Besloten is toen het eindbod middels een schriftelijke enquête voor te leggen aan de leden. De enquête werd door een ruime meerderheid van de leden ingevuld. In de enquête heeft ruim 89% van de leden die hun stem hebben uitgebracht tegen het eindbod gestemd. Belangrijkste reden hiervoor was de kwestie betreffende de zorgverzekering.

Sinds de invoering hiervan in 2006 ontvangen de werknemers namelijk geen particuliere bijdrage meer.

De werkgever belooft al sinds jaar en dag dat dit aangepast wordt in het nieuwe reglement.

De rederij zou onderzoek doen naar de vrijgekomen loonruimte door invoering van de nieuwe zorgverzekeringswet, waardoor artikel 49 van de CAO niet meer van toepassing is.

34-35_nl_march 14_19.2.indd 35

Ook zou gekeken worden naar het mogelijke fiscale voordeel voor de werkgever als gevolg van de Wet Uniformering Loonbegrip per 1 januari 2013.

Het voorstel van werkgever was om de onderzoeksresultaten mee te nemen bij de volgende CAOonderhandelingen in 2014, met de intentie om een oplossing te vinden in samenhang met de invoering van een nieuw reglement.

Actiebereidheid

Het wéér doorschuiven naar een volgende CAO-onderhandeling is voor de leden echter onaanvaardbaar. Zij hebben zich dan ook expliciet uitgesproken nu boter bij de vis te willen; maar liefst 83% is zelfs bereid tot actie als in de nieuwe CAO geen afspraken gemaakt worden over een materiële bijdrage in de zorgverzekering blijkt uit de enquête.

Bijdrage zorgpremie

De vakbond heeft dit duidelijke signaal inmiddels aan de werkgever overgebracht. Deze liet weten de eis van leden met het hoofdkantoor in Dover te gaan bespreken.

Eerder heeft het hoofdkantoor gezegd dat er niet meer ruimte is dan de prijscompensatie. Toch doet de rederij er volgens Nautilus verstandig aan de ferme afwijzing van het eindbod serieus te nemen en tegemoet te komen aan de wens van de werknemers, namelijk daadwerkelijk invulling geven aan een bijdrage in de zorgpremie.

Indien P&O NSF niet op korte termijn met een passende oplossing komt, is de kans reëel aanwezig dat de leden actie gaan voeren.

Kort voor het ter perse gaan van deze editie ontstond er zicht op een oplossing waarover in het volgende blad meer.

Op dinsdag 17 juni 2014 vindt de Nederlandse jaarvergadering van onze vereniging plaats in het Hilton Hotel te Rotterdam.

Zoals gebruikelijk zal het eerste gedeelte van de vergadering worden besteed aan statutaire zaken zoals bestuursverkiezingen, verkiezingen Raad van Advies, beoordeling van het in 2013 gevoerde beleid en eventueel door leden ingediende voorstellen. Tijdens het tweede — openbare — gedeelte organiseert het bestuur een boeiend symposium.

Graag wijzen wij u op de mogelijkheid voorstellen in te dienen betreffende het beleid van de bond. Let wel, het gaat hierbij uitsluitend om voorstellen over het beleid van de bond en dus niet over voorstellen omtrent een specifieke CAO of rederij; daar zijn immers de aparte ledenvergaderingen voor. Voorstellen kunnen vóór 1 april 2014 worden ingediend bij het bestuur van Nautilus International. Dit kan per post (Postbus 8575, 3009 AN Rotterdam) of per email (infonl@ nautilusint.org).

Verkiezing Bestuur

Dit jaar vinden er bestuursverkiezingen plaats. Voor vice voorzitter en penningmeester Hylke Hylkema eindigt de 4-jaarlijkse termijn per einde jaarvergadering. Hij stelt zich herkiesbaar, maar is, wegens pensionering, voornemens in de jaarvergadering 2015 vervroegd af te treden.

De Raad van Advies zal worden gevraagd om, conform de statutaire bevoegdheid van de Raad, een bindende voordracht te maken.

Verkiezing Raad van Advies

De helft van de Raad van Advies (tevens NL National Committee) treedt dit jaar af, te weten: Uit kiesgroep kapiteins en stuurlieden: Joris van Vuuren en Caro Cordes Uit de kiesgroep marof: Roel Ballieux, Lars van Breugel en Chris Kuiken Uit de kiesgroep pensioen- of uitkeringsgerechtigdenbinnenvaart: Ab Poldervaart en Frits Vons In de kiesgroep scheepsgezellen, werktuigkundigen, wal en binnenvaart zijn geen aftredende leden. In de kiesgroep werktuigkundigen staat daarentegen nog

een onvervulde vacature open. In beginsel zijn alle aftredende leden herkiesbaar. Ook andere leden kunnen zich verkiesbaar stellen, mits voldaan wordt aan de volgende voorwaarden: 1. U moet lid zijn van Nautilus International 2.Ieder lid kan alleen verkozen worden in zijn of haar kiesgroep.

3. De kandidatuur moet aantoonbaar worden ondersteund door vijf leden.

4. U dient zich vóór 1 april te melden bij de voorzitter van Nautilus International de heer Marcel van den Broek (mvandenbroek@nautilusint.org).

Dus, bent u geïnteresseerd in het werk van onze maritieme vakbond en bent u lid van Nautilus International, neem dan eens contact op met voorzitter Marcel van den Broek om uw mogelijke

kandidatuur te bespreken.

Jaarverslag

Indien u de jaarvergadering wilt bijwonen kunt u zich aanmelden via infonl@nautilusint.org.

Het jaarverslag 2013 zal enkele weken voorafgaand aan de jaarvergadering op de Nautilus website worden geplaatst.

Tijdens de Jaarvergadering zullen eveneens hard copies van het verslag beschikbaar zijn.

Aan de hand van dat verslag zullen wij het gevoerde beleid bespreken en beoordelen. Tot slot wordt er aandacht besteed aan de financiële positie van Nautilus.

Onder het genot van een drankje en een hapje is er na afloop van de jaarvergadering volop gelegenheid om oude bekenden te spreken, te netwerken of om nieuwe contacten op te doen. Tot ziens op 17 juni.

Maritiem Platform Gepensioneerden is een feit!

Gepensioneerden is blij u te F kunnen berichten dat met het Het Maritiem Platform

passeren van de statuten in februari de oprichting een feit is. Dit platform is een gezamenlijk initiatief van Nautilus International en de Nederlandse Vereniging van Kapiteins ter Koopvaardij (verder: de NVKK). Doel van dit platform is het verenigen en informeren van gepensioneerden in de maritieme sector alsmede het voordragen van kandidaten voor de verkiezingen van vertegenwoordigers van gepensioneerden in de besturen van de diverse pensioenfondsen in de maritieme sector. Daar wij de belangen van onze gepensioneerden in de maritieme sector middels dit platform zullen vertegenwoordigen bieden wij leden van Nautilus International en de NVKK het lidmaatschap van het Maritiem Platform Gepensioneerden gratis aan.* Het lidmaatschap houdt in dat de gepensioneerde leden met regelmaat pensioen gerelateerde informatie zullen ontvangen en daarnaast zal het platform in de toekomst informatiebijeenkomsten met aansprekende thema’s organiseren voor de gepensioneerden uit de maritieme sector.

Tijdens de eerste bestuursvergadering heeft het bestuur van het Maritiem Platform Gepensioneerden zich gebogen over de voordracht van kandidaten voor de verkiezing van gepensioneerden in het bestuur van het Bedrijfspensioenfonds Koopvaardij. Het bestuur heeft besloten de kandidatuur van de heren Pieter Visser en Erik Hulshof te steunen. Graag

willen wij u deze heren voorstellen.

Kapitein Pieter Visser is gepensioneerd en heeft zich reeds in oktober 2012 bereidwillig getoond om in het bestuur van het BPFK zitting te nemen. Sindsdien heeft hij middels een assessment aangetoond een in potentie geschikte kandidaat te zijn. Hij heeft alle benodigde opleidingen met goed gevolg doorlopen en beschikt over de nodige ervaring op het gebied van (pensioen)communicatie. Zijn communicatieve vaardigheid komt voort uit zijn operationele taken als officier bij de Koninklijke Marine en later als kapitein aan boord van grote passagiersschepen. ‘Mijn motivatie is de wil om door te zetten en voor de gepensioneerden een goed resultaat als bestuurder in het pensioenfonds te bereiken. Ook deze uitdaging zal ik met goede moed en veel vertrouwen aangaan.’ aldus Pieter Visser.

De heer Erik Hulshof heeft, na een studie econometrie aan de Rijksuniversiteit van Groningen en een postdoctoraal Financieel & beleggingsanalist aan de VU Amsterdam, diverse functies op het gebied van pensioen- en vermogensbeheer vervuld. Zo is hij Directeur Marketing & Acquisitie a.i., Directeur Reporting & Operations en lid directie business unit Investment Management geweest bij MN Services (de huidige uitvoerder van BPFK).

Sinds 2012 is hij als Manager Pension Client Services verantwoordelijk voor de dienstverlening Integraal Vermogensbeheer aan de Defined Benefit pensioenfondsen en Defined Contribution dienstverlening.

Tevens is hij sinds 2012 bestuurder

bij BPFK namens werknemers.

Het zal u niet verbazen dat hij, gezien zijn ruime ervaring op het gebied van vermogensbeheer en beleggingen, als aandachtsgebied de portefeuille beleggingen binnen het bestuur BPFK heeft. Hiermee is hij de perfecte kandidaat voor één van de twee zetels die beschikbaar zijn voor vertegenwoordigers van gepensioneerden. Erik Hulshof: ‘Niet alleen mijn achtergrond op het gebied van beleggingen, maar ook aspecten als organisatie, riskmanagement, administratie zijn juist van belang om een adequate invulling te geven aan het in control zijn als bestuur van beleggingen. Ik wil mij graag blijven

Wij hebben Facebook.

Volg ons ook!

Bezoek www.nautilusint.org

inzetten voor een evenwichtige behartiging van de belangen van alle deelnemers bij het fonds, maar wel met oog voor de specifieke behoeften van pensioengerechtigden.’

Het bestuur van het Maritiem Platform Gepensioneerden is ervan overtuigd dat er twee zeer geschikte kandidaten naar voren zijn gekomen om de belangen van gepensioneerden in het BPFK te vertegenwoordigen! *Stelt u geen prijs op het lidmaatschap van het Maritiem Platform Gepensioneerden, dan kunt u dit (zonder verdere opgave van reden)te allen tijde middels een brief of mail (info@ maritiemgepensioneerden.nl) aan ons kenbaar maken.

WILT U EEN ADVERTENTIE PLAATSEN IN DE TELEGRAPH NEEMT U DAN CONTACT OP MET: Tom Poole at Redactive Media Sales

T: +44 (0)20 7880 6217 F: +44 (0)20 7880 7691

Follow us on Twitter

E: tom.poole@ redactive.co.uk

19/02/2014 17:59

36 | telegraph | nautilusint.org | March 2014

APPOINTMENTS

Catering Superintendent

Maersk Line Container Fleet are recruiting Senior Engineers for immediate vacancies

Maersk Line, the global containerized division of the A.P. Moller – Maersk Group, is dedicated to delivering the highest level of customer-focused and reliable ocean transportation services.

Our vision, built from a strong heritage of uprightness, constant care, and innovation, remains the cornerstone of our business operations. The Maersk Line fleet comprises more than 220 owned vessels manned by 7,600 Seafarers.

Due to continued fleet expansion Maersk Line are recruiting Senior Engineers to fill immediate vacancies.

As the right candidate you will benefit from a competitive salary, voyage lengths of 90 days plus or minus 30 days with a back to back agreement, second-to-none training facilities, internet access on all vessels, and the opportunity to develop your career within an industry-leading container shipping company.

Apply online at www.seacareers.co.uk or contact Liam Lockhart on 0191 269 3154 to discuss these vacancies

p36-41_TELMar14.indd 36

18/02/2014 10:06

March 2014 | nautilusint.org | telegraph | 37

APPOINTMENTS Join us in bringing knowledge, help and hope to the nations!

OM Ships, a worldwide worl charity, is looking for qualified engin engineering officers, mechanics, fitters fitte and welders to volunteer to serve ser on their ship Logos Hope which is presently in the Far East.

For details visit www.omships.org or email: recruiting@omships.org

12 March 2014

NOTICE TO READERS

is the closing date for April 2014.

Nautilus International advises members that some crewing agencies may not be advertising specific positions, but instead may be seeking to develop their databases of job hunters.

You can still advertise online anytime.

C P Marine UK Ltd are specialists in worldwide ship and shore based marine recruitment.

We provide a professional, dedicated and quality personal service in connecting seafarers to shipping companies and also placements to shore based marine positions.

Temporary and permanent vacancies are available worldwide for: • Captains • Chief Engineers • Deck Officers • Driving Mates • DPO’s • Engineering Officers

• ETO’s • Crane Operators • Deck and Engine Room Ratings • Cooks • Offshore Personnel • Shore based Personnel

To register with us for all marine sectors, please send CV to: C P Marine UK Ltd, PO Box 314, Hull HU10 7WG United Kingdom Telephone: +44 (0) 1482 650279 Fax: +44 (0) 1482 671341 info@cpmarineuk.com www.cpmarineuk.com

Advertise here & reach over 110,000 readers.

Contact John Seaman on 020 7880 8541 to find out how.

SHORE BASED Crewing Officer Belgium - €40K + Benefits Package Marine Superintendent London - £55-60K + Benefits Package

YACHTS

Chief Engineer - LNG Carrier - $115K

Chief Mate - 55m M/Y - €78K

2nd Engineer - LNG Carrier - $96K

Chief Steward - 60m M/Y - €70K Rtn

3rd Engineer - LNG Carrier - $65K

2nd Engineer - 40m S/Y - €48K

4th Engineer - LNG Carrier - $52K

2nd Engineer - 50m M/Y - €78K

Chief Officer - LNG Carrier - $96K

Chief Engineer - 47m M/Y - €72K

Assistant Technical Superintendent Glasgow - £50K

3rd Officer - LNG Carrier - $52K

2nd Officer - 100m+ M/Y - $80K

3rd Engineer - Oil Tanker - $65K

1st Mate - 28m M/Y - €42K

Technical Superintendent Glasgow - £60K

Chief Engineer - Oil Tanker - $115K

2nd Engineer - 70m+ M/Y - $90K Rtn

Offshore Technical Superintendent Scotland - £55K + Package

CRUISE/FERRIES

Vetting Officer Saudi Arabia - Full Expat Package Senior Marine Superintendent South East England - £60K Yacht Manager Monaco - €80K

Chief Engineer - Ferry - £67K Staff Chief Engineer - Cruise - $95K

OFFSHORE

1st Engineer - Cruise - $90K

Master - Construction Barge - $600/day

Safety Engineer - Cruise - €66K

Master - PSV - $650/day

2nd Engineer - Cruise - €42K

Chief Engineer - AHST - $400/day

1st ETO - Cruise - £44K

Chief Officer DPO - PSV - $525/day Master - DP2 Jack-up WIV - £90K

WORKBOATS

Chief Engineer - DP2 Jack-up - WIV - £75K

Head of Electrical Engineering Glasgow - £60K + Car

Chief Engineer - Dredger - £250/day

Master - PSV - £64K

2nd Engineer - Tug - £250/day

Chief Mate - PSV - £45K

Electrical Project Manager Aberdeen - Competitive Package

Master - Multicat - £250/day

2nd Engineer - PSV - £48K

Master - Dredger - £48K

2/O DPO - DP2 Semi-Sub - £320 /day

Shore-based: +44 (0)23 8020 8840 shipping-uk@faststream.com

Seagoing: +44 (0)23 8020 8820 seagoing-uk@faststream.com

p36-41_TELMar14.indd 37

DEEP SEA

Search for ‘Faststream Seafarers’ @faststreamsea www.faststream.com

18/02/2014 10:06

38 | telegraph | nautilusint.org | March 2014

APPOINTMENTS CV Professionals

YOUR SUPPORT WILL TACKLE CHALLENGES.

Maritime & oĎƒshore specialists www.cvprofessionals.co.uk

SALVAGE OPERATOR (UNDERWATER) Plymouth, Devonport

Advertise here & reach over 110,000 readers.

Ref: 1396213

This is a reserved post within the Salvage and Marine Operations (S&MO) PT Retained Grade structure. S&MO PT supports the United Kingdom Armed Forces around the world.

Based at HMNB Devonport, you will be part of a highly trained, multi-skilled team, able to respond to operational emergencies in the UK and worldwide.

A high degree of flexibility and motivation is essential. The post will involve a full range of S&MO capabilities, but will primarily be required to conduct underwater operations and supervise diving to HSE/ADC standards.

The post will have an obligation to become a sponsored reserve.

You must hold HSE SCUBA and Surface Supply diving qualifications and must be a qualified diving supervisor. Preference will be given to individuals holding an ADC supervisors qualification and closed bell.

You must hold a current HSE dive medical and a full UK driving licence is required.

Informal enquires may be made to Mr Robert Coombes, email DESSANMO-SALSUPOPS@mod.uk To apply, please visit www.civilianjobs.mod.uk Closing date: 17 March 2014.

The MOD is an Equal Opportunities employer and seeks to reect the diverse community it serves. Applications are welcome from anyone who meets the stated requirements.

Contact John Seaman on 020 7880 8541 to find out how.

ANGLIAN MARINE RECRUITMENT LTD Marine Placement Agency

Ongoing vacancies for all ofďŹ cers and ratings deep sea, coastal, st.by, supply, ahts, etc.

To register send cv and copies of all certiďŹ cates to: 6 Birch Court, Sprowston, Norwich NR7 8LJ Tel/Fax: 01603 478938 Email: malcolm@anglianmarine.co.uk

A Force for Good. www.civilianjobs.mod.uk

WANT TO JOIN THE MOST ADVANCED FLEET OF PSVs IN THE NORTH SEA?

GULF OFFSHORE ARE RECRUITING: RECRUITING NOW:

MASTERS / CHIEF OFFICERS CHIEF ENGINEERS / 2nd ENGINEERS

www.anglianmarine.co.uk

APPLY NOW AT GULFOFFSHORE.CO.UK

&O\GH 0DULQH 5HFUXLWPHQW LV D OHDGLQJ SURYLGHU RI PDULQH UHFUXLWPHQW DQG EHVSRNH FUHZ PDQDJHPHQW VHUYLFHV :LWK RIÂźFHV ORFDWHG LQ 8. /DWYLD 3RODQG DQG 6LQJDSRUH LW DOORZV XV WR SURYLGH RXU FOLHQWV ZLWK HDV\ DFFHVV WR D PXOWL QDWLRQDO SRRO RI FDQGLGDWHV IURP D VLQJOH SRLQW RI FRQWDFW *SV WIE KSMRK NSFW ETTP] EX ZZZ FO\GHUHFUXLW FRP OFFSHORE Various PSV vacancies for 0DVWHUV &KLHI 2IÂźFHUV DQG QG 2IÂźFHUV Trips are around 4/4 weeks.

'ERHMHEXIW QYWX LEZI 47: I\TIVMIRGI 'LMIJ 3J½GIV´W must have sailed as Driving Mate on PSV. STCW 95 GIVXM½GEXMSR VIUYMVIH RI[ WIGYVMX] GIVXM½GEXMSR MW VIUYMVIH 8LIWI EVI TIVQERIRX ZEGERGMIW Working North Sea. Steam Operator for FPSO required as per the following details: 8LI VSPI [MPP MRMXMEPP] FI [SVOMRK SYX SJ 2I[GEWXPI on a 2/3 rotation and then relocating to the North 7IE MR QMH XS FI GSR½VQIH This is a permanent position with the successful GERHMHEXI LEZMRK E žI\MFPI ETTVSEGL XS FSXL MR XLIMV location and work patterns.

Our client is a world leader in providing international services to the oil / gas production and processing MRHYWXV] [MXL E WYFWXERXMEP TSVXJSPMS SJ FSXL MRHITIRHIRX ERH REXMSREP SMP KEW GSQTERMIW 9/ 'S' SV 9/ 'I' MUST include steam, valid medical and all STCW 95 UYEPM½GEXMSRW WYMXEFPI XS VERO %TTPMGERXW QYWX LEZI previous tanker experience or experience in a similar VSPI FIMRK LMKLP] TVIJIVEFPI 4PIEWI RSXI 3RP] ETTPMGERXW [MXL E WXIEQ XMGOIX [MPP FI GSRWMHIVIH JSV XLMW TSWMXMSR Chief and 2nd Engineers VIUYMVIH JSV 47: ZIWWIPW operating in the North Sea, UK CoC/CEC, rotations EVI ERH ZEV] JVSQ [IIO XVMTW

4IVQ ZEGERGMIW EZEMPEFPI LS[IZIV [I [SYPH EPWS FI MRXIVIWXIH MR LIEVMRK JVSQ GERHMHEXIW WIIOMRK XIQTSVEV] IQTPS]QIRX TANKER '32 QG 2IŸFHU for DP Shuttle Tanker. Trips are [IIOW SR ERH SJJ 9RPMQMXIH (4 GIVXM½GEXI ERH Oil DCE. This is a permanent position. Previous Oil 8EROIV I\TIVMIRGI MW VIUYMVIH 3rd, 4th and Assistant Engineers VIUYMVIH JSV permanent tanker vacancies, operating worldwide with major operator. Trip lengths are 3-3.5 months [MXL HE]W PIEZI %GGVYIH JSV IEGL QSRXL [SVOIH XVEZIP MW TEMH ERH WEPEVMIW EZEMPEFPI SR VIUYIWX ;I [MPP also consider applications from candidates who do not have Tanker experience.

CRUISE )\GIPPIRX STTSVXYRMX] JSV x2 Chief Engineers to join E PIEHMRK ERH I\TERHMRK GVYMWI GSQTER] 3TIRMRKW MR %TVMP ERH 1E] [MXL IUYEP VSXEXMSRW QSRXLW SR QSRXLW SJJ 7YFWXERXMEP FIRI½XW ERH MRGIRXMZIW %PWS STIRMRKW JSV 3rd Engineers, rotation 4 months on, 2 months off.

Ro-Pax experience is essential.

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p36-41_TELMar14.indd 38

18/02/2014 10:06

March 2014 | nautilusint.org | telegraph | 39

APPOINTMENTS

Join the World of Windstar Join us in welcoming our newest stars to the fleet, commencing with the Star Pride in 2014 and the two additional vessels in 2015.

Soon to be sailing alongside our current luxury sail assisted yachts, our fleet will sail worldwide taking our passengers to some of the most unique and exotic ports there are to be found.

www.windstarcruises.com In partnership with

With the fleet doubling in size, Windstar Cruises are currently looking for suitable candidates for the following positions: · Captains and other Deck Officers · Engineering Officers of all ranks · Electricians and ETO’s · Hotel Officers, Guest & Destination Service Professionals Benefits package includes: · Competitive wages paid in GBP and USD · One for One Rotation for Staff Officers · Retirement Savings Plan / Pensions · Annual & Return Bonuses (dependent on rank) · Company Sponsored Study Leave Programme · Officer Cadet Training · Excellent Spouse Policy Prospective candidates need to complete our online candidate database via our website or email us at applicants@vikingrecruitment.com quoting reference WSC 03/14 Viking Recruitment Limited Viking House, Beechwood Business Park, Menzies Road, Dover, Kent, CT16 2FG T: +44 (0) 300 303 8191 F: +44 (0) 130 482 7710 Americas • Europe • Asia • Pacific.

p36-41_TELMar14.indd 39

18/02/2014 10:06

40 | telegraph | nautilusint.org | March 2014

APPOINTMENTS

Where’s my Telegraph?

Go to:

If you have moved recently, your home copy may still be trying to catch up with you — particularly if you gave us a temporary address such as a hall of residence.

jobs.nautilusint.org to check out all the latest job vacancies Harwich Haven Authority VTS Operator

We currently have a vacancy for a VTS Operator within our busy Operations Centre and are seeking applications from enthusiastic individuals with excellent communication skills and the ability to work effectively under pressure. The successful candidate ZLOO LGHDOO\ KROG D 9 &HUWLÂż FDWH although consideration will be given to those with relevant marine experience or individuals looking to embark on a career in the maritime sector. Consideration will only be given to applicants eligible to work within the EU.

Harwich Haven Authority Starting Salary: ÂŁ25,469 rising to ÂŁ31,607 after 4 years Closing date for applications: 19 March 2014

To let us know your new address, go to www.nautilusint.org and log in as a member, or contact our membership department on +44 (0)151 639 8454 or membership@ nautilusint.org.

The Haven Ports Vessel TrafďŹ c Service – Planning for the Future Harwich Haven Authority provides Conservancy and Pilotage services for the Haven Ports of Felixstowe, Harwich International Port, Harwich Navyard, Ipswich and Mistley.

Central to the provision of safe navigation within the Haven is our recently upgraded VTS Operations Centre, recognized both nationally and internationally as being a leader in both its technology and operational standards. The Operators within this department are responsible for the management of all vessel movements within our area of jurisdiction, the coordination of our pilotage service

and also play a vital role in ensuring that the relevant requirements of the Port Marine Safety Code are met.

In return for working 12 hour shifts, rostered over, 365 days we offer an excellent employment package including pension, private health care arrangements and the opportunity for ongoing training and development.

For an application pack or further information about Harwich Haven $XWKRULW\ SOHDVH YLVLW RXU ZHEVLWH www.hha.co.uk or phone 01255 243030.

HOTLINE FOR YACHT CREW As part of its growing support for seafarers serving in the large yacht sector, Nautilus has established a dedicated phoneline in Antibes to offer advice and assistance: You can reach Nautilus International in Antibes on the following number: +33 (0)9 62 61 61 40 Nautilus International, In strategic partnership with D&B Services, 3 Bd. D’Aguillon, 06600 Antibes, France.

Trusted. Globally.

MatthewsDaniel in the UAE requires experienced Marine Fleetwood - a top UK Nautical College with a long established reputation for being a leading provider of training to the Maritime industry.

or MODU personnel to be located in either our Dubai or Abu Dhabi ofÂżces. The positions require an amount of local and international travel and offshore attendance.

The permanent roles envisaged would have involvement in the following:

MARITIME

â—?

Rig Move Warranty Attendance

IALA Vessel Traffic Services V103/1 (Induction and Simulator) W/C 30 June (Induction), 7 July (Ops Sim)

â—?

Marine Warranty Services for Major Offshore Construction Projects

IALA Vessel Traffic Services (Refresher) W/C 8 April, 22 July For more information E maritime@blackpool.ac.uk T 01253 779 123 W blackpool.ac.uk/nautical

OFFSHORE

Applicants should have excellent communication / reporting skills in English.

Successful candidates can expect a competitive remuneration package with attractive beneÂżts and bonus scheme.

Deck Ratings Apprenticeships W/C 5 May, 10 Nov For more information E offshore@blackpool.ac.uk T 01253 779 123 W blackpool.ac.uk/offshore Facebook /FleetwoodNauticalCampusOffshoreOperations

Co mmended

p36-41_TELMar14.indd 40

WWW. BLACKPOOL. AC.UK

Contact Us Email your detailed CV and Cover Letter to: dubai@matdan.com Our website can be viewed at:

www.matdan.com

18/02/2014 10:06

March 2014 | nautilusint.org | telegraph | 41

APPOINTMENTS

INTERNATIONAL

NOT A MEMBER OF NAUTILUS INTERNATIONAL?

Join now on our website

Sealion Shipping manages a fleet of platform supply, anchorhandling tug supply, DP offshore construction/ ROV support/saturation diving and well testing vessels.

Due to further expansion and delivery of new vessels Farnham Marine Agency invites applications from suitably qualified:

Experienced Masters & Deck Officers with U/L CoC, and Engineer Officers, for our new build anchor handlers

Fill out the online application at:

Applicants must hold valid STCW 95 Certification, and have recent seagoing experience.

Applications should be made online at:

www.farnhammarineagency.co.uk

www.nautilusint.org

Leading Marine Recruitment Specialists We are seeking all ranks of seafarers, offshore and shore based personnel and in particular:

Your First Port of Call Address: 114-118 Hampton Lane Southampton SO45 1WE UK Telephone: +44(0)2380 890432 Email: recruitment@seamariner.com www.seamariner.com

Senior Of½cers - AHTS All Of½cers & Crew - ERRV Deck & Engineering Of½cers - Tankers / RoRo’s / Deep Sea Various shore based vacancies Various temporary assignments (Of½cers, Ratings & Catering) If you would like further information in registering with Seamariner or you would like to discuss your crewing requirements, please contact one of our experienced consultants

ISO9001:2008 accredited and KvK and MLC compliant Reg Co number: 2745210

To advertise your vacancy contact John Seaman on +44 20 7880 8541 or john.seaman@redactive.co.uk

MERCHANT NAVY OFFICER TRAINING COURSES DECK COURSES

START DATES

ENGINEERING COURSES

START DATES

Class 1 Orals Preparation Course

18 Aug 2014, 3 Nov 2014 & 2 Feb 2015 18 Aug 2014 & 5 Jan 2015

Class 1 Naval Architecture & Electrotechnology

22 April 2014

Chief Mate Full Reg II/1 Chief Mate Post HND

18 Aug 2014 & 10 Nov 2014

OOW Post HND

29 Sep 2014 & 19 Jan 2015

Email contact for above courses: Senior.Marine@cityofglasgowcollege.ac.uk

Department of Marine Operations - SHORT COURSES

Class 1 & 2 Engineering Knowledge (General And Motor/Steam) - Unlimited

12 May 2014

Class 4 EOOW & IAMI Preparation

25 Aug 2014 & 27 Oct 2014

Email contact for above: Engineering@cityofglasgowcollege.ac.uk

We offer a full range of STCW, MCA & Specialised Marine Short Courses.

For other Engineering enquiries please contact BTMT: 07/04/14, 23/06/14

Caroline Alderdice - 0141 565 2713 Caroline.Alderdice@cityofglasgowcollege.ac.uk

CPSCRB (Certification of Proficiency in Survival Craft & Rescue Boats): 03/03/14, 10/03/14, 21/04/13, 28/04/14, 05/05/13, 02/06/14, 09/06/14, 16/06/14, 23/06/14 ECDIS: 03/03/14, 17/03/14, 28/04/14, 12/05/14, 09/06/14, 30/06/14 HELM Management: 03/03/14, 17/03/14, 24/03/14, 31/03/14, 21/04/14, 28/04/14, 19/05/14, 26/05/14, 02/06/14, 16/06/14, 30/06/14 HELM Operational: Please contact for availability

Permanent Full Time, 35hrs per week £27,167-£35,254 (Starting Salary will depend on industrial experience)

Safety Officer: 16/06/14 Shipboard Security Officer: 22/04/14, 09/06/14 Specialised Chemical Tanker: 07/04/14, 21/07/14 Specialised Gas Tanker: 14/04/14, 23/06/14, 04/08/14 Specialised Oil Tanker: 07/04/14, 16/06/14, 28/07/14 Tanker Familiarisation: 24/03/14, 16&30/06/14 For info on our other courses: LICOS, GMDSS, NAEAST, Freefall Lifeboat, Advanced Ship Handling, BRM.

For further Marine enquiries please contact

p36-41_TELMar14.indd 41

Permanent Full Time, 35hrs per week £27,167-£35,254 (Starting Salary will depend on industrial experience)

Lecturer in Nautical Studies

PSSR: 02/05/14, 20/06/14

Alison Bryce - 0141 565 2700 Marine.Short.Courses@cityofglasgowcollege.ac.uk

Lecturer in Marine Engineering

We are currently recruiting for specialist Lecturing staff.

For detailed post descriptions and to apply for either of the vacancies above please visit the ‘work for us’ section on the College website at www.cityofglasgowcollege.ac.uk Successful applicants will be subject to a satisfactory PVG Disclosure Check and must be eligible to work in the UK. We are an equal opportunities employer and welcome applications from applicants who add diversity to the College.

City of Glasgow College SC036198

18/02/2014 10:06

42 | telegraph | nautilusint.org | March 2014

SHIP TO SHORE

M-Notices M-Notices, Marine Information Notes and Marine Guidance Notes issued by the Maritime & Coastguard Agency recently include: MSN 1852 (M) — IMO tanks, portable tanks, road tank vehicles and rail tank wagons for the carriage by sea of dangerous goods as solids, liquids, or liquefied gases This notice has been produced as a result of a policy decision to create a single point of contact within the Department for Transport for the approval of tank inspection bodies.

As of 1 January 2014, the appointment of inspection bodies for the approval and inspection of tanks for the carriage of dangerous goods by sea is the responsibility of the VCA Dangerous Goods Office, acting on behalf of the Secretary of State for Transport.

Approvals include portable tanks, road and rail tank wagons, and IMO portable tanks. Details of how to contact the VCA Dangerous Goods Office are given in MSN 1852.

MIN 473 (M) — Training and certification: amendments for large yacht qualifications, Navigational Watch Rating, Efficient Deck Hand and Able Seafarer Deck certification This note describes the changes to the large yacht code qualifications which came into force between August and December 2013 as part of the 2010 Manila amendments to STCW. MIN 473 also details changes to Able Seafarer Deck certification, Navigational Watch Rating (NWR) certification, the Efficient Deck Hand (EDH) syllabus and the sea service requirement.

Yacht Rating certification, Regulation II/4: It was the intention of the MCA to abolish the Yacht Rating Certificate. However, after further discussion with industry the Yacht Rating Certificate will continue to be issued and will be valid for service on yachts of less than 3000 GT, as per MGN 270.

Navigational Watch Rating (NWR) certification, Regulation II/4: Applicants for an NWR certificate must complete form MSF 4371;

this can be found on the MCA web site. MIN 473 sets out the minimum age requirement, certification and experience needed to apply for an NWR certificate.

Efficient Deck Hand (EDH) certification and examination: Since 31 December 2013, EDH has been a requirement for the issue of an OOW (Yacht less than 3000 GT) CoC. The EDH certificate covers good basic seamanship practice and the Code of Safe Working Practice for the Merchant Navy. Note: EDH will not be required for revalidation purposes.

MIN 473 sets out the certification and experience needed for entry to an EDH course and examination.

Able Seafarer Deck certification, Regulation II/5: The STCW Regulation II/5 Able Seafarer Deck will replace the current AB Certificate of Competency (CoC) as contained in the Merchant Shipping (Certificate of Competency as AB) Regulation 1970.

The minimum age requirement, certification and experience needed to gain the new Able Seafarer Deck Certificate of Proficiency are set out in MIN 473.

Electronic Chart Display Information System (ECDIS): Since 31 December 2013 an MCA-approved ECDIS certificate has been required for the issue of an MCA Chief Mate (Yacht less than 3000 GT) CoC or above.

Note: This is not a requirement for Master (Code vessel less than 200 GT). Applicants for an OOW (Yacht less than 3000 GT) CoC who have not completed an MCA-approved ECDIS course will receive the following limitation: ‘From 1 January 2017 this certificate is not valid for service on ships fitted with ECDIS’.

Celestial Navigation: Since 31 December 2013, applicants for Master (Yacht less than 500 GT and 3000 GT) have been required to submit documentary evidence of a pass in Celestial Navigation from an MCA-approved training provider.

Please note that a pass in Celestial Navigation is only valid for one year from date of issue. Applicants who have previously submitted a Celestial Navigation certificate towards the issue of their Master (Yacht less than 500 GT) CoC will not be required to

Member meetings and seminars Nautilus International organises regular meetings, forums and seminars for members to discuss pensions, technical matters, maritime policies and legal issues. Coming up in the next few months are: resit the examination.

Human Element, Leadership and Management (HELM) Training: Since 31 August 2013 an MCA-approved HELM (operational level) certificate has been required for the issue of the OOW (Yacht less than 3000 GT) and Master (Code vessel less than 200 GT) certificates. An MCA-approved HELM (management level) certificate is now required for the issue of the following certificates: z Chief Mate (Yacht less than 3000 GT) z Master (Yacht less than 500 GT) z Master (Yacht less than 3000 GT) Yacht watchkeeping service — amendment to accrual: Clarification of the watchkeeping service on yachts has been requested by industry. The following amendment has been issued to the definition in MSN 1802: ‘Watchkeeping service may now be recorded on a cumulative basis. This means that every eight hours watch keeping accrued may be counted as one day of watch keeping service and does not need to be completed in a 24 hour period. Time spent at anchor associated with a passage, whilst the Officer is engaged in a bridge watch and if this passage is part of the same 24 hour voyage, can also be accepted.

Completing more than 8 hours watchkeeping within a 24 hour period cannot be counted as more than one day watchkeeping time, e.g. a 12 hour watch within a 24 hour period can only be counted as 1 day watchkeeping time.’

z M-Notices are available as

electronic documents or as a set of bound volumes. z A consolidated set of M-Notices is published by The Stationery Office. This contains all M-Notices current on 31 July 2009 (ISBN 9780115530555) and costs £210 — www.tsoshop.co.uk z Individual copies can be electronically subscribed to by emailing a request to mnotices@ ecgroup.co.uk or downloaded from the MCA website. Go to www.dft. gov.uk/mca and click on ‘Ships and Cargoes’, then ‘Legislation and Guidance’.

Funding available for ETOs to gain STCW certification Nautilus International is reminding Electro Technical Officers (ETOs) that grants are available for them to gain formal certification in line with new Standards of Training, Certification and Watchkeeping for Seafarers (STCW) requirements.

The 2010 amendments to STCW introduced the requirement for ETOs to have a Certificate of Competency

and British ETOs can apply for funding to help them gain the required qualifications.

The JW Slater Fund is administered by Nautilus International, and offers awards of up to £17,000 to help ratings study for a first certificate of competency.

This includes ETOs, yacht crews and other ratings looking to improve

their qualifications. There is also discretionary bonus of £1,000 on obtaining an approved OOW Certificate.

gThe application process is open now; simply visit the Nautilus website at www.nautilusint.org to download the application form or email slater@ms-sc.org for more details.

g National Pensions Association A programme of meetings to discuss the MNOPF Old Section continues as follows — all start at 1030hrs.

Monday 3 March, Aberdeen Tuesday 4 March, Glasgow Wednesday 12 March, Dover Friday 13 March, London Open to all UK members.

Contact Adele McDonald: +44 (0)20 8989 6677 npa@nautilusint.org

Contact Nautilus International Nautilus International welcomes contact from members at any time. Please send a message to one of our department email addresses (see page 17) or get in touch with us at one of our offices around the world.

For urgent matters, we can also arrange to visit your ship in a UK port.

Please give us your vessel’s ETA and as much information as possible about the issue that needs addressing.

SINGAPORE Nautilus International 10a Braddell Hill #05-03 Singapore, 579720 Tel: +65 (0)625 61933 Mobile: +65 (0)973 10154 singapore@nautilusint.org

Northern office Nautilus International Nautilus House, Mariners’ Park Wallasey CH45 7PH Tel: +44 (0)151 639 8454 Fax: +44 (0)151 346 8801 enquiries@nautilusint.org Offshore sector contact point Members working for companies based in the east of Scotland or UK offshore oil and gas sector can call: +44 (0)1224 638882 THE NETHERLANDS Postal Address Nautilus International Postbus 8575 3009 An Rotterdam Physical Address Nautilus International Schorpioenstraat 266 3067 KW Rotterdam Tel: +31 (0)10 477 1188 Fax: +31 (0)10 477 3846 infonl@nautilusint.org

FRANCE Yacht sector office in partnership with D&B Services 3 Bd. d’Aguillon 06600 Antibes, France Tel: +33 (0)962 616 140 nautilus@dandbservices.com www.dandbservices.com SPAIN Yacht sector office in partnership with dovaston C/Joan de Saridakis 2, Edificion Goya Local 1A, Marivent 07015 Palma de Mallorca, Spain Tel: +34 971 677 375 recruitment@nautilusint.org www.dovaston.com

College contacts Induction visits See www.nautilusint.org/newsand-events for dates of upcoming college visits by the Nautilus recruitment team (scroll down to ‘latest events’).

For further information, email recruitment@nautilusint.org or call Garry Elliott on +44 (0)151 639 8454.

Industrial support for cadets An industrial official is appointed to each of the main nautical colleges.

In addition the industrial department is responsible for representing

trainee officers in line with all members that we represent; please contact the Union on +44 (0)20 8989 6677. Your enquiry will then be directed to the relevant industrial organiser for your employer/sponsoring company.

The union also facilitates a Young Maritime Professionals’ Forum to provide an opportunity for young members to engage in discussions on the specific challenges facing young workers in the maritime profession.

For further information, members/ trainee officers should contact Paul Schroder at ymp@nautilusint.org.

g Women’s Forum Saturday 29 March 2014 1100hrs to 1600hrs in London The Women’s forum provides guidance to Nautilus Council on the challenges facing women in the industry and encourages female participation in Union activity.

Open to all UK female members.

Contact Lisa Carr: +44 (0)20 8989 6677 women@nautilusint.org

Quiz and crossword answersACDB Quiz answers 1. Containerships account for 21% of the world orderbook, according to IHS/Fairplay.

2. A total of 167 new cruiseships were built between 2000 and 2013.

3. Just over 60% of cruiseship passengers come from North America.

4. Norway’s Gard P&I is the largest protection and indemnity club, with a market share of around 15%.

5. At the start of this year, there were 396 LNG carriers in the world fleet.

6. White Star Line.

Crossword answers Quick Answers Across: 7. Dad’s Army; 9. Points; 10. Doric; 11. Litigant; 12. Charles Dickens; 15. Papacy; 16. Landed; 18. Mother Superior; 20. Antidote; 22. Gavel; 24. Status; 25. Thespian.

Down: 1. Hardship; 2. User; 3. Eyelid; 4. Spat; 5. Ringleader; 6. Stints; 8. Recherché; 13. Repatriate; 14. Champagne; 17. Drop-leaf; 18. Minute; 19. Siesta; 21. Ouse; 23. VIPs. This month’s cryptic crossword is a prize competition, and the answers will appear in next month’s Telegraph.

Congratulations to Nautilus member Gary Dudleston, who has won the prize draw for the February cryptic crossword.

Cryptic answers from February Across: 1. Four-poster; 6. Spur; 9. Challenger; 10. Trio; 12. Breath-taking; 15. Boatswain; 17. Tutor; 18. Octet; 19. Assonance; 20. Photographer; 24. Ibis; 25 Able-bodied; 26. Note; 27. Accessible.

Down: 1. Face; 2. Ural; 3. Polarisation; 4. Santa; 5. Elephants; 7. Persistent; 8. Roof garden; 11. Cantankerous; 13. Absorption; 14. Cartoonist; 16. Anaerobic; 21. Piece; 22. Limb; 23. Edge.

To suggest an organisation which could appear here, email telegraph@nautilusint.org

Maritime & Coastguard Agency +44 (0)23 8032 9100 www.dft.gov.uk/mca Implements the UK government’s maritime safety policy and works to prevent the loss of life on the coast and at sea.

International Transport Workers’ Federation +44 (0)20 7403 2733 www.itfglobal.org A federation of over 700 unions representing over 4.5 million transport workers from 150 countries.

Merchant Navy Welfare Board www.mnwb.org Umbrella body for the UK maritime charity sector, promoting cooperation between organisations that provide welfare services to merchant seafarers and their dependants within the UK.

Inspectie Leefomgeving en Transport + 31 88 489 00 00 www.ilent.nl Dutch maritime authority (separate from Dutch coastguard).

Merchant Navy Training Board www.mntb.org.uk UK organisation promoting maritime education and training, and providing careers guidance.

Administers the Careers at Sea Ambassadors scheme, under which serving seafarers can volunteer to give careers talks in UK schools.

Seafarers UK (formerly the King George’s Fund for Sailors) +44 (0)20 7932 0000 www.seafarers-uk.org Supports and promotes UK charities helping seafarers from the Merchant Navy, Royal Navy and fishing fleets.

Often organises places for maritime fundraisers to enter marathons and other charity challenges.

42-43_info+join.indd 42

SWITZERLAND Gewerkschaftshaus, Rebgasse 1 4005 Basel, Switzerland Tel: +41 (0)61 262 24 24 Fax: +41 (0)61 262 24 25 infoch@nautilusint.org

UK Head office Nautilus International 1&2 The Shrubberies, George Lane South Woodford, London E18 1BD Tel: +44 (0)20 8989 6677 Fax: +44 (0)20 8530 1015 enquiries@nautilusint.org

Useful organisations

Swiss Maritime Navigation Office +41 (0)61 270 91 20 www.smno.ch Swiss maritime authority.

g Young Maritime Professionals’ Forum Saturday 22 March, 2014 1000 to 1200hrs at Jurys Inn, Charlotte Place, Southampton, SO14 0TB. The forum provides guidance to Nautilus Council on the challenges facing young people in the shipping industry and on the issues that matter to them.

Open to all young members (UK & NL).

Contact Paul Schroder: +44 (0)20 8989 6677 ymp@nautilusint.org

International Seafarers’ Welfare and Assistance Network +44 (0)300 012 4279 www.seafarerswelfare.org Global organisation providing a 24 hour, year-round multi-lingual helpline for all seafarers’ welfare and support needs, as well as an emergency welfare fund.

SAIL (Seafarers’ Information and Advice Line) 08457 413 318 +44 (0)20 8269 0921 www.sailine.org.uk UK-based citizens’ advice service helping seafarers and their families with issues such as debt, benefit

entitlements, housing, pensions and relationships.

Seamen’s Hospital Society +44 (0)20 8858 3696 www.seahospital.uk UK charity dedicated to the health and welfare of seafarers.

Includes the Dreadnought health service.

Seafarers’ Link +44 (0)20 7643 13856 www.csv-rsvp.org Telephone friendship project connecting retired UK seafarers at home through a fortnightly telephone conference service.

Seatax Ltd +44 (0)1302 364673 www.seatax.ltd.uk Company providing specialist tax advice for merchant seafarers.

Marine Society +44 (0)20 7654 7050 www.marine-society.org UK charity dedicated to the learning and professional development of seafarers.

Offers 120,000 books to ships through its library service, plus distance-learning programmes and scholarship schemes including the Nautilus-administered Slater Fund.

19/02/2014 17:26

March 2014 | nautilusint.org | telegraph | 43

JOIN NAUTILUS

The face of Nautilus Audrey Stocker, Activities Coordinator

g

This month the new Trinity House Hub at Mariners’ Park will open its doors, and there will be one very familiar face welcoming visitors and ensuring they have lots of activities to keep them entertained.

Audrey Stocker will have been a carer at Mariners’ Park for ten years this year, starting out as home care worker, helping the Park’s independent residents, and later transferring to the Care Home, where she has won a number of awards for her excellent care work and commitment.

This year she takes on a new challenge as the activities coordinator for the purpose-built community facility in the £4m

Trinity House Hub. ‘I am really quite nervous about the new role,’ admits Audrey. ‘I’m used to doing events for the Care Home and for the Park so just concentrating on the park residents will be strange. However, I’ve known some of the Mariners’ Park residents for ten years so it will still be familiar.’

Audrey already has a long list of events planned including car boot sales, days and meals out, and even a couple of parties.

‘We have some big anniversaries coming up this year including the First World War and Cunard so I already have an entertainer planned for that,’ she says.

‘There are also four residents who turn 80

this year so they’ve booked me to organise them a big joint celebration — and that’s before we’ve even officially opened!’

The other good news is that the Care Home will not be losing the post of activities coordinator, as a new person will be recruited to take over from Audrey.

‘It’s going to be weird working just over the road and coming back here when there’s a new “me”,’ Audrey admits.

‘It’s the hardest thing to hand this job over to someone else. I know the new person will look after the residents and all the staff will support them, but it’s going to be weird because it’s like my baby.

‘My job in the Care Home has changed

completely since I started; the role of the activities coordinator was suggested by the residents in the Care Home and the Park and I’ve been doing it since the beginning.’

Audrey explains that the activities themselves have changed since she began running them, as residents need more oneto-one help, and they will now benefit from a dedicated activities coordinator.

‘I’ll still have the best job in the world,’ she concludes. ‘It obviously has sad moments when the residents pass away — and when that stops being painful I will stop doing this job — but until then I will continue spending all my days arranging parties and playing games, it’s brilliant!’

Wherev er you are , we are

CALL NOW TO JOIN NAUTILUS ON: UK: +44 (0)151 639 8454 NL: +31 (0)10 477 11 88 CH: +41 (0)61 262 24 24

Join today so we can be there for you too!

Pay and conditions Nautilus International is the first truly trans-boundary trade union for maritime professionals, reflecting the global nature of the industry.

We negotiate with employers on issues including pay, working conditions, working hours and pensions to secure agreements which recognise members’ skills and experience, and the need for safety for the maritime sector.

Legal services Nautilus Legal offers members a range of legal services free of charge. There are specialist lawyers to support members in work related issues and a number of non-work related issues. The Union also has a network of lawyers in 54 countries to provide support where members need it most.

Workplace support Nautilus International officials provide expert advice on work-related problems such as contracts, redundancy, bullying or discrimination, non-payment of wages, and pensions.

Certificate protection Members are entitled to free financial protection, worth up to £116,900, against the loss

42-43_info+join.indd 43

of income if their certificate of competency is cancelled, suspended or downgraded following a formal inquiry.

Extra savings Members can take advantage of many additional discounts and benefits organised at a local level. These include tax advice, insurance discounts and advice on pension matters. In the Netherlands, discounts are organised through FNV, and trade union contributions are mostly tax-friendly, entitling members to receive a significant part of their contributions back.

International representation Nautilus International represents members’ views on a wide range of national and international bodies including the European Transport Workers’ Federation (ETF), the International Transport Workers’ Federation (ITF) and the International Federation of Shipmasters’ Associations (IFSMA). We work at the International Maritime Organisation (IMO) and the International Labour Organisation (ILO) on key global regulations covering working

conditions, health and safety and training. The Union is affiliated to the TUC in the UK, FNV in the Netherlands and SGB/USS in Switzerland.

In touch As a Nautilus International member, help is never far away — wherever in the world you are. Officials regularly see members onboard their ships and visit cadets at college.

Further support and advice is available at regular ‘surgeries’ and conferences. The Union has offices in London, Wallasey, Rotterdam and Basel. There are also representatives based in France, Spain and Singapore.

It’s never been more important to be a Nautilus member and it’s never been easier to apply for membership. You can now join over the phone, or online at www.nautilusint.org. If you can’t get online or to a telephone, post us this form to start the joining process. A member of the recruitment team will contact you as soon as possible. Please note that membership does not begin until subscriptions are paid.

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19/02/2014 17:26

44 | telegraph | nautilusint.org | March 2014

NEWS

Union calls for full investigation into fatal cruiseship accident investigation into the death of F a passenger onboard the BahamasNautilus has called for a full

Broken windows onboard Marco Polo are repaired in the port of Tilbury last month Picture: Press Association

flagged cruiseship Marco Polo during a storm in the Channel last month.

The widow of a man who was killed when a wave smashed through a restaurant window praised the crew but criticised the condition of the 1966-built ship. Up to 14 other people were injured and one seriously injured passenger had to be airlifted to hospital.

The ship’s operators, Cruise & Maritime Voyages (CMV), said the

Rules warning for ship guards Conference hears calls for global standards to govern private security teams

P

Calls for common global standards to govern private security provision on merchant ships were made during a day-long conference organised by the Security Association for the Maritime Industry (SAMI) in London.

Speakers at the event — which was attended by representatives from shipping companies, security firms, flag states and maritime lawyers — stressed the need for a new international standard covering the processes for deploying armed guards on ships.

The meeting heard that the introduction of a unified standard could address concerns over the training and experience of armed guards and operational safety

issues facing shipmasters.

But there were also warnings that such a scheme is in urgent need of support and acceptance by shipowners and flag states to prevent the uncoordinated development of a range of unilateral systems.

The meeting heard how the shipowners’ organisation BIMCO drew up its Guardcon initiative in a bid to provide a standard contract between owners or charterers and private maritime security companies. And the development of the ISO/PAS 28007 standard represented a further step towards a scheme that would verify the processes of private security firms with third party certification and allow governments

control of critical functions.

SAMI CEO Peter Cook commented: ‘The maritime security industry is very young, it’s very dynamic, and this standard has got to be something we can adapt and take forward, whether it’s talking about floating armouries, West Africa, South China Seas or whatever else arises.’

And he added: ‘Perhaps the single most important factor shaping the acceptance of any standard is the response of clients to it, and we hope it can be used and respected by all. The question hinges on three possible outcomes; will shipowners choose to demand their providers have ISO/ PAS 28007? Or will they be compelled to use it, or will they simply

ignore it and continue with an adhoc system of in-house vetting and word of mouth?’

There is still work to be done to unify maritime security providers, regulators and clients under this one standard, Mr Cook added, and SAMI believes this process must begin now, and be rapidly addressed. ‘It has been stated that ISO/PAS 28007 is the quickest ever standard to reach the publicly available specification stage,’ he added. ‘Much of this rapid progress has been based on the groundwork performed by the maritime security industry, and their willingness to embrace standardisation. It is to be hoped that this is reflected by their clients and flag states.’

ship was fully compliant with British and international safety regulations and was ‘efficiently maintained by a professional and dedicated crew’.

CMV chief executive Christian Verhounig added: ‘Marco Polo undergoes stringent and rigorous surveys and is inspected regularly — including a recent annual dry docking survey and certification — and had the added advantage of an ice-strengthened hull designed for special voyages to polar regions.’

Nautilus senior national secretary Allan Graveson said he was

concerned the incident was being described as the result of a ‘freak’ wave. ‘It is not acceptable to say that it was an abnormal wave, and there are questions to be asked about how a vessel can be struck in such a way,’ he added. ‘It is clear that a full investigation is required to establish exactly what happened.’

The incident will be the subject of a safety investigation by the Bahamas Maritime Authority and the UK has declared itself to be a ‘substantially interested state’ under international arrangements.

Nautilus alarm at slow progress on Dutch protection from Dutch shipowners over F the growing risk of flagging out from Nautilus has backed warnings

the national register because of the government’s failure to lift a ban on the use of private security guards on merchant ships in high-risk areas.

Tineke Netelenbos, the head of the Dutch owners’ organisation KVNR, said the ban is not only leading some operators to switch flags but is also serving as a disincentive to inward investment by foreign shipping companies.

The Netherlands is now the only country in Europe that does not permit the use of private armed security on its merchant ships — and even though a bill to legalise their deployment has been promised, it could take another two years to come into effect.

In the meantime, owners have to use vessel protection detachments (VPDs) from the Dutch armed forces — which they complain are costly and bureaucratic to arrange, as well as difficult to accommodate onboard their vessels.

‘It is a matter of survival for many shipowners, and it is very easy to change your flag,’ Ms Netelenbos

warned. ‘Many Dutch shipowners don’t want to do that, but at the end of the day, they will be forced to do it, because it makes life easier when you have any other European flag on your ship.’

Nautilus assistant general secretary Marcel van den Broek said the Union had worked with the Dutch owners to lobby for the acceptance of certified private armed guards alongside regular VPDs onboard Dutch-flagged vessels for many years.

‘We’ve come a long way and we find it therefore hard to accept that, now we finally have a government that appears to be willing to work towards acceptance, that the lawmaking process is taking up so much time,’ he added.

‘VPDs simply aren’t always an option and this causes unwanted situations whereby ships and their crews aren’t protected or are forced to break the law by illegally making use of private guards,’ he said. ‘We accept that adjustments to the law can often be complicated and time-consuming but find it unacceptable that no interim measurements are being offered to bridge the time gap.’

RFA praised for £60m drugs bust Hammond has praised the crew A of the Royal Fleet Auxiliary (RFA) UK defence minister Philip

vessel Wave Knight for their work in an international counter-narcotics operation in the Caribbean which resulted in the seizure of an illicit cargo of cocaine with a street value of more than £60m.

Working together with a US Coast Guard (USCG) patrol aircraft and

helicopter, Wave Knight forced a 25ft speedboat to stop in international waters south of the Dominican Republic after the suspected smugglers started to throw the bales of drugs overboard.

Wave Knight launched one boat with a USCG team to board and question the crew of the suspect vessel, while another boat from the RFA vessel recovered 45 bales of

cocaine which had been thrown from the speedboat. Approximately 1.25 tonnes of cocaine was seized and four people were detained.

Defence Secretary Philip Hammond said: ‘The crew of RFA Wave Knight should be proud of their role in seizing such a massive amount of drugs, made more impressive as it is their second successful operation within a month.’

Wave Knight’s commanding officer, Captain Duncan Lamb, added: ‘RFA Wave Knight, working seamlessly with the US Coast Guard, has demonstrated her capability and resolve to disrupt the illicit drug trade.

‘On this occasion, a significant amount of Class A drugs has been stopped from reaching the streets of the UK and USA.’

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