Nautilus Telegraph May 2018

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CONTENTS

telegraph Volume 51 | Number 05 | May 2018

WELCOME

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05 General secretary Mark Dickinson looks at how the Union is shaping up for the future N AU T I L U S AT W O R K

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UK government consults on longterm shipping policy plan

11 Members urged to take part in mentoring study 13 Alarm at rise in West African piracy 14 Minister offers meeting on RFA pay squeeze

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21 Nautilus cautious over IMO deal to cut ship emissions 49 Nautilus and Marine Society team up to launch online maritime bookshop

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H E A LT H & S A F E T Y

What do bridge teams think about pilots?

16 Container safety in the spotlight after Maersk blaze 17 ECDIS problems blamed for cruiseship accident

24 STAFF

editor: Andrew Linington chief sub-editor: Sarah Robinson reporter: Steven Kennedy Dutch correspondent: Hans Walthie production editor: June Cattini-Walker design: Redactive

Display adverts: Philip Johnston tel: +44 (0)20 7324 2727 email: philip.johnston@redactive.co.uk

ADVERTISING

Recruitment adverts: Paul Wade tel: +44 (0)20 7880 6212 email: paul.wade@redactive.co.uk

Redactive Media Group 78 Chamber Street, London E1 8BL

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 PCP

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CONTENTS

TECHNOLOGY

22 Study claims robo-ships can exceed colreg requirements 23 Insurers call for technology training for seafarers 30 New report points to improved connectivity at sea

WHERE'S MY TELEGRAPH?

W E L FA R E

If you have moved recently, your home copy may still be trying to catch up with you.

33 Conference considers mental health challenges for crew 38 Nautilus backs work to improve Chinese port welfare H E A LT H & S A F E T Y

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

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The membership team can also cancel your print copy if you prefer to read the paper on the Telegraph app.

24 Feedback from international survey appraising marine pilots 40 Shipping’s threat to subsea connections

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E Q UA L I T Y

44 Double standards for MCA oral exams?

H I S T O RY

40 Innovative project celebrates Elder Dempster’s heritage

REGULARS

50 Maritime book reviews 52 Ships of the past

Nautilus International also administers the Nautilus Welfare Fund and the J W Slater Fund, which are registered charities.

64 Crossword and quiz 65 The face of Nautilus

• Nautilus takes part in the ‘Werken aan Werk’ support scheme for job-seekers

IN THIS MONTH’S DUTCH PAGES p52

• Briefing on new Dutch and European privacy legislation

GENERAL SECRETARY Mark Dickinson MSc (Econ) DEPARTMENT EMAILS general: enquiries@nautilusint.org membership: membership@nautilusint.org legal: legal@nautilusint.org telegraph: telegraph@nautilusint.org industrial: industrial@nautilusint.org young members: ymp@nautilusint.org welfare: welfare@nautilusint.org professional and technical: protech@nautilusint.org

• Programme for works council contact day on 16 May in Rotterdam • ‘Smash-up’ seminar on the future of automation in the inland waterways

• Nautilus NL branch annual meeting and offshore wind energy symposium: sign up for 26 June 2018

• Report from autonomous shipping symposium in Leeuwarden

• Presentation of findings from the sustainable employability research project

• New collective bargaining agreement for the dredging sector

• Annual meeting of the Maritime Pensioners’ Platform

• Collective bargaining proposals for Merchant Navy and Spliethoff Group • Art exhibition on Dutch merchant shipping opens this month at STC Group in Rotterdam

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FOREWORD

Welcome Nautilus general secretary Mark Dickinson takes a look at the Union’s finances, and reports on campaigning and negotiating work in the Netherlands, UK and Switzerland… or many people, April marks the start of a new financial year, where we take the opportunity to reflect on our spending from the past year and tweak budgets set for the year ahead.

This is also true for Nautilus; our year-end financial accounts are busy being prepared, and my colleagues and I in the senior team are adjusting budget projections to ensure that we are able to offer the best service possible at an affordable cost to members. We have been focused on the needs of maritime professionals for over 160 years, and I want to make sure we are around for 160 more!

I spoke about the Council’s oversight of the Union’s finances at a recent meeting of our National Committee in the Netherlands. Whilst there is no immediate cause for alarm, we are all keenly aware that we have a large number of members approaching retirement over the next five to 10 years. The growth in new entrants to the industry, and subsequently the Union, is not sufficient to replace those retiring. Therefore, we are looking at what needs to be done today, in order to safeguard the future and plan ahead. This will include a review of how we utilise technology to reduce costs for travel and meetings, and how we can structure the Union to maximise our people-skills and resources.

At the NL National Committee meeting I was also updated on developments for members employed in the Dutch dredging sector, some of whom are experiencing poor employment

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We are keenly aware that a large number of members will be retiring in the next few years, and we need to plan for the implications of this

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practices, including blacklisting. We will do everything we can to support members affected by such underhand tactics.

As well as negotiating directly with employers to protect our members’ terms and conditions, we continue to lobby parliamentary representatives in the Netherlands and the UK on employment and maritime issues.

In the Netherlands, a petition was recently presented to parliament on the procedures for tendering for government infrastructure projects.

Nautilus highlighted that government procedures result in too many of our highly-skilled members losing out on jobs to lower paid workers from other countries. It’s a familiar experience to Nautilus members across the board and, of course, it’s behind our call for a review of the UK system of issuing Certificates of Equivalent Competency.

In the UK, I met shipping minister Nusrat Ghani for the first time. During our hour-long meeting we discussed some of the issues still outstanding on our Charter for Jobs and specifically the need to strengthen national minimum wage legislation and review the tonnage tax to ensure that it drives fleet and maritime skills growth. It was a very positive first meeting, and the minister appears to have developed a passion for the industry in the short time she has been involved. I look forward to working closely with her in the future.

In Switzerland our focus is again returning to the organising challenges facing the river cruise sector, and I held discussions internally about additional capacity to address this.

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LETTERS

INBOX Your space to join the debate on the issues that matter to maritime professionals

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 – 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, email telegraph@nautilusint.org or fax to +44 (0)20 8530 1015.

The only solution is to increase manning read with interest the booklet entitled Perception Decision Making and Fatigue at Sea produced

by Chirp Maritime, featured in the April Telegraph. I found it very informative, very well researched and highly commendable. Perhaps I am seeing more than the authors intended, but it seems to me that there is an unstated corollary to the conclusions in the booklet, and this is that it is very important to have sufficient personnel onboard for all the demands of proper operation of a ship.

On the subject of manning – or more specifically, under-manning – I wrote a two-page article in the Telegraph 28 years ago. Nothing has improved since then in this area, quite the reverse.

Today the seafarer has to cope, as always, with a 24-hour daily routine, but also with ever faster turn-round times, ever faster and ever bigger ships, with ever-increasing and frequent

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checks and inspections, especially on emergency equipment, safety equipment, security equipment, and anti-pollution equipment; and – with greatly reduced crews – there is the additional workload of security patrols at sea and in port.

It should never be forgotten that for seafarers the ship is not only their workplace, but their home where they live, eat and sleep, their place of recreation and their social club – for many months continuously.

The only way to deal satisfactorily with all these necessary demands is to have sufficient people onboard to meet them properly, and that means increasing manning levels and giving personnel reasonable time off-duty, bearing in mind that many of the duties required of seafarers can only be performed in their ‘off-duty’ hours.

I well recall that on the various firefighting courses I attended as a seafarer, several fire officers commented that

The view from Muirhead www.thefreakywave.com

almost no ship had anything like the number of personnel onboard that they would recommend to deal with most emergencies – and that was despite the ‘safe manning’ rules!

I fully appreciate how costly increasing manning levels would be, and that it is not just a question of additional wages, but also all the ancillary costs involved in employing more personnel per ship.

I also appreciate the difficulties of recruitment and training, which already is not meeting requirements. But with enough will and effort I do not think that it is impossible. Indeed, I believe it simply has to be done if ships are to be operated safely, efficiently, profitably and sustainably, with all the necessary checks, maintenance and procedures correctly performed.

Critics will say that I am harking back to a past that is long dead and gone; but I say that increasing manning levels is the only genuine solution to avoiding the very serious consequences of all the current expectations, excessive demands, stresses and lack of sleep time on the reliability, the competence and the physical and mental health of seafarers which I see looming on the horizon.

In conclusion, it would be easy to say that autonomous ships would solve all the above problems at a stroke. However, I believe that fully autonomous ships will prove to have a limited role and only in some specific trades.

Despite all the additional technology incorporated in ships over the last 60 years, the actual crew reductions that this

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technology allows are in fact, small.

Regardless of further innovations now coming, I am sure that for a very long time to come the large majority of ships will continue to need a human crew permanently onboard to operate and maintain them.

J. Bore Membership number 75240

Memories and requests for Ships of the past With reference to the ships of the past feature in the April Telegraph, I sailed with Gordon Scarf who was a cadet on the San Flaviano. He tells an interesting story of how he escaped via a port hole.

It would be very interesting if you mentioned two other Shell ships – Helisoma and Amastra – which were both mined in Vietnam in 1968.

appointing RN officers into what are essentially MN organisations, ignoring the fact that while they have knowledge of the sea, they have very little knowledge of the MN, its methods or even its traditions. This is particularly irritating when there are perfectly able MN officers available for these positions.

While accepting that RFA officers are part of the naval organisational structure, perhaps the RN would be willing to appoint retired MN officers into positions within their associated organisations to provide a similar balance of experience. If this is seen as unacceptable, then the same Follow us on Twitter should apply to our @nautilusint organisations.

Tweets of the month Frances Howorth @YachtPhoto Apr 5 Don’t live to regret not paying the small amount it costs each month to have the backing of @nautilusint if you are crew on a Superyacht SuperYacht News @SaltySeadog Apr 5 The negotiating power of @nautilusint is a career safety feature everyone sailing aboard Superyachts needs to invest in

Michael Lloyd Membership number 10312

D. D. McLindon Membership number 156400 Chiltern Maritime @CML_Cadets Mar 28 If you were ever wondering how reliant the UK is on Seafarers...

If you think this could be a career for you, we are currently recruiting Deck, Engine and Electro-Technical Officer Cadets, visit our website to apply!

MCA chief should be a Merchant Navy officer With the forthcoming retirement of Vice Admiral Sir Alan Massey from the MCA, it is imperative that Nautilus International and other MN organisations should lobby for a Merchant Navy officer to replace him.

While we have benefited from Sir Alan’s experience and political skills, the MCA is essentially a Merchant Navy organisation and as such, especially after an appointment of a RN officer, we must ensure that it is now the turn of the MN. For some strange reason, there seems to be a drift towards

Editor’s note: We have another great crop of letters this month, with a fresh call for crew numbers to be increased in the interests of safety.

There’s also a powerful argument for tighter controls on flags of convenience, and some forthright points about MCA headhunting.

Keep your views coming – and please do take part in our poll to give feedback on the paper we use for the Telegraph. We are trialling a different stock to see if it improves your reading experiences.

Nautilus Intl @nautilusint Mar 27 Nautilus welcomes a UK government announcement of plans to develop a long-term maritime policy programme through the Maritime 2050 consultation.

Danny M @danny_union Mar 25 Great to be part of the @nautilusint delegation for Day Two of the TUC young workers conference #TUCYoungWorkers2018 Nautilus Intl @nautilusint Mar 29 And it’s goodnight from him...

Tributes paid to #Union’s retiring professional and technical expert Allan Graveson who has spent the past 20 years serving the Union and its #members #maritime #shipping #seafarers #tradeunion

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LETTERS

Irresponsible open registers provide shelter to crooks fter the end of WW2, the registers. They have no clue, because largest merchant fleet was they sold it to highest bidder. Some under the British flag and briefcase businessmen from abroad are there existed a close link playing around with their name and between shipowners, crew and flag. fame. These operators are not parties Over the years, this gradually to any international treaties. They have changed. Owners started changing flag no obligation and no responsibility. The to get the benefit of a cheaper cost of only function they have is to register operation. Some countries ended up ship and make money. This is what we with more ships in their registry – far call the flag of convenience. in excess of their trade requirements.

Good shipowners and operators This was the first stage of open would never register their ships in registers. such registers. It is mostly those who In time, competition grew amongst engage in illegal trade and perhaps open registers. Some of them reduced carry contraband items. Often, taxes to attract more ships. Some innocent seafarers become the victim introduced tonnage tax, and most allowed of circumstances when ships are recognised organizations/classification abandoned. It is happening more societies to conduct statutory survey and because of existence of such registers certification. that provide shelter to crooks.

Another element was The time has come for the ‘Open the development of world community to find registers labour-supplying or can be good some legal and procedural for shipping if crew-supplying countries, means to stop this ‘sale of standards are creating new competition flag to the highest bidder’. maintained’ for crew training and The administration of a flag manning of ships. state must be located within When the UN Convention on the country. It must be operated the Law of the Seas 1982 (UNCLOS-82) by a department or agency of the came into being, many land-locked government with full regard to treaties countries took the opportunity to and conventions signed by the country. develop their own shipping. All these Registry of ships is just one of many changes eventually made international functions of the administration shipping what it is today. It has broken and it cannot be separated out. The all monopolies and indeed become a process of registration establishes global business. It is good for shipping, jurisdiction, and the administration provided standards are maintained. must exercise its full jurisdiction and However, one last change is a matter control to ensure compliance with of concern for all of us. Recently some internationally-agreed standards. It is countries have been placing their flag time for experts in the IMO and ILO to and register with the highest bidder. find a way forward – perhaps drafting They have isolated the registry from one final comprehensive convention the rest of the duties and functions of on this matter. As an interim measure, the administration.

I would request all banks, insurance No wonder during the last IMO and other financial institutions to stop Assembly we saw delegates from providing services to ships operating Mongolia, Cambodia, Comoros and under those fraudulent flags.

Palau asking each other about the This is by no means against the open number of ships they have in their registers. But putting flags on auction

A

Workers install member state flags at the International Maritime Organisation’s headquarters ahead of World Maritime Day Image: IMO

must stop. It is polluting the world of shipping and causing more misery to seafarers. I would like to call on the ITF, church institutes, Human Rights at Sea and all other similar organisations to join hands and stop the briefcase businessmen operating registers from outside the country.

Fazlur Chowdhury

HAVE YOUR SAY Last month we asked: Do you think that the shipping industry should be given more time to comply with the 2020 sulphur cap deadline?

Poll results are pictured below.

No 75%

2 Yes

5%

This month we ask Which sort of paper do you prefer the Telegraph to be printed on?

• SILK – the paper type used this month • MATT – the paper type used for the January to April issues Vote now at: www.nautilusint.org

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NAU T I LU S AT WOR K

EMISSIONS AGREEMENT

NEWS

‘Missed chance’ Nautilus has warned that a top-level international agreement on cutting carbon emissions from shipping could prove to be a missed opportunity. The Union is concerned that it may prove insufficient to head off pressure for stricter regional rules – see page 21.

UK seeks views on proposed long-term maritime policy Nautilus has welcomed a UK government announcement of a ‘once in a generation opportunity’ to develop a long-term maritime policy programme.

Transport secretary Chris Grayling has launched a call for evidence for the Maritime 2050 package – what the government describes as a ‘landmark strategy to make the most of future opportunities for the nation’s maritime industries to thrive’.

The strategy initiative aims to identify challenges and opportunities to enable the government and the shipping industry to keep the UK as a global leader in key maritime sectors.

It is covering issues including maritime technology, trade, infrastructure, environment, people and security/resilience.

The Department for Transport consultation is also addressing the impact of new technology such as autonomous ships and digital ports, and is seeking ‘innovative and ambitious ideas to secure the country’s maritime future. The Department has also established a ‘think-tank’ of industry and academic experts to advise on the strategy.

Announcing the move, Mr Grayling said: ‘The success of the UK depends on our shipping – it helps put food in our cupboards and fuel in our vehicles. We want to maintain our position as a world

leading maritime nation, and working with the experts from within maritime, as well as those with broader experience, will help us ensure we take every opportunity open to this vital sector.’

The initiative was discussed at the meeting between Nautilus and shipping minister Nusrat Ghani on 27 March. ‘The minister did raise this, and I emphasised the need to listen to maritime professionals and take note of the findings of the Nautilus Federation’s Future Proof report, and the need for the IMO to put the human factor needs at the centre of the debate,’ said general secretary Mark Dickinson.

‘We are not opposed to new technology, and we want the debate to be about how we use it to enhance jobs – not destroy them – and most definitely not to turn young people away from a career in shipping,’ he added.

‘When technology companies selling their products drive the change it ends badly. The IMO needs to be allowed to do its job without pressure from technology companies to rush to outcomes that haven’t been fully assessed.’

The Maritime 2050 call for evidence – which closes on 16 May – can be found on the www.gov.uk website, by searching under consultations.

Union’s ‘positive’ meeting with shipping minister Nautilus general secretary Mark Dickinson has held a ‘positive’ first meeting with shipping minister Nusrat Ghani, covering a wide range of issues affecting the employment and training of UK seafarers.

In an hour-long meeting in London, Mr Dickinson and Ms Ghani discussed the importance of the British maritime industry – especially as the UK negotiates new trade deals outside of the European Union.

Mr Dickinson reiterated the policy proposals set out in the Union’s Charter for Jobs, and the outstanding issues

including the scope of the national minimum wage for seafarers and a review of the tonnage tax regime.

‘It was a very positive first meeting,’ said Mr Dickinson. ‘The minister has hit the ground running since she was appointed in January and already seems to be developing a passion for the industry. Ms Ghani understands that she has taken over at a critical time for British shipping and is keen to see the sector become one of the “big hitters” at the Brexit table.

‘I look forward to working closely with her in the future,’ he added.

Mark Dickinson with UK shipping minister Nusrat Ghani

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NAU T I LU S AT WOR K

Members urged to take part in mentoring study

TUC takes to the streets

Project aims to identify ‘best practice’ for supporting seafarers A year-long project has been launched in a bid to develop a ‘best practice’ guide for mentoring seafarers.

Funded by the ITF Seafarers’ Trust, the Mentoring Seafarers Project is being run by a team from Solent University Southampton in collaboration with Nautilus.

Two online research surveys are seeking views from both mentors and mentees to enable the development of a mentoring best practice guide for the industry.

The deadline for responses is 18 May, and Nautilus members are encouraged to participate as soon as possible.

The project includes a review and report on the range of remit of current mentoring schemes within the Merchant Navy, and seeks to demonstrate the effectiveness of mentoring – from a maritime perspective – on welfare, safety and economics.

Plans for the project were announced by project leader Dr Kate Pike at the Nautilus UK branch conference in October 2017. Dr Pike was one of the leaders of the 2015-16 Gender Empowerment and

Multicultural Crew (GEM) study, which highlighted the many benefits of mentoring as a support mechanism – especially for younger seafarers.

‘The project will encourage and raise awareness of sustainable mentoring initiatives and additionally encourage best practice to ensure long-term benefits in education and well-being are considered for the seafaring community,’ Dr Pike said.

Nautilus strategic organiser Danny McGowan added: ‘It’s great to see that such a detailed project has started, especially after a Nautilus conference motion was presented by the Young Maritime Professionals Forum on this topic.

‘We hope that as many Union members as possible will take part in the survey, and we encourage them to speak to their colleagues and employers to really spread the word about this valuable research.

‘We’re proud to support Dr Kate Pike and her team, and hope that this support will show some real results for Nautilus members at sea and ashore.’

• Find out more on the website: www.solent.ac.uk – look under current projects in the research section.

Nautilus members in the UK are being urged to put on their walking shoes this moknth and join a TUC march in London supporting calls for a ‘new deal’ for working people.

The march – which takes place on 12 May 2018 – will see thousands of people from trade unions, community organisations and political groups from across the UK take to the streets to protest at the fact that wages are on average lower now than before the economic crash 10 years ago.

Nautilus members wishing to take part in the Union’s demonstration can meet the Union group at 1030hrs by St Paul’s Cathedral. From there, the group will join the march at its starting point at Victoria Embankment at 1100hrs and continue through central London to Hyde Park, where the rally will finish at 1600.

For further information, contact your Nautilus official.

Nautilus moves SMarT motion at TUC event Samantha Belfitt, chair of the Nautilus Young Maritime Professionals Forum, is pictured left with members Thomas Quinn and Edward Derrick, along with strategic organiser Danny McGowan, at this year’s TUC Young Workers’ Conference, held in London in March.

Nautilus tabled a motion to the meeting welcoming the recent decision to implement the SMarT Plus training package. Moving the motion, Ms Belfitt told delegates about the way in which the maritime training support scheme works, and how this could be reciprocated for apprentices in other industries.

All the affiliates present supported the motion, with only RMT abstaining.

Other motions discussed public sector pay, mental health and sexual harassment.

Delegates selected a further motion to be

put forward at the TUC’s Congress in September. This seeks to ‘Make 2019 the year of young workers’ and asks the TUC and affiliates to provide support and resources to ensure more young people are aware of the benefits of union membership.

‘It was a pleasure to join Nautilus members at the event and to support a number of motions from other unions covering so many different topics,’ said Mr McGowan. ‘It’s encouraging to see so many young people being the “here and now” of their unions and getting involved in improving the world of work for union members. We hope that more and more young maritime professionals participate in future Union events to continue demonstrating the commitment of young workers to our industry.’

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NEWS

Report calls for ENSIGN CUTS CHARGES FOR MEMBERS curbs on FoCs International sanctions against North Korea are being weakened by the regime’s use of flag of convenience ships, a new report has warned.

A report from the UK’s Royal United Services Institute (RUSI) warns that FoC vessels have been used to circumvent UN sanctions – notably a growing use of tankers to trans-ship petroleum products.

RUSI research analyst Sara Perlangeli said there was evidence that North Korea is also using ‘front companies’ incorporated in offshore locations to register its ships in other countries and to evade the UN blacklists.

‘The situation is made worse by the fact that countries operating these “open registers” often have limited enforcement capacity,’ she added. ‘Lured by the easy money that comes with registering ships under flags of convenience and often lacking a sufficient bureaucratic apparatus to police their own system, some small states have outsourced the management of their ship registers to foreign companies.’

While Panama had revoked the registration of 20 North Korean ships, RUSI said this did not resolve ‘the inherent problems of flags of convenience’ and it warned that countries which outsource their national ship registers are running the risk of having their flags ‘hijacked by rogue agents’.

It called for the use of ‘smart sanctions’ – including significant restrictions on open registers used for illicit purposes – and ‘rethinking the paradigm of international shipping’.

The specialist maritime industry pension scheme Ensign Retirement Plan has cut its annual management charge for members – already one of the lowest – from 0.36% to 0.31%.

The not-for-profit provider is also introducing an in-scheme income drawdown facility and tailored financial guidance and advice for members, to help them negotiate the transition from work to retirement.

Since its launch in 2015, more than 80 maritime industry employers have signed up to the Ensign Retirement Plan – with more coming onboard this year – and the scheme has received Master Trust

Assurance accreditation.

Ensign Retirement Plan chief executive Andrew Waring said: ‘This reduction in charges demonstrates our commitment to reducing the pension burden for employers, while ensuring scheme members keep as much of their savings as possible. And by introducing an in-house income drawdown facility along with personalised guidance for members approaching retirement, we are providing tangible proof that a well-run defined contribution pension scheme can make a real difference to the overall retirement planning of its members.’

Image: Gary Davies/Maritime Photographic

Pictured above is the Royal Fleet Auxiliary’s latest support tanker, Tidesurge, following its arrival in the port of Falmouth for four months of customisation work at the A&P Shipyard.

Tidesurge arrived shortly before its sister ship RFA Tidespring met up at sea with the aircraft carrier HMS Queen Elizabeth for the first time.

Tidespring has been acting as the training tanker for the Royal Navy’s flag officer sea training and is part of the tri-service exercise Joint Warrior.

The second ship in the series, Tiderace, has been undergoing capability trials at Falmouth.

The fourth of the Tide Class vessels – Tideforce – is expected to be delivered later this year.

Union stages jobs event Pilot project aims to connect companies with aspiring officers In partnership with the City of Glasgow College Nautilus International will this month be staging a pilot recruitment event for Phase 5 officer trainees of all disciplines.

A wide range of leading shipping companies and recruitment agencies – including Shell Ship Management and V. Ships – will be in attendance, and will be looking to connect with officer trainees who represent the future of the maritime industry.

Martyn Gray, the Nautilus strategic organiser responsible for cadets, commented: ‘Nautilus recognises the challenges which are being experienced time and again by those members

who are about to qualify – and those recently qualified – in finding that first, all-important, position as a certificated seafarer.

‘As part of our work to tackle these problems, we are hoping to connect our soon-to-be and recently certificated officers with companies who see the vital importance of UK-trained maritime professionals for their strategic objectives,’ he added.

The event will be held between 1030 and 1430hrs at the Riverside Campus at the City of Glasgow College on Tuesday 1 May 2018.

To find out more, email Martyn Gray at: mgray@nautilusint.org

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In brief

Pictured above is the former cross-Channel hovercraft Princess Margaret undergoing demolition work in Lee-on-Solent last month.

Built in 1968, the craft was one of only two remaining Mark III SRN4s. Components saved from the dismantling operation will be used in restoration work on the last vessel, Princess

Anne, which is being undertaken by the Hovercraft Museum Trust.

The Trust said the parts will prove vital in safeguarding the future of Princess Anne, which was the largest commercial hovercraft ever built and was saved from demolition in 2016.

Rximi, conse nes mos et hari aut

Image: Gary Davies/Maritime Photographic

Big rise in piracy in the Gulf of Guinea A surge in armed attacks on ships off the occurred off Nigeria and the country coast of West Africa has sparked an increase accounted for eight of the 11 vessels fired in global levels of piracy and armed robbery upon – including a 300,000dwt tanker, some at sea, the International Maritime Bureau 40nm off Brass.

(IMB) has warned.

The report said that the hijacking of In the first three months of this year, the product tankers from anchorages in the Gulf IMB’s Piracy Reporting Centre has recorded a of Guinea is a particular cause for concern. total of 66 incidents – up from 43 for the But, it added: ‘Attacks in the Gulf of same period in 2017 and 37 in the Guinea are against all vessels. first quarter of 2016.

Crews have been taken hostage Over the same timescales, and kidnapped from fishing the number of crew being and refrigerated cargo vessels seafarers were held held hostage has risen from as well as product tankers. In hostage in the first three months of 28 in 2016 and 31 in 2017, to some cases, the attacks have this year 100 so far this year. A total been avoided by the early of 14 seafarers were kidnapped detection of an approaching in the first quarter of 2018, and 39 skiff, evasive action taken by the ships were boarded, 11 fired upon and four vessel and the effective use of citadels.’ hijacked.

The IMB is working with national and The IMB said that more than 40% of these regional administrations in West Africa to incidents occurred in the Gulf of Guinea, and support ships and coordinate counter-piracy all but one of the 114 seafarers held hostage actions. ‘The authorities from Benin, Nigeria or kidnapped were held in the region. and Togo have sent out boats in response to One-third of the attacks worldwide several incidents,’ it added.

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MLC ban: the Australian Maritime Safety Authority (AMSA) has banned a Liberian-flagged containership from the country’s ports for three months after the operator failed to ensure the crew were paid their wages in full and on time, or that critical equipment was maintained.

AMSA said there had been ‘a clear and unacceptable breach of the Maritime Labour Convention’ onboard the MSC Kia Ora and it warned that it would not tolerate similar ships in its waters.

Harassment call: the TUC has urged the UK government to act on a report on sexual harassment published by the Equalities and Human Rights Commission. General secretary Frances O’Grady said the report echoed TUC research which found that more than half of women had experienced sexual harassment at work, but only one in five reported it.

Autonomous firm: the Norwegian firms Wilhelmsen and Kongsberg have established what is claimed to be the world’s first company to design and operate autonomous ships. Due to begin operations in August this year, the joint venture – named Massterly – promises to provide ‘a complete value chain for autonomous ships’.

Confidence high: confidence in the shipping industry has reached a four-year high, according to the international shipping accountancy firm Moore Stephens. Its regular survey of owners and managers showed that operators are more confident of making a major new investment in the next 12 months than at any time since 2014.

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NAU T I LU S AT WOR K

Talks on RFA pay offered by minister Nautilus has welcomed an offer from defence minister Tobias Ellwood to meet to discuss longrunning concerns over Royal Fleet Auxiliary pay.

Nautilus and the RMT and PCS unions jointly wrote to the secretary of state for defence Gavin Williamson after last year’s offer was imposed, to warn of the damaging impact of public sector pay policies on RFA recruitment and retention.

In a response to the unions, Mr Ellwood said ministers fully appreciated the professionalism of RFA staff. Terms and conditions of service are under constant review ‘to ensure longterm sustainability’, he added.

Mr Ellwood said public sector pay restraint remains a key objective for the government, but as part of the annual review process the RFA seeks to ensure that its ‘reward strategy addresses organisational pressures and remains competitive within the wider maritime industry’.

The minister offered to meet the unions once the guidelines for the 2018-19 pay round have been published.

Nautilus general secretary Mark Dickinson commented: ‘There can be no room for doubt about the hugely damaging effect upon morale within the RFA caused by the past seven years of pressure on pay.

‘We are determined to address this situation and we hope the minister will accept that this is not a sustainable way to treat maritime professionals operating in a service of immense strategic importance.’

NAUTILUS VISITS TRINITY HOUSE VESSELS Nautilus national organisers Gary Leech (second from left) and Jonathan Havard (far right) are pictured onboard the Trinity House vessel Galatea in Harwich following pay talks last month.

Issues discussed during the meeting included

bonus payments, which have since been confirmed as 3% for all SVS staff.

Mr Havard and Mr Leech – who is taking over as the Nautilus official for Trinity House – also visited members onboard THV Alert.

Yacht firms ‘must show social responsibility’ As Nautilus International continues its fight to recover wages owed to members working onboard the superyacht Indian Empress and sister vessel Force India, the Union has issued a call to socially responsible yacht managers, crewing agents and training providers to work with it to prevent such situations from developing in future.

‘Whilst Nautilus does not relish taking such visible action to recoup vast amounts of wages owed to our members, we are proud to assist our members on these vessels so effectively and proud to continue to support them as we take further steps to enforce their rights,’ said

strategic organiser Danny McGowan.

‘As the owner and the manager of Indian Empress and Force India did not have a relationship with Nautilus in this case, there was no line of clear communication to be able to resolve the situation before it escalated in such a way,’ he pointed out.

The owner of the two yachts, Indian businessman Vijay Mallya, was last month ordered by a Maltese court to settle a €651,000 debt with a local marine repair and services company. Nautilus has had the Indian Empress arrested in its attempts to secure the payment of outstanding wages owed to the crew.

P&0 MEMBERS AGREE 3.9% DEAL

Pictured during talks on P&O Ferries’ proposals for OBS restructuring on the shortsea route are Nautilus national ferry organiser Micky Smyth, OBS officer Martina Duffield, and liaison officers Ian Cross and Chris Lewis.

A 3.9% pay offer has been overwhelmingly accepted following consultations with members serving with P&O Crewing Services (Jersey) and P&O Irish Sea (Jersey).

The increase – which will be backdated to 1 January 2018 – reflects the October 2017 RPI inflation rate. The company has also pledged to continue to discuss officers’ pension arrangements – with particular focus on making the Ensign Retirement Plan ‘an acceptance option’ – and to review the profit share schemes.

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In brief

Pictured, left to right, at the DFDS pay talks are Nautilus national ferry organiser Micky Smyth, DFDS vice-president HR and crewing Gemma Griffin, and liaison officer Captain Mark Miller

CONSULTATIONS ON ‘FINAL’ DFDS OFFER Nautilus members serving with DFDS are being consulted on a 2% pay offer, with effect from 1 January, together with a 1% increase to pensions, effective from 1 April, and improvements to a number of other terms and conditions.

TThe ‘full and final’ offer proposes to increase sick pay to six months of full pay, and to increase increments from year three. It also includes a commitment for all step-up positions to be reviewed after six months.

Attendance on Manila training courses will also be paid at the same rate as other training courses, with effect from 1 January 2019.

Mr Smyth said the Union is strongly recommending acceptance of the offer, as the best that can be achieved through negotiation, and he thanked members and liaison officer Mark Miller for their time and effort in progressing the Union’s claim.

Results of the consultation will be known early in May.

Union urges NERC to boost leave and pay Nautilus seeks fair deal to reflect tough demands on members Nautilus has met management to present pay claims on behalf of members employed by the Natural Environment Research Council (NERC) on NOCS-NMFSS and British Antarctic Survey (BAS) ships.

The Union is seeking a pay rise of a similar nature to that currently being proposed for most NHS workers, and is also calling for a move to a one-for-one leave ratio. It was confirmed at the meeting that working time commences once a member leaves his or her home to join the vessel and leave begins when they arrive back home.

Nautilus is also seeking ‘financial consideration’ for special duties and to reflect a new drug and alcohol policy for members, along with a polar allowance for masters and chief engineers on NOC vessels when working in the polar zone.

Nautilus is also seeking the introduction of a 50% daily bonus payment for every day worked following the fifth day after the originally advertised voyage length.

National organiser Jonathan Havard said the meeting with employer representatives had been constructive, and the collective dispute on the 2016-17 pay award had been stayed pending completion of the 2017-18 discussions.

‘We have submitted a claim on members’ behalf that we feel represents a fair deal for them, considering the demands placed on them as part of their daily work,’ he added.

‘Our members do a sterling job in tough conditions, so we feel these demands are the right moves to make – particularly given the years of government pay freezes and restraint.’

Princess pay: members serving with Fleet Maritime Services on Princess Cruises and P&O Cruises Australia vessels are being consulted on a two-year pay offer following clarification from the company on the details of the proposals. The package would give a 3% increase this year and 4.5% in 2019, together with a range of other improvements.

Results will be known in mid-May. Stena wait: Nautilus is awaiting a formal response from Stena Line after members overwhelmingly rejected company proposals for a 3% increase for officers on the new wage scale and 0% for those on the ring-fenced scale, or 1.6% for all officers on the Irish Sea and North Sea routes.

Cemex rejection: a 2.5% pay offer has been rejected by members employed by Cemex UK Marine. The Union is seeking further talks with management after consultations showed a three to one majority against the proposals.

LCT submission: a pay claim has been submitted by the Union seeking an above-RPI inflation increase for members employed

by LCT Support Services (Newhaven).

Subsea views: members employed by Subsea 7 have been asked to give the Union their views on the contents of this year’s pay and conditions claim ahead of talks later this year.

Madog claim: Nautilus has submitted a claim for an aboveRPI wage rise for members employed by P&O Maritime Services and serving onboard Prince Madog.

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H E A LT H & SA F E T Y

Crowd-sourced safety information The UK P&I Club has teamed up with a specialist IT firm to create a ‘crowd-sourced’ system to provide comprehensive and timely safety updates to its members.

The Club said it hopes its partnership with the geospatial intelligence company Geollect will create ‘the most extensive incident and information resource within the P&I industry’.

The initiative uses data collated from satellite imagery, social media updates, intelligence and geospatial data, together with the Club’s own information, to provide an interactive map

showing incidents and alerts around the world.

The system lists collision areas, live incident reporting, latest piracy reports and infrastructure repairs to port areas, and users can zoom in to ports and locations for more detailed information.

‘We believe there is a compelling need within maritime risk to modernise and fuse disparate reporting mechanisms,’ said UK Club senior loss prevention executive George Devereese. ‘This is just the start, and we will look to members to let us know what other information will be useful.’

Emergency vessels tackle the blaze onboard Maersk Honam Image: Indian Coast Guard

CONTAINER CRACKDOWN CALL A leading marine insurer has called for tough action to combat ‘the criminality of misdeclaration’ of the hazardous cargoes in containers.

TT Club risk management director Peregrine Storrs-Fox said the recent blaze onboard the Singapore-flagged Maersk Honam – in which five seafarers were killed – had highlighted the scale of the dangers.

‘There is currently a serious fire aboard a containership roughly every 60 days,’ he wrote in Lloyd’s Loading List. ‘While these incidents take painstaking forensic investigation in order to identify the root cause, a fundamental focus must

be on the criminality of cargo misdeclaration.’

Mr Storrs-Fox said there is ‘too much evidence that dangerous cargoes are misdeclared due to a premeditated attempt to avoid the added costs and complexity that accrue from transporting such consignments by land or sea in compliance with regulations’.

Nautilus and the International Union of Marine Insurance have also called for improved fire-fighting requirements for containerships, with questions over the current standards of fire detection equipment and the effectiveness of CO2 systems.

Tanker crew were not qualified A bunker tanker which ran aground off Canada last year was being operated by a master and chief engineer who were not qualified for their roles, an investigation discovered.

The Panama-flagged Arca 1 grounded near Sydney, Nova Scotia, after it lost 50% of its propulsion power following the failure of a clutch and began drifting in heavy weather.

A Transportation Safety Board of Canada (TSB) report blamed the incident on inadequate vessel maintenance and ‘inconsistent’ voyage planning, together with crewing issues.

‘As a result of some crew members performing roles for which they were not qualified, certain critical tasks were not carried out, and others were performed ineffectively,’ the report added.

Poor lookout blamed for collision A gas carrier which collided with a tanker off the coast of India was not keeping a proper lookout, an accident investigation has concluded.

The Isle of Man-flagged BW Maple was in breach of collision prevention regulations by using a cadet as the lookout – a task he was not formally qualified to undertake, a report on the incident states.

The 47,386gt gas carrier and the Indian-flagged tanker Dawn Kanchipuram were both damaged in the collision, which occurred off the port of Ennore in January 2017.

The Isle of Man flag state report also noted that the BW Maple’s bridge team had not been adequately briefed on a change in the passage plan for the ship’s outbound pilotage. Bridge team manning had been reduced at a critical time as the chief officer escorted the pilot from the ship, it added.

The report urges BW Fleet Management to review its safety management system and calls for Kamanjar port authorities to review their procedures and practices for directing inbound and outbound vessel traffic.

MCA agrees to review of ETVs The UK government has agreed to carry out a review of emergency towing vessel cover in the Channel.

In a move welcomed by Nautilus, transport minister Baroness Sugg said the Maritime & Coastguard Agency will examine the full range of emergency response assets available in the Dover Strait, including reassessing the need for a dedicated towing capability.

The review was recommded by the Marine Accident Investigation Branch following an investigation into a collision between a general cargoship and a barge off the coast of Kent.

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Call for IMO to review governance The International Maritime Organisation (IMO) needs to improve its systems of governance to reduce the risk of conflicts of interest, a new report has warned.

Preliminary findings from a study by the anti-corruption organisation Transparency International suggest that private shipping industry interests could have undue influence over the policymaking process at the IMO. The report – which is based on an analysis of the IMO’s transparency, accountability and integrity – says that big flag states such as Panama, Liberia, the Marshall Islands, Malta and the Bahamas have a ‘potentially exaggerated weight’ within the UN agency, and the mechanism by which states with larger tonnage have an advantage in the policy-making process ‘is potentially open to abuse’.

Transparency International said that governments are able to appoint employees of corporations – including shipping companies – to their delegations, and they can determine their government’s position on IMO policy. In recent committee meetings, trade associations have outnumbered civil society organisations by a ratio of almost five to one and labour organisations by three to one, the report noted.

‘A guiding principle of the UN system is that member states must represent citizens’ interests,’ said Transparency International vice-chair Rueben Lifuka.

‘At the IMO, this could end up being undermined by corporate participation in the place of nation states.’

The report urges the IMO to take a series of measures to improve transparency and to ensure its decisionmaking processes better reflect the public interest – including by establishing ‘a meaningful link between ships and their country of registry’ and reducing the influence of tonnage in the ratification process.

L’Austral docks in the port of Dunedin following the grounding in January 2017 Image: NZ Transport Accident Investigation Commission

ECDIS shortfalls led to contact incident Shortcomings in electronic chart display and information system (ECIDS) training have been blamed for another accident – this time involving the grounding of a 10,944gt passengership in an exclusion zone off New Zealand last year.

The French-flagged L’Austral struck an uncharted rock after drifting into a ‘no-go’ area off New Zealand’s subAntarctic islands while picking up rigid inflatable boats which had been used for passenger excursions. The ship was holed, but water ingress was confined to one void space.

At the time of the accident, the bridge was manned by the master and a navigating officer – one fewer than required – and New Zealand’s Transport Accident Investigation Commission (TAIC) concluded that the

master’s attention had been focused on the recovery of the boats, and he had failed to notice the ship had entered the 300m unauthorised zone.

Investigators said ECDIS safety parameters – including the shallow contour – had not been adequately configured. ‘Although ECDIS was designated as the ship’s primary navigation system, it was not being used as such and not being used to its full potential,’ the report notes.

Crew members were not fully familiar with the capabilities and limitations of the equipment and were not making best use of it, TAIC said. It called for the ship’s owners to review the ECDIS procedures on all ships in the fleet and to ensure that bridge resource management and voyage planning meets IMO requirements.

Projects aim to cut onboard administrative workloads The Port of Rotterdam is pioneering a new electronic ETA exchange system, which aims to cut shipboard workloads and improve operational efficiency.

Developed as part of the EU-funded Sea Traffic Management (STM) project, the system enables some 300 vessels taking part in the validation work to share their voyage plan schedules with the port authorities direct from their ECDIS navigation systems.

When the port authority adjusts the planned time of arrival the update is automatically transmitted to the ship and displayed as a text message onboard,

cutting the need for manual communications.

Meanwhile, the shipowners’ organisation BIMCO has announced a new package for tagging information that is claimed to offer an 80% reduction in the administrative workload for shipmasters linked to port calls, and it is urging the industry to adopt the standard.

The Marine Reporting Model enables masters to type in all the required information for port clearance just once, with the system using tags to ensure that transmitted data ends up in the correct ‘box’ at the receiving end.

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I N T E R NAT IONA L

In brief Missing crewman: the International Transport Workers’ Federation has called for an Australian Federal Police investigation into the disappearance of a Filipino seafarer from a Dutch-owned ship a week before it arrived in the port of Townsville. The crewman went missing from the Singaporeflagged livestock carrier Galloway Express in the Flores Sea, north of Timor, while the Vroon-owned vessel was en route to Australia.

FRANCE

Anger at Brittany’s new ‘FoC’ ferry French seafaring unions have called for the resignation of the managing director of Brittany Ferries as president of the country’s shipowners’ association in an increasingly bitter row over the company’s use of a nonFrench vessel for a new service.

Brittany has confirmed that it has chartered a ferry from Stena RoRo to operate the route between Cork, Roscoff and Santander. The service is due to begin on 1 May and the vessel, to be named Connemara, will be transferred

to the Cyprus register. It will operate with ‘Community seafarers’ not including French nationals.

The CFDT and CGT unions are angry that the ship will be managed by Northern Marine rather than in-house like the rest of the Brittany fleet. They have called for the company to provide details about the ferry’s operational costs and demanded that managing director Jean-Marc Roué resign as president of AdF, the operators’ association.

INDIA

Russian alarm: the Russian Maritime Transport Workers’ Union has expressed concern over an increase in employer attacks on independent unions and criticised the Ministry of Labour for trying to avoid resolving disputes. The latest case involves staff affected by the liquidation of the Kerch Strait ferry line OOO Morskaya Direktsia.

Tanker auctioned: the Shanghai Maritime Court has sold the Singapore-flagged tanker Amba Bhakti, which was abandoned by the Indian owner Varun in 2016. The court ruled that the crew has priority to obtain payment from the sale proceeds.

UAE ban: the United Arab Emirates has banned ships belonging to Fujairah-based Venous Ship Management & Operation from operating and anchoring in the country’s ports and waters following repeated cases of seafarer abandonment.

Norway tax: Norway is seeking to boost seafarer employment and training after securing official approval for its plan to extend tax and social security refunds to shipping companies employing EEA crews.

Flag threat by owners

Britannica Hav is righted in the port of Le Havre Image: Eric Houri FRANCE

CHANNEL COLLISION French and Belgian authorities are investigating the cause of a collision between a Maltese-flagged general cargoship and a fishing vessel in the Channel.

Seven crew members from the 1,521gt Britannica Hav were rescued when the Norwegian-owned vessel took on water and capsized after being holed in the collision with the Belgian-registered trawler Deborah.

The capsized vessel remained afloat and was towed to the port of Le Havre by the emergency towing vessel Abeille Liberté. The Taklift 4 crane was used to refloat the ship to enable inspections to be carried out to determine its fate.

TRADE WAR THREAT TO SHIPS World maritime trade could sink to levels last seen in the 1930s depression if countries continue to adopt increasingly protectionist policies, the Global Shippers’ Alliance (GSA) has warned. Red tape and import tariffs are posing a major threat to the global economy, it said, and unless leaders put a stop to trade disputes there will be a growing risk of damaging retaliatory measures.

Indian shipowners have threatened to flag out if their government relaxes rules giving domestic operators the ‘right of first refusal’ for carrying cargoes around the country’s coast.

Warning that the country’s shipping industry is at a crossroads, the Indian National Shipowners’ Association (INSA) said local operators are finding it increasingly tough to compete with foreign ships.

Removing the right for Indian owners to match the lowest rate offered by foreignflagged operators in tenders issued by state-run firms would also remove any remaining incentive to run vessels on the national register, INSA added. It claims Indian operators are unable to compete with foreign ships on domestic voyages as a result of higher taxes, costlier bunker fuel, and the mandatory requirement to employ more crew.

INSA CEO Anil Devli said flagging out would lead to job losses for Indian seafarers, as the Association’s 42 member companies employ only national crews and provide free training for domestic cadets.

The owners have called for a consistent national policy environment for shipping, arguing that many other countries have strict flag controls on the carriage of cargoes in their waters.

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In brief

FINLAND

FERRY FIRST FOR WIND ASSISTANCE The Finnish-flagged ferry Viking Grace, pictured above, has claimed the title of being the only passengership in the world equipped with a Rotor Sail to harness wind power for propulsion.

Developed by Helsinki-based Norsepower Oy, the 24m tall automated Rotor Sail is a spinning

cylinder that uses the Magnus effect to help propel a ship. It is expected to cut the 57,565gt ferry’s fuel consumption by as much as 900 tonnes annually.

Viking Grace, which operates between Finland and Sweden, already has strong green credentials, as it runs on LNG fuel.

I TA LY

Unions fear for jobs as Italy falls short on STCW and MLC Italy is coming under pressure from maritime unions and the European Commission to sort out ‘an unacceptable muddle’ surrounding the way it deals with seafarer certification.

The Italian maritime union Filt-CGIL describes the authorities’ slowness in renewing essential certificates as a ‘bureaucratic mess’ that is putting seafarers’ jobs at risk, and has requested an urgent meeting with the transport ministry.

The problems have been raised in the European Parliament, with Italian MEP Laura Ferrara highlighting concerns that the gap between international regulations and the stricter standards imposed by Italian legislation is making it extremely complicated for the country’s seafarers to update and renew their certificates. ‘What are essentially bureaucratic problems are preventing workers from continuing in their profession as normal, despite their long experience,’ she said.

European transport commissioner Violeta Bulc said the Commission has initiated an infringement procedure against Italy as a

result of ‘outstanding deficiencies’ in the application of a directive covering maritime education and training programmes – including problems with course design, review and approval; recognition of certificates; certification and endorsement for engineer officers at management level; and requirements for certification.

Filt-CGIL said there is a very real risk that thousands of Italian seafarers could lose their jobs as a consequence of problems with the issue of internationally-approved sea safety certificates. It says the transport ministry’s slowness in organising and approving national courses is creating serious difficulties. ‘It is unacceptable that many seafarers have already paid €1,000 for an update course or €2,000 for a basic certificate and are still waiting,’ the union added.

The Commission has also accused Italy of failing to provide full information on what steps it has taken to implement the EU directive on the Maritime Labour Convention and has warned that it may refer the case to the European Court of Justice .

Portuguese aid: the European Commission has approved Portugal’s plans for a new tonnage tax scheme, designed to attract ships to the country’s register. Brussels also gave official backing to an associated package of measures to exempt seafarers from income tax and to pay lower social security contributions when they are serving on ships covered by the scheme.

Security warning: leading ferry operators, including P&O, Brittany Ferries, DFDS and Stena Line are opposing French plans for onboard security screening of ferry passengers between vehicle decks and accommodation areas.

The operators’ association Interferry warned that the move could increase the risk of accidents and inhibit effective evacuation.

DFDS deal: DFDS has revealed details of a €950m deal to acquire the Turkish ferry operator U.N. Ro-Ro as part of its plans to expand its route network across the Mediterranean. The acquisition is likely to be completed by the summer.

Indian boost: India and South Korea have signed an agreement on the mutual recognition of certificates of competency, which could enable Indian seafarers to gain jobs on more than 500 foreign-going South Korean ships.

Dieppe appeal: the Transmanche Ferries Users’ Group, TUG Horizon Association, has urged the Seine-Maritime district council to add an extra return service on the DieppeNewhaven ferry link during the summer season.

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NAU T I LU S AT WOR K

IMO deal on emissions falls short, says Union ‘Carbon strategy may fail to defuse calls for regional action’ Nautilus has described a long-awaited International Maritime Organisation agreement on cutting carbon emissions from shipping as a missed opportunity to set an example to the world.

Greenhouse gas emissions from shipping currently accounts for 2.2% of the world’s total emissions – roughly equivalent to a country like Germany.

The ‘initial strategy’ agreed at the IMO outlines a target to reduce this by at least 50% by 2050 while pursuing efforts towards phasing them out. The Marshall Islands, other Pacific island states and the European Union had been seeking a reduction of 70% to 100% over the same period.

The IMO has set a target of a 40% improvement in ship efficiency by 2030, compared to 2008, and a 50%-70% improvement by 2050 – described by the International Chamber of Shipping as ‘extremely ambitious but probably achievable’.

Nautilus professional and technical officer David Appleton attended the talks and commented: ‘Whilst we can agree with the majority of speakers at the Marine Environment Protection Committee who stated that this strategy is a step in the right direction, and certainly better than no agreement at all, the level of ambition expressed within the compromise agreement

is extremely disappointing.

‘The IMO had an opportunity to make a real statement this week that would have set an example to the world,’ he added. ‘That opportunity has been missed, and instead we have an agreement that represents the absolute bare minimum that could have been accepted politically. It remains to be seen if this agreement will be enough to satisfy those who believe that regional regulation is necessary.’

UK Chamber of Shipping CEO Guy Platten commented: ‘This agreement commits the shipping industry to reducing its carbon emissions by at least 50% by 2050. But crucially this should be seen as a stepping stone towards decarbonisation in the long term – something which must continue to be a major focus in the years ahead.’

UK shipping minister Nusrat Ghani described the agreement as ‘a watershed moment’ for shipping. ‘It opens up new and exciting opportunities to develop environmentally-friendly technologies and, through our Maritime 2050 Strategy, we will ensure that the UK continues to be at the forefront of the green maritime revolution,’ she added.

Greenpeace said the strategy lacked substance, and it called for the full decarbonisation of shipping by mid-century.

Scrubbers fitted to P&O Cruises’ Ventura The P&O Cruises vessel Ventura is pictured at the end of a two-week docking at Damen Shiprepair Brest – the116,017gt ship’s first visit to the yard.

Work undertaken on the 2008-built vessel included the installation of two exhaust gas scrubbers and a sea chest custom-built at the yard.

The ship’s hull was ultra-high-pressure water blasted and repainted, along with the superstructure.

Additional work on the ship included maintenance of the propulsion systems and stabilisers.

In brief Brexit alert: the UK government must take rapid action to avoid a ‘cliff-edge’ situation for the mutual recognition of seafarers’ certificates after Brexit, the Confederation of British Industry has warned. In a report issued last month, it stressed the need for the UK to continue to uphold EU directives which implement international regulations such as the Maritime Labour Convention.

Ronnie Keir: tributes have been paid to former Cunard Line chief engineer Ronnie Keir, who died last month at the age of 68.

Following an apprenticeship at the John Brown shipyard, he went to sea with J. & J. Denholm before joining Cunard, where he served on ships including QE2, Queen Mary 2 and Queen Victoria.

Wages win: 16 crew members who were stranded onboard the Bahrain-flagged containership Avonmoor in the port of Casablanca, Morocco, returned home last month after the International Transport Workers’ Federation managed to secure the payment of US$107,000 in owed wages.

RMS role: following its withdrawal from service earlier this year, it has been reported that RMS St Helena has been sold to the British-based shipping security firm MNG Maritime for use in support of counter-piracy operation and renamed MNG Tahiti.

Hold deaths: gas created by a shipment of molasses has been blamed for the death of three seafarers in the hold of the Vietnamese-flagged cargoship Thanh Cong in the port of Tan Cang last month.

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T E C H NOLO G Y

An Atlas Elektronik unmanned surface vessel was used to test the colreg algorithms

Autonomous ships can exceed colreg requirements, research project claims Multi-partner project develops algorithm-based software that could help prevent collisions xperts are claiming to have proved that autonomous ships can meet – or even exceed – current collision prevention regulations.

A £1.3m research project has developed an algorithm-based prototype software package which could be used on both manned and unmanned vessels to help avoid collisions.

The 28-month MAXCMAS (MAchine eXecutable Collision regulations for Marine Autonomous Systems) research project was undertaken with the aim of being able to show that autonomous ships will be able to comply with colregs.

Led by Rolls-Royce, the project also involved Lloyd’s Register, Warsash Maritime Academy (WMA), Queen’s University Belfast and Atlas Elektronik – and included tests on Warsash simulators and trials using an autonomous vessel in Weymouth Bay. Eshan Rajabally, from the Rolls-

E

Royce Future Technologies Group, Agency-accredited NAEST said: ‘Through MAXCMAS, we scenarios (navigation aids and have demonstrated autonomous equipment simulator training). collision avoidance that is The simulator scenarios indistinguishable from good included head-on, crossing and seafarer behaviour, and we’ve overtaking situations, some with confirmed this by having WMA simulated traffic and others with instructors assess MAXCMAS vessels ‘crewed’ by personnel in exactly as they would assess the adjacent bridges. The scenarios human.’ ranged from one-on-one to Ralph Dodds, innovation and multiple vessels, in both open and autonomous systems restricted waters, programme manager exhibiting both colregMore than with AEUK, added: ‘The compliant and nontrials showed that an compliant collision unmanned vessel is behaviour. encounters were capable of making a The scenarios simulated during collision avoidance were simulated the study judgement call even using two vessel when the give-way vessel extremes – a bulk carrier isn’t taking appropriate action. and a small ferry – and the What MAXCMAS does is make the experts concluded that Artificial collision avoidance regulations Intelligence-based systems are applicable to the unmanned ship.’ able to enact the rules to avoid Using WMA’s networked bridge collision effectively, even when simulators, the project simulated approaching manned vessels that more than 300 collision interpret the rules differently. encounters – including Researchers said the recreations of historical incidents robustness of the algorithms were and Maritime & Coastguard further demonstrated when sea

300

trials were carried out in April last year, using AEUK’s ARCIMS Unmanned Surface Vessel (USV) – an 11m craft that is typically used for mine counter-measures work.

These tests showed the system’s capabilities in a real environment under true platform motion, sensor performance and environmental conditions.

Rolls-Royce told the Telegraph that the project has produced prototype software which can perform regulation-compliant collision avoidance. The company says there is the potential to use this as ‘an advisory aid to today’s seafarers and for autonomous navigation of tomorrow’s unmanned vessels’.

Partner organisations participate actively in the UK’s marine autonomous systems regulatory working group and continental equivalents, RollsRoyce added. ‘These groups supported the call for the review and will pursue regulatory accommodation of unmanned vessels,’ it said.

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T E C H NOLO G Y

Seafarers need special training to deal with rising tide of data, insurers warn Concerns raised over crews’ ability to cope with impact of cutting-edge technology here is an increasingly pressing need for seafarers to get special training to be able to understand and handle the high volumes of data being produced onboard their ships, insurers have warned.

Presenting its latest hull casualty statistics, the International Union of Marine Insurance (IUMI) said it was concerned about the ‘ability of crews to manage cutting-edge technology and assimilate growing amounts of data’.

IUMI warned that there is some evidence that the frequency of collisions is increasing – possibly as a result of the introduction of modern technology.

‘It is important to stress that this upcoming problem is not limited to recommendations shipping, but interlinked to all for onboard IT and OT procedures businesses,’ IUMI secretary general are being planned Lars Lange told the Telegraph.

by IACS ‘Technology is becoming more complex by the day, systems are becoming more automated and crew members need to learn and understand how this technology works in order to work with it appropriately.

‘All the new technology and automated systems that are part of our industry need to be fully understood and will need to be operated by properly trained crew to reduce risk and ensure safety at sea,’ he added.

Mr Lange said insurers expect to see IUMI secretary general Lars Lange problems arising from automated and connected systems. ‘For example, main from unknown parties’ will help minimise engines can be monitored onboard and online risks. from the office. This needs to be properly and ‘Many of the problems that may arise from safely organised,’ he stressed. a cyber-attack on ship’s systems are easily Similarly, he said, there should be a smooth preventable, and this is where IUMI is information flow between ship owner, ship focusing its attentions,’ Mr Lange explained. and terminal in the use of technologically‘For example, for system updates such as advanced cargo-handling systems. updating ECDIS, there is a need to check – ‘Employees need to be trained and there must properly – before clicking “update”.’ be proper communication between all BIMCO and the Comité International Radioparties,’ he added.

Maritime (CIRM) have recently published an IUMI is particularly concerned about cyberindustry-wide standard for software attacks on ship systems, and it says that maintenance which crew members should training crew on ‘easily avoidable issues such follow, he added. as not opening emails or using USB sticks

T

12

Seafarers training at City of Glasgow College.

Will courses on operational technology data-handling and assimilation be on the curriculum soon?

Mr Lange said there is a need for regulatory change as well as the development of ‘best practice’ guidelines. He noted that the International Association of Classification Societies is developing 12 initial recommendations for IT and OT (Operational Technology) procedures onboard, which will require additional crew training.

‘More crew training will also be needed when cyber resilience becomes part of the onboard safety management system following the International Maritime Organisation maritime safety committee’s decision to include measures against cyber threats in 2021,’ he pointed out.

Mr Lange said IUMI also notes the need for onboard systems to be designed with safety in mind from the outset – ensuring that they are easy to handle, robust, and easy to update. ‘It is in IUMI’s and all stakeholders’ interests that this challenge is actively dealt with,’ he added. ‘We believe that it is not limited to just cutting-edge technology but applied to all systems – and it is vital that crew members are fully trained in these new systems.’

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HEALTH & SAFETY

WELL HANDLED? A new ICS survey shows that bridge teams are fairly happy with the standards of pilotage on their ships. But the body representing pilots worldwide is worried about continued pressures on services in many countries… hip masters and officers have given a vote of confidence in the standard of pilotage services in more than 470 ports in 123 different countries, a new report has revealed.

However, the survey has also identified some key concerns with pilotage safety – communication difficulties between pilots and bridge teams in particular – and it proposes the development of an internationally standardised approach to the master-pilot information exchange (MPX).

S

The International Chamber of Shipping research showed that 84% of masters and bridge teams were satisfied with the conduct of the pilots they encounter

The report has been produced by the International Chamber of Shipping (ICS) and is based on feedback from almost 900 shipmasters and officers, who were questioned about the quality of pilotage, towage and mooring services during port calls around the world.

The results – which have been presented to the International Maritime Organisation – showed that 84% of masters and bridge teams were satisfied with the conduct of the pilot, 82% satisfied with the conduct of the pilotage, 72% satisfied with the use of electronic

navigation aids, and 78% satisfied with towage and mooring services.

ICS senior marine adviser Matthew Williams said the survey had addressed questions about the rising costs of obligatory pilotage and electronic charts, and whether the need for one of them reduces the need for the other. It also sought to evaluate the extent to which established best practice is being followed. The ICS has set an objective that wherever there is liberalisation of pilotage services, the highest safety levels and professionalism should be maintained, aided by clearly-defined areas of responsibility.

Although the ICS described the results as largely positive, it did highlight a number of safetyrelated issues – pointing out that communication difficulties between pilots and bridge teams are 'a commonly reported concern worldwide’. The quality of English used by pilots was a general concern in a number of countries, it added.

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‘It is understandable that communications between the pilot, towage and mooring personnel are often conducted in a local language, the report adds. ‘However, this practice places a burden on the pilot (that may interfere with the pilot’s primary role) to translate orders and actions during towing and mooring.’

The survey found that while the MPX and associated checklists are being used effectively, the volume and form of information exchanged is inconsistent – varying from an entirely verbal exchange to a comprehensive briefing supported by checklists and passage plans.

The report points to the need for a globally standardised approach to MPX, emphasising the visual presentation of the pilot’s plan for the pilotage and discouraging reliance on a purely verbal exchange of information.

The ICS received 36 reports of incidents where pilots had failed to follow appropriate procedures or use appropriate personal protective equipment – particularly lifejackets – when embarking, and this was a problem noted in ports in 16 countries.

Some concerns were raised about last-minute requests to change pilot boarding arrangements, as well as the lack of suitable pilot vessels in some areas – with reports of tug rescue boats and small dinghies

24-25_pilot_SR checked.indd 25

IMPA strongly opposes the involvement of private interests in what it believes should be a public service being used. There were also concerns about the level of pilot familiarity with the latest propulsion technologies – particularly electronically-controlled engines – and that some pilots are not familiar with electronic charts and are unwilling to use ECDIS during pilotage.

The findings of the ICS research were welcomed by Nick Cutmore, secretary general of the International Maritime Pilots' Association (IMPA). ‘We note the report’s endorsement of the quality of pilotage services,’ he said.

However, he acknowledged: ‘It does highlight some areas which we are striving to address, such as the master-pilot exchange.’

The survey comes at a time when pressure to liberalise pilotage services around the world remains high. ‘It’s like a cancer – you kill it in one place, and it pops up somewhere else,’ Mr Cutmore said. ‘What gets lost in this are unified standards of training and certification, and in some cases, pilotage is being used

A pilot disembarks from a ship in the Malaysian port of Bintulu Image: Bintulu Port Holdings Berhad

to subsidise loss-making activities in some ports or to increase the bottom line in others.’

IMPA strongly opposes liberalisation and the involvement of private interests in what it believes should be a public service.

‘The involvement of liberalisation is such that costs go up and safety goes down,’ Mr Cutmore added. ‘That’s not opinion, it’s fact.’

Chris Adams, of Steamship Mutual, said the London-based P&I club is compiling a new, updated report on claims involving pilotage accidents from members. An earlier report documented an increase in claims and liability for members following accidents in which pilots were involved and where increased competition was a factor.

Countries where services have come under pressure include Argentina, Australia, and Denmark.

Danish pilotage costs have gone up some 50% since liberalisation, says IMPA. This began when the monopoly of the state-owned operation DanPilot was broken in 2006 and it was extended in 2014 to bring in competition for transit pilotage services. In Argentina – where liberalisation was introduced in 1997 – costs in Buenos Aires are around double the level in Uruguay, just 60km away on the other side of the Rio de la Plata.

Mr Cutmore says IMPA is disturbed by the ‘laissez-faire’ attitude of Australia towards pilotage in the Great Barrier Reef.

‘If it is as successful as it has been claimed, why has it not been adopted by constituent states in their ports?’ he asked.

However, IMPA has recently been pleased to hear that the Danish government has decided to cease competition in pilotage in 2020. ‘It’s very rare for a government to put its hands up and admit to making a mistake, but they realised that it was impacting on the viability of their ports and acting as a disincentive to trade,’ Mr Cutmore said. ‘The 50% increase in costs is their figure – not ours.’

17/04/2018 14:59

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ENVIRONMENT

Norwegian teams put oil spill containment booms in place following a ship grounding Picture: Reuters

BE PREPARED How many coastal states could cope with a major oil spill in their waters?

Leading salvage experts have highlighted concerns over declining skills and expertise in dealing with clean-up operations. ANDREW LININGTON reports… orty years after the massive Amoco Cadiz oil spill off the coast of France, salvage experts have raised worrying questions about the resources in place to deal with such an incident today.

The Liberian-flagged tanker ran aground off the coast of Brittany on 16 March 1978 following steering gear failure. The ship’s entire cargo of 223,000 tonnes of crude oil and 4,000 tonnes of bunker fuel was lost, polluting some 320km of the French coastline.

Speakers at this year’s International Salvage Union (ISU) members’ conference heard that there has been a dramatic reduction in such accidents since the 1970s, thanks to stricter regulations and improved operating standards.

Matthew Sommerville, chairman of the IMarEST marine pollution special interest group, told the meeting that the marked reduction in the rate of spills has resulted in a degraded depth of knowledge on how to handle them – with considerably fewer opportunities to refine clean-up skills and technology.

‘The responders today are also much more likely to be university graduates than mariners,’ he added, ‘and because

F

people don’t come from a seagoing background, they don’t always understand what is being done.’

Craig English, from Briggs Marine & Environmental Services, said there has been more than 60 years of marine pollution regulation – but the rules are often reactive, and it is now time to adopt some proactive regulation.

‘We have moved a long way from the first oil pollution convention in 1954, which was very narrow in scope,’ he explained. ‘The Torrey Canyon showed the need for it to be broadened, with the MARPOL protocol after the Amoco Cadiz and the OPA 90 regulations after the Exxon Valdez.’

Hydrocarbon demand will continue for at least another decade, Mr English added, and so the risk of spills will continue.

‘The statistics show that ships are much safer and oil spills are fewer,’ he pointed out. ‘However, this poses a problem with less experience in dealing with them.’

He said there is a strong case for responder immunity to stop cases in which incident responders have been arrested and fined.

‘It is wrong that people doing the right thing can be criminalised,’ he added. ‘It is challenging enough to work in this sector without

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ENVIRONMENT

the prospect of incarceration being dangled over them.’

As well as a decline in skills, Mr English said there is also a challenge to investment in clean-up resources, such as the response vessel that Briggs Marine used to operate in the North Sea during the 1980s. ‘The equipment is getting older and the investment is getting lower, as it is not much of a business model now,’ he added.

He warned that the growth in Arctic shipping services is stoking the need for new rules. Response plans need to be drafted for dealing with spills in ice – which is very different from working in water.

Last year actually saw a significant increase in the number of incidents in which ISU members provided services to vessels. The organisation’s annual pollution prevention survey showed that there were 252 services to vessels, compared with 213 in 2016.

The report also shows that during 2017, ISU members – which include most of the major salvage firms – dealt with casualties involving some 3.4m tonnes of pollutants, up from 2.6m tonnes in the previous year.

The 2017 data also showed a significant increase in the number of containers involved in salvage cases – rising from 21,244TEU in 2016 to 45,655TEU last year. The ISU said this reflects the increasing size of vessels, and noted how even a small increase in the number of boxship salvage cases can add significantly to the TEU total.

Bunker fuel, at 135,995 tonnes, showed a significant increase on 2016’s figure of 89,492 tonnes.

The ISU said its members were involved in 25 wreck removal jobs last year, 49 Lloyd's Open Form contracts and 42 standard towage contracts, along with 78 incidents handled on a day rate basis.

Incident numbers may have fallen, but it only takes one to cause an environmental disaster

Pictured above is the winning entry in the International Salvage Union’s photographic competition – showing an ultra-large containership aground in the Scheldt river in August last year. The 150,853gt vessel was refloated by ISU member Multraship Towage & Salvage, which submitted the image.

‘After saving life, protection of the marine environment is the priority in all salvage operations,’ said ISU president Charo Coll.

‘The results of this survey demonstrate clearly how our members’ services have helped to protect the marine environment from potential damage.

‘The ISU does not suggest that all of these potential pollutants were at imminent risk of going into the sea,’ she added. ‘Some cases will have been benign, but others will have carried a real environmental threat.

‘It only takes one major incident to cause an environmental disaster, so it is worth considering what might have occurred in some of these cases if there had not been a professional salvor available and willing to intervene,’ she continued. ‘Our members have undoubtedly helped to prevent the environmental and financial consequences of a significant pollution event.”

The ISU said that between 1994 and the end of 2017, its members provided services to casualty vessels carrying 28.2m tonnes of potential pollutants – an average of more than 1m tonnes a year.

PROFESSIONAL PRAISE FOR RESPECTED SOSREP The International Salvage Union has awarded honorary life membership to Hugh Shaw, the former Secretary of State’s Representative for Marine Salvage and Intervention (SOSREP) in the UK. Mr Shaw – who began his career with Mobil Shipping Company in 1974 – spent more than 30 years working for the UK Coastguard. In his role as SOSREP, between 2008 and 2017, he was involved in a wide range of incidents including the grounding of the oil rig Transocean Winner, the grounding of the car carrier Hoegh Osaka and the containership MSC Napoli.

Presenting the award, ISU president Charo Coll

said Mr Shaw had been an international champion on issues such as the importance of places of refuge for stricken ships. ‘Hugh has been a great supporter of the worldwide salvage industry and a friend of ISU for many years,’ she added. ‘His record as UK SOSREP – carefully and wisely managing hundreds of incidents – speaks for itself. His work has been recognised by the Queen with the award of the OBE. The fact that the general public do not know Mr Shaw shows how effective he has been: one mis-managed case and he would be very well known for the wrong reasons.’

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TECHNOLOGY

A new study shows more seafarers are getting connected at sea – and that onboard internet access is an increasingly important issue when choosing who to work for.

STEVEN KENNEDY reports on the research… ack in 2016, the United Nations resolved that access to the internet is to be considered a basic human right.

No right-minded person would question that principle on land; yet for many of those at sea, connectivity remains something of an alien concept.

It’s a position Nautilus remains extremely keen to address. The Union launched its own Crew Communications strategic campaign after running a survey on the issue in 2016 which found that despite 88% of members

B

saying they worked onboard ships with internet access, only 57% could use it for personal emails and only 34% could use social media.

‘We ultimately want to see “at home” levels of connectivity for our members and seafarers everywhere,’ says the Union’s head of strategy Debbie Cavaldoro. ‘That means free wi-fi onboard ships and in ports. With good policies covering usage and cyber security training, there is no reason why seafarers shouldn’t be able to use the internet off-duty in the same way as those in shore-based occupations.’

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Happily, in the two years since the Nautilus report was published, we have been starting to see indications that things are getting better – as demonstrated in the new Futurenautics Crew Connectivity 2018 Survey Report, which concludes that more seafarers than ever before have access to connectivity and communications.

Having surveyed almost 6,000 serving seafarers, Futurenautics chief executive Roger Adamson presented the results of the research last month to an invited audience at London's Shard building.

In 2012, when Futurenautics started looking at these issues, the overwhelming interest was in communications in the context of crew welfare, he noted. ‘But since then – as the digital revolution has gathered pace and the industry has acknowledged the pivotal enabling role connectivity plays in every aspect of their operations – the question-set has expanded.’

With this in mind, the latest Futurenautics research looked at areas ranging from cyber security and training to which aspects of technology are opportunities and which are threats.

Futurenautics estimates the combined value of the shore-based and sea-based crew communications market at more than US$2.4bn per annum. At the head of the list for expenditure on communications at sea is the passenger sector, with a market value of US$337m – ahead of tankers (US$282m), general cargo (US$234m) and bulk carriers (US$221m).

On top of these staggering figures is a key headline: Futurenautics points out that the number of seafarers who can now use the internet at sea (to some extent) has increased by over half a million since its last survey, and those who can access it for free have increased by over 200,000.

With plans underway to introduce even more new technology onboard, seafarers were quizzed on whether they viewed these technological improvements as a threat to their jobs over the next five years, or as an opportunity. Perhaps somewhat

Seafarers of all ranks, roles and nationalities increasingly expect to be able to use the internet recreationally onboard ship

'With good policies covering usage

and cyber-security training, seafarers should be able to use the internet off-duty as they would ashore'

surprisingly, most claimed they see new technology as an opportunity. Some 68% said they saw positives in the move to automation, whilst big data and analytics (69%) and predictive maintenance (73%) also gained positive feedback.

The biggest threats were seen as the use of unmanned ships (48%), robotics (38%) and artificial intelligence (38%). Additionally, more than half of all seafarers had seen at least one element of their role automated in the last two years – although 98% said this had had a positive impact on their work.

Futurenautics stated that seafarers, in general, thought these technologies presented far more opportunities than threats to their roles in future. However, the survey didn’t ask why they felt this was the case.

The cost of staying connected also reared its head. Feedback suggested that as much as a quarter of a seafarer’s monthly salary could be spent on keeping connected with friends and family whilst at sea.

The study showed seafarers worldwide spending, on average, between US$89.46 (seafarers from Europe, the Middle East and Africa) and US$132.13 (south central Asia) on communication whilst at sea.

When this is compared to basic monthly wage for an AB (US$614) as stipulated by the International Labour Organisation, it means that south central Asian seafarers earning the average could be spending around 22% of their salary on staying connected. This figure then rises to around 37% when including time spent ashore or in coastal waters.

Another measure of seafarer income is the minimum wage set by the International Transport Workers’ Federation (ITF). ‘I think the ITF minimum wage for an able-bodied seafarer is around US$600 to $700 a month,’ said Mr Adamson. ‘This means that this [the expenditure of seafarers on connectivity] is around 10% to 14%, or even more, of their disposable income a month.

‘I don’t know how that compares to people ashore,’ he continued. ‘People ashore pay for their phone and use of the internet, but I’d guess that wasn’t in the region of US$180.’

In fact, the report highlighted that there had been a decrease in the levels of free internet access provided to seafarers, from 49% in 2015 – when the last Futurenautics survey took place – to 45% now.

The report notes that the difficulty of obtaining a global roaming SIM card, a cheap satellite phone and free in-port wi-fi ‘remains a source of frustration for seafarers’.

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TECHNOLOGY

75% of seafarers reported having some form of internet access whilst at sea

61

%

92%

of seafarers said they had access to crew communications services ‘most of the time’ or ‘always’ – an increase of 3%

of those who said access to crew communications would affect their choice of employer said it had a strong or very strong influence — a rise of 14%

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53% of seafarers believed that crew communications have led to a decline in social interaction onboard

% of seafarers ‘never’ get access to crew communications

47

%

of seafarers said that they had sailed on a vessel that had been the target of a cyber-attack

21%

is the proportion of seafarers quoting cost as the factor that most limits their use of crew communications (a drop since previous surveys)

33

%

of seafarers said the company they last worked for had a policy of regularly changing passwords onboard

And interestingly, when the researchers explored the relative importance of crew connectivity using a seafarer version of Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs, it didn’t rank that highly.

‘We were told that first and foremost, seafarers want to be paid on time,’ Mr Adamson said. ‘They want employment benefits like healthcare and family services, then they want training and high quality food and only then, once they’ve got those, comes access to the internet.’

Yet when asked if connectivity influenced which company a seafarer would choose to work for, 75% stated that it did have an influence.

‘This figure is slightly higher than in previous surveys, and 92% of those who responded that connectivity had an influence said that it had a very strong or strong impact on where they would choose to work,’ Mr Adamson said.

A panel of five industry experts – some with backgrounds in commercial telecommunications – gave their views on the state of connectivity at sea, which varied quite considerably.

‘Seafarers are just normal human beings,’ said Phil Parry, chairman of the recruitment and HR firm Spinnaker Global. ‘They need access to this technology to make their lives better. We often talk about seafarers being on the receiving end of our charity. Yet they are a professional, well-trained bunch, running multimillion-dollar bits of kit.’

The panel also considered whether increased technology onboard is adding to social isolation – and whether seafarers retreating to their cabins to speak to loved ones are missing out on team bonding with workmates.

‘The counter-argument to that is that we have to treat seafarers as adults,’ said Roger Harris, executive director of the International Seafarers' Welfare and Assistance Network. ‘What about privacy? What about it being their own time?’

‘I think it’s about accepting what we have,’ continued Mr Parry. ‘First of all, we are frightened by new technology, then we complain about it, then we accept it. It would be very easy to use the analogy of alcohol and say that you wouldn’t want people drinking in their cabins on their own, therefore we’re doing the same with internet connectivity, but it’s not as simple as that.’

‘This latest crew connectivity survey echoes many of the findings of the Nautilus crew communications research,‘ concluded Ms Cavaldoro. ‘More seafarers are now able to get online, but there are still large gaps in provision and too many seafarers are paying too much to keep in contact with their families.’

To read the full report, visit www.futurenautics.com. To hear more about what Nautilus International is doing to address the issue, visit www.nautilusint.org and search for campaigns.

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WELFARE

New research shows worrying levels of psychiatric problems amongst seafarers. To find out what's behind this, ANDREW LININGTON heard from a conference aimed at helping the industry identify and tackle the issues…

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WELFARE

hipping companies can’t afford to continue neglecting the wellbeing of their crews – with high rates of depression and suicide showing the need for the industry to take better care of seafarers.

That was the message from speaker after speaker at the March 2018 Wellness at Sea conference, staged by the Sailors’ Society in London as part of the charity’s programme to improve maritime mental health care.

Opening the event, Sailors’ Society CEO Stuart Rivers said operators must do more for their seafarers. ‘The result of not looking after crew is costly and will hit your bottom line at some point,’ he pointed out. ‘You have a duty of care to the seafarers you employ. There is a need to spread this message far and wide to equip seafarers for the challenges they might face at sea.’

The conference was presented with the results of research, supported by Nautilus, which showed the scale of the problems encountered by seafarers. Professor Rafael Lefkowitz, from Yale University’s occupational medicine programme, said a survey of more than 1,000 seafarers – 17% of whom were UK nationals – revealed that more than one-quarter had screened positive for signs of depression, and Sailors’ Society deputy CEO Sandra Welch said the figures were ‘a wake-up call to the industry’.

Some 26% of seafarers said they had felt ‘down, depressed or hopeless’ on several days over the previous two weeks, and more than 20% said they had such feelings every day. Nearly half of the seafarers who reported symptoms of depression said they had not asked anybody for help. Around one-third said they had turned to family and/or friends – but only 21% said they had spoken to a colleague, despite spending months on a ship with them.

Prof Lefkowitz said key factors underlying these statistics included the quality and amount of food, isolation from friends and families, contract lengths, long hours and problems with sleeping. Noise and vibration are both commonly identified as major issues, he added.

Neil Ellis, from the Seafarers International Research Centre at Cardiff University, said there is lot of evidence to show that seafarers suffer from higher than average rates of mental illness, including anxiety and depression, schizophrenia and psychosis, bipolar disorder, deliberate self-harm and suicide.

The UK P&I Club produced figures last year suggesting that 15% of seafarer deaths were most likely the result of suicide, but Mr Ellis said the true figure could be even

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Speakers at the March 2018 Wellness at Sea conference, L-R: Johan Smith, from the Sailors' Society; Neil Ellis, from the Seafarers International Research Centre; Sandra Welch, deputy CEO of the Sailors' Society; Euronav CEO Paddy Rogers; Professor Rafael Lefkowitz, from Yale University Pictures: Vicky Macleod

higher, as many of the crew members who went missing at sea may have decided to take their own lives.

SIRC studies had shown that the proportion of seafarers showing signs of psychiatric disorder had risen from 28% in 2011 to 37% in 2016, compared with 12% of the general population, he added.

Lying behind such statistics are long hours and lack of shore leave, stress, bullying, concerns over criminalisation and worries about not getting contracts renewed. Lack of good wi-fi at sea, together with cultural differences among multinational crews, can increase the sense of social isolation, Mr Ellis noted, while long tours of duty and fatigue problems can hinder the ability to get proper rest and recovery.

However, Mr Ellis argued, it is relatively easy and cheap for owners to address some of the factors behind such problems, by putting in place decent connectivity, tackling bullying and harassment, improving accommodation and reducing stress with stable longterm contracts. ‘Investment in mental health makes good business sense, with better work performance, increased safety, improved crew retention, less repatriation and less unhealthy seafarer behaviour,’ he pointed out.

Paddy Rogers, CEO of the Belgium-based tanker company Euronav, supported this argument. He said the accident rate in the Euronav fleet had worsened significantly during the downturn, with the impact of poor freight rates affecting seafarers. ‘Why?’ he asked.

‘Our budgets didn’t come down and we didn’t spend less money, but I think the hearts and minds of everyone

Wellness at sea is not something that is a bolt-on, another thing to annoy the captain with, it is absolutely central to running a good business

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%

of seafarers said they had felt ‘down, depressed or hopeless’ on several days over the previous two weeks, and more than 20% said they had such feelings every day

ashore were on the market, and that could be felt at sea.’

Following a high number of minor incidents and a couple of near-misses in 2013, Euronav decided to change course, with management visiting vessels more often and seeking to take heed of the concerns raised by crew. The company has since almost halved the average number of observations per vessel vetting.

‘Ships became more efficient and the company does better,’ Mr Rogers said. ‘Business has to understand that their interests are directly aligned to the seafarers.

Wellness at sea is not something that is a bolt-on, another thing to annoy the captain with, it is absolutely central to running a good business in a quality environment.’

Sailors’ Society project manager Johan Smith said the charity’s Wellness at Sea programme has been developed to address these problems and to empower seafarers with the skills and knowledge to handle some of the inherent difficulties of life at sea. Several thousand seafarers have been trained through the Wellness at Sea programme, and the Society also offers an app to give crews practical support with physical and mental fitness.

One study showed that almost 10% of crew changes are related to conflict onboard, he pointed out, and it was evident from incident reports that seafarers need to be helped to deal with cultural and inter-personal issues.

Communication skills are all the more important when separation from friends and family has been identified as the biggest stress factor for seafarers, he added, and two-thirds say that they have worked with someone struggling with depression.

‘We are at a junction, and it is in our hands to make a change in the industry that is lasting and will have a profound impact on the lives of seafarers,’ Mr Smith told the meeting.

Sophia Bullard, from the UK P&I Club, suggested that technology could be used to monitor and analyse the wellbeing of crew in the same way that it is used to check the condition of equipment onboard. She said it would be hard to screen seafarers for mental health problems before they go to sea, but companies should have policies in place to highlight the dangers and recognise the symptoms at an early stage.

Christina DeSimone, from Future Care, also highlighted the financial case for action – pointing out that the costs of diverting ships or evacuating crew with medical conditions can range between US$35,000 to $250,000. Around 10% of medical incidents are related to mental health, she added, and there could be a case for giving seafarers access to confidential video conference calls with experts ashore.

‘The macho culture needs to give way to the fact that life onboard can be improved dramatically,’ she argued.

Drew Brandy, from Inmarsat, said the shipping industry has to come into the 21st century and change its mindset on the provision of internet at sea. ‘Connectivity is not a luxury item onboard,’ he pointed out. ‘It is time to stop talking about crew welfare. That implies providing a basic level of subsistence – this is about enabling your crew to do their job properly. Empowering, enabling and engaging enables crew to be more effective in their jobs.’

Dr Rikke Jensen, from the University of London, reinforced this point with the results of a pilot study looking at the way in which connectivity affects the wellbeing, security and cohesion of crews. ‘Connectivity has not damaged social cohesion – small crews, ship architecture and less time in ports have done that,’ she noted.

The ability to contact home is seen as the most important aspect of crew welfare, she said, but the project identified problems such as uneven and unreliable connectivity, limited data allowances and access restrictions. Researchers also found that fragmented connectivity is causing pressure and stress, and that some seafarers are disrupting their sleep patterns by staying awake or setting the alarm for times when they can get a mobile signal.

But Captain Kuba Szymanski – from the international ship managers’ association, InterManager – said the industry also needs to remember the positive aspects of the maritime profession. He pointed to research showing that increasing numbers of seafarers are happy with their work, believe they are well paid, and have no plans to move ashore any time soon. Don’t forget the good things, he stressed.

To find out more, visit www.sailors-society.org/wellness

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WELFARE

FIRST-HAND EXPERIENCE A seafarer who has suffered from depression spoke to the Wellness at Sea conference about the taboos surrounding mental illness in our industry... autilus member Dan Thompson delivered a passionate call for the shipping industry to combat the causes of stress and depression among seafarers. Mr Thompson, who now serves with the Port of London Authority, told the Wellness at Sea conference that he had experienced problems to ‘quite an extreme extent’ and had to take six months off work to recover after he became depressed.

‘The reason I became ill was primarily my job – the workload, the sleep deprivation and the pressures of the job,’ he added. ‘Having lived at sea, I would anticipate the numbers of people suffering from depression to be even higher than those who admitted it in the survey.’

Mr Thompson said mental health problems are still something of a taboo subject in society – and even more so within the macho culture of the shipping industry.

‘Many people don’t understand what it is or how common it is, and a lot of seafarers fear that it will have implications for their jobs if they talk about it.’

Mr Thompson said his problems began when he took up a new post as senior navigator on a cruiseship and faced ‘instant pressure’ in the role. ‘It started to take a toll on me and got progressively worse. The signs of depression were there – isolation, loneliness, being tired.

I didn’t want to talk to anyone and felt very lonely, even though I was on a ship with more than 5,000 people onboard.’

He said his problems were posing a threat not just to him but to the safety of the vessel. ‘I became less interested in my work and my standards dropped. It got to the point where I didn’t care what happened, which has massive safety implications.’

Mr Thompson said his condition had controlled his life for almost 18 months, and he had been in a state of denial about his problems for several months until his family intervened. ‘Sadly, many people don’t get to that position,’ he added. ‘A colleague took his own life because of depression on a ship, and it took me six months to recover from my own illness with medication, therapy and counselling.’

He said excessive working hours had a lot to do with

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Many seafarers fear that their jobs will be in jeopardy if they talk about their mental health, said Nautilus member Dan Thompson

his problems. ‘What is so important for us to recognise on a personal level is that seafarers are human beings, not robots who can operate 24/7 for long periods.’

Bullying and harassment is also a big factor in causing seafarers to become anxious or depressed, Mr Thompson said. ‘If you are getting bullied or harassed by senior ranks, it is slowly chipping away at your sanity.’

While the typical attitude seems to be to just toughen up and get on with it, Mr Thompson said he hoped the shipping industry would put a system into place to enable seafarers to evaluate their lives and secure the appropriate help and support without worrying about the loss of their job.

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WELFARE

CHINA CONNECTIONS The world’s most populous country has become a significant maritime nation, with thousands of ships now trading to its ports each year. But its welfare services for visiting seafarers have failed to match this growth.

Nautilus International is backing a new project which seeks to put this right… hina has chalked up spectacular growth in seaborne trade over the past couple of decades – and its ports are now visited by around half a million ships and as many as 10m seafarers a year.

But port-based welfare facilities for visiting crews have struggled to keep pace with this remarkable expansion. Indeed, a new report reveals, there has been a notable reduction in seafarer centres in China over this period.

The report summarises the preliminary results of research carried out by Southampton Solent University’s China Centre (Maritime), funded by the ITF Seafarers’ Trust and supported

by Nautilus and the International Seafarers' Welfare Assistance Network.

Last month Nautilus general secretary Mark Dickinson joined other union officials, academics, welfare organisations and Chinese government officials at a conference to discuss the findings and consider ways of improving welfare support for the growing number of seafarers on ships visiting Chinese ports.

Project leader Professor Minghua Zhao said China’s traditional international seafarers’ clubs

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have almost ceased to exist as a consequence of economic reforms and the withdrawal of state support, together with the sweeping changes that have affected shipping operations. ‘Where can seafarers turn for help when they visit Chinese ports?’ she asked. ‘New facilities are urgently needed in the new, large mega-ports which are located far from city centres.’

The report points out that portbased welfare services are vital for seafarers’ health and wellbeing.

However, it notes, in China – as in many other parts of the world – the expansion of existing ports and the development of new and larger ports, far from city centres, has had ‘a profound effect’ on seafarers. In the new ‘vast and remote’ ports, there are few or no facilities for visiting crew, and the remaining older seafarer centres are now many miles away.

Faith and volunteer groups may be the way to fill the port welfare gap left by the withdrawal of state support

Researchers questioned 300 seafarers on their expectations and experiences when visiting Chinese ports. They found that crew members placed particular importance on the ability to get access to communications, transport to shops and seafarer centres, and leisure, health and social services.

However, the report says seafarers had very mixed experiences – some telling of good shopping, transport, leisure and social services, but others complaining of a lack of services, no information about services, and being over-charged for services.

‘This gap between what seafarers need and what they have really received deserves serious attention and action needs to be taken in order to better meet seafarers’ needs for welfare provisions,’ it adds.

More than 26% of the seafarers reported feeling lonely all of the time or quite often, and the report points to the vital role played by seafarer centres in helping to counter such problems. Dr Gaochao He, one of the researchers, said they had found ‘a strong indication that most seafarers want a place specifically dedicated for their needs’ – and many crews had cited the positive experiences of the support and services provided in

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Nautilus general secretary Mark Dickinson joins his predecessor, Brian Orrell, and Chinese port welfare research project leader Professor Minghua Zhao

Chinese port welfare researchers visit a ship as part of their project

ports such as Hamburg, Felixstowe and Immingham.

The report says that, despite the structural difficulties, ‘some remarkable people have tried hard in innovative ways to provide portbased welfare services to seafarers in Chinese ports’. It also points out that initiatives such as China’s new Silk Road at Sea programme and the country’s ratification of the Maritime Labour Convention have opened up new opportunities for developing facilities for visiting crews.

Researchers said there is strong support from Chinese unions and shipowners for action to improve seafarer welfare services, but new and ‘smart’ ways of securing funding need to be found to fill the gap left by the withdrawal of state support. Traditionally, the report points out, Chinese seafarer centres have not been run by religious groups or other non-governmental organisations, and it suggests that faith and volunteer groups could be encouraged to find ways of delivering such services.

The report recommends that port-based welfare services in China should be ‘revitalised’ with more support from the government.

China ratified the MLC in November 2015, but Dr Pengfei Zhang, from Soiuthampton Solent University’s China Centre, said there were different opinions on how much the country has done to effectively implement it. Dr Lijun Tang, from Plymouth University, said a lot of work needs to be done to convince

China that it should be providing port-based welfare services, and there should be some concerted political engagement on the issues.

Mr Dickinson told the meeting the research had shown the importance of collaboration in identifying needs and providing good services and support for seafarers. The concept of reciprocal support is important, he pointed out, and as China has ratified the Maritime Labour Convention it has legal obligations towards the care and protection of

The mobile seafarers’ centre in the port of Qingdao has been created with disused containers refurbished into a bar, computer room, reading room, and shops

visiting crew members.

Peter Tomlin, chief executive of the UK Merchant Navy Welfare Board, said he had recently visited Shanghai as part of the International Port Welfare Partnership Programme, which is aiming to help establish at least 30 new seafarer welfare boards around the world.

There is an immense amount of interest in the initiative, he added, and there are hopes that it can take off in China.

Xiaodong Zhang, from the maritime section of the Chinese embassy in the UK, acknowledged that there has been a ‘dramatic decline’ in seafarer centres in Chinese ports, with faster vessel turn-rounds reducing the time available for crews to get ashore.

He suggested mobile centres may offer an answer – and the report highlights the ‘best practice’ example of the ‘semi-mobile’ seafarers’ club in the port of Qingdao. This uses 10 containers that house a wide range of facilities, including free wi-fi services,

computer rooms, a reading room, a gym, a bar and shops.

The report concludes with a series of recommendations to ‘revitalise’ China’s port welfare services with more support from the government, industry, trade unions and other sources. The study stresses the need for innovative approaches to funding and services – and it suggests that China should consider introducing a levy for visiting ships, which has been used successfully in some other countries.

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HEALTH & SAFETY

BRINY BLACKOUT The Marine Accident Investigation Branch is adding to pressure for new rules to tackle the problems posed by ships’ anchors severing vital cables providing countries with power and communications… n incident in which vessel anchors severed two 2,000MW high voltage electrical cables carrying power between France and Britain has added to mounting pressure for tough new controls to protect strategic subsea connections.

The dragging anchors cut half the power capacity of the IFA 1 system – which is Britain’s only electricity link with France, and which supplies around 5% of the nation’s electricity – raising fears of blackouts, and causing damage which took four months to repair at a cost of as much as £40m.

The accident occurred in November 2016, when the Hong Kong-flagged general cargoship Saga Sky and the unmanned barge Stema Barge II began drifting in severe gale force winds in the Channel. Their dragging anchors severed two of the four interconnector cables – which are buried at a depth of 1.5m below the seabed – and damaged another one.

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The general cargoship Saga Sky was blamed for damage to power cables between Britain and France as it tried to anchor during a storm Picture: RNLI

The UK Marine Accident Investigation Branch (MAIB) report on the incident notes that ‘the importance of subsea power cables has increased with the development of offshore renewable energy and the need to bring energy ashore’ and points out that the ‘significant hazard’ posed by ships’ anchors is widely recognised.

The report quotes an International Hydrographic Organisation (IHO) warning, issued last year, that all power cables and most telecommunications cables carry dangerous high voltages. Many cables are also considered to be critical infrastructure, and damaging them may result in very severe criminal penalties, it points out.

To minimise the risk of cable damage, the IHO recommends that vessels should avoid anchoring, fishing, mining, dredging or carrying out underwater operations when less than 0.25nm away from the power line.

The MAIB found that the French authorities had put in place a restricted zone banning ships from anchoring in the vicinity of the IFA 1 cables, but there was no equivalent measure on the UK side of the English Channel. The Maritime & Coastguard Agency also has no legislative powers to protect subsea cables and pipelines, the report adds.

The MAIB noted an incident in June 2007 when

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a tanker dragged its anchor in Tees Bay, damaging the CATS 7 gas pipeline from the North Sea. That investigation warned that a number of strategic oil and gas pipelines run close to large vessel anchorages.

While a breach of those pipelines could have significant implications for UK energy supplies, the risks posed by vessels anchoring or dragging over pipelines have not been fully assessed.

‘Currently, there are no prescribed minimum distances from submarine cables that ships in UK waters should apply when anchoring or conducting other underwater activities,’ the Saga Sky report points out. ‘Prescribing minimum distances from submarine cables within which ships should avoid anchoring would heighten the attention given by mariners to avoiding the risk of fouling submarine cables, and such distances could be taken into consideration during the assessments of marine licence applications.’

The MAIB recommends that the UK adopt the IHO’s 0.25nm restriction, and calls for the MCA and the UK Hydrographic Office to be given regulatory powers to ensure that ships comply with this.

The MAIB recommendations echo a recent report published by the Policy Exchange think-tank. Written

by Conservative MP Rishi Sunak, the study – Undersea Cables: Indispensable, Insecure – warns that while

A cable-laying ship is pictured completing work last year on the 4,000-mile Marea cable, running between the US east coast and Spain. The subsea cable was commissioned

by Facebook and Microsoft, together with the telecoms infrastructure company Telxius, and is capable of transmitting 160 terabits of data per second, the equivalent of streaming 71m HD videos at the same time, and 16m times faster than an average home internet connection Picture: Reuters

undersea cables are essential to modern life, they are inadequately protected and highly vulnerable to accidental or deliberate damage.

The study stresses that 97% of global communications and $10tn in daily financial transactions are transmitted by subsea cables, and urgent action is required to safeguard their security. It points out that anchors were responsible for almost 15% of cable faults between 1959 and 2006 and warns that the resulting outages can cause immense economic and strategic damage.

In 2017, a ship’s anchor was blamed for severing a telecommunications cable to Somalia, causing neartotal internet outage for three weeks and costing the country’s economy around US$10m a day (about half its daily national output).

In 2008, two ships that dragged their anchors off the coast of Egypt severed five cable systems connecting Europe, North Africa and the Middle East – disrupting internet connectivity for more than 80m people and causing economic damage estimated at $100m. In a similar incident in 2007, a ship’s anchor was blamed for severing the sole telecoms cable linking Bangladesh with the outside world – leading to a 15-hour period in which all the country’s international communications were disrupted.

The Policy Exchange report argues that subsea cables have inadequate protection in international law, with the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea failing to give states adequate jurisdiction against offenders or permission to board suspect vessels.

The report calls for the UK to lead efforts to develop a new international treaty to protect undersea cables and recommends that Cable Protection Zones be established around the highest value communications corridors.

‘As we debate our future defence priorities, protecting the freedom of the seas and all the lanes of communication on and under them is paramount,’ says Mr Sunak. ‘Britain and our NATO allies must ensure that our maritime capabilities get the investment they need.’

Nautilus professional and technical officer David Appleton comments: ‘The Saga Sky case has highlighted a number of pertinent issues that need addressing. On the subject of protection of subsea cables, Nautilus fully agrees with the recommendation to adopt the IHO’s minimum recommended distance of 0.25nm in which ships should avoid anchoring and carrying out subsea operations.

'However, we do not believe it should be necessary for the MCA to obtain regulatory powers in order to improve the situation. Given proper advice and guidance, the vast majority of seafarers will behave responsibly and avoid these areas.’

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CAREERS

DARE TO DREAM WITH A SLATER SCHOLARSHIP The Nautilus Slater Fund's professional development scholarships continue to change lives for the better.

Andrew Linington heard from one seafarer who has made a massive step forward in his career thanks to the scheme… ames Box says he is now fulfilling a personal dream after gaining his professional qualifications earlier this year on the completion of studies supported by a Nautilus JW Slater Fund scholarship.

Following a programme of training at Warsash Maritime Academy, James was awarded his Master (Yachts) <3,000gt certificate in January and has since started a new job running a 42m sailing yacht being built in his home town of Falmouth, with plans to undertake a world cruise with the owners.

‘I can’t express my thanks for the scholarship enough,’ he says.

‘Without this support it would have taken a longer time to complete and made my chances of passing first time virtually impossible.’

James grew up in Southend-onSea and was on the water sailing from the age of six. He admits to not being very successful at school and he left home at the age of 16 to take an HND in yacht design and boatbuilding. After leaving college, he worked in a chandlery and then a yacht broking firm, while also serving as a crew member on the Falmouth lifeboat.

‘I actually applied to get into the Royal Navy as I was keen on submarines and diving, but

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unfortunately my maths wasn’t up to it and I failed the officers’ entrance exam,’ he recalls. ‘I first though about joining the superyacht industry in 2008, when a friend of mine worked on an old schooner and sailed between the Med and Caribbean taking part in the classic regattas. He loved it and suggested I gave it a go.

‘I managed to get a skipper’s job on a 72ft classic motor boat as I had my Yachtmaster, based in Antibes, South of France, and spent three years running along the French coast and to Palma. It got me interested in pursuing a career at sea in this industry.’

James managed to fund courses to secure his Master 200gt and OOW 3,000gt certificates, and went on to spend five years running a 38m schooner between the Mediterranean and Caribbean.

'The funding helped a

long way to allowing me to complete the training and support myself while I was out of work. Without that, I wouldn’t be in the position I am in now.'

While studying for his chief mate’s ticket, James was told about the Slater Fund – a scheme set up by the Union in memory of former general secretary John Slater. The fund provides up to £20,000 support to help ratings, yacht crew and electro-technical officers to gain OOW certification.

‘I was currently unemployed as the vessel I was working on was being put up for sale and the crew got made redundant. So, I thought I would enquire to see if I could get help towards my Master’s modules,’ he explains.

He took a year out to study, supported by the Slater Fund. ‘It was tough going back to study,’ he admits. ‘I’m not one for sitting in a classroom studying business and law, as I find I learn practically, but I managed to pass each module first time, thankfully. The lecturers at Warsash were very thorough and made the learning easier.

‘The funding helped a long way to allowing me to complete the training and support myself while I was out of work,’ he adds. ‘Without that, this wouldn't have possible and I wouldn’t be in the position I am in now.

‘I found the whole process from start to finish quite stressful and something I never want to repeat,’ James adds. ‘As I have got older I find it more and more difficult to retain the important information if not used on a regular basis. I required about three months study time to get myself ready for the oral examination, which involved at least eight to 10 hours a day.’

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new scholarships were awarded during 2017 (with 105 in 2016, 70 in 2015, 56 in 2014, 47 in 2013, and 32 in 2012)

104

is also the number of Slater Fund scholars in the programme at the end of 2017 (95 in 2016, 35 in 2015, 25 in 2014, 11 in 2013 and 10 in 2012).

Slater Fund students completed their studies in 2017 (28 in 2016, 30 in 2015, 33 in 2014, 15 in 2013, and 21 in 2012) However, he says he wants to develop his career in the superyacht industry, moving up in size of vessel and possibly moving onto explorer yachts, and he strongly recommends others to follow in his footsteps.

‘This is a fantastic opportunity for students to complete their training and go on to work in an industry they love,’ he adds. ‘Do it! Study hard, work hard and play hard. It’s a great industry, you meet a lot of other like-minded people and get to travel.’

The Slater Fund supports people who have already been working at sea, like James Box, to rise through the ranks by studying for officer certification

The Slater Fund trustees awarded 104 scholarships last year: 40 to yacht crew, 12 to ETOs, 37 to deck ratings, three to engineer ratings, five to fishing vessel crew, and seven to workboat crew.

32 Slater Fund scholars successfully completed their studies during 2017.

To find out more, visit the website of the Marine Society, which administers the scheme for Nautilus: www.marine-society.org

Where the scholars came from Year

2017

2016

2015

Deck

37

23

32

Eng

3

7

3

Fishing

5

10

8

ETO

12

16

5

Yachts

40

38

18

7

11

4

104

105

70

Workboats Total

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EQUALITY

EXAM FAIL Is the UK Maritime & Coastguard Agency practising a sexist policy for female oral exam candidates? Steven Kennedy spoke to a Nautilus member about the ‘insulting’ imposition of chaperones for women – but not for men – by at least one MCA examination centre…

his year marks the centenary of the UK’s Representation of the People Act, giving some British women the right to vote for the first time. Since then, great strides towards equality have been achieved. Yet there are still challenges to be faced.

Take, for instance, something as seemingly straightforward as the prospect of taking the Maritime & Coastguard Agency (MCA) oral exams for ships’ officers. The exams last an average of one hour and are based around the syllabus in the MCA's guidance note MGN 69.

Candidates are invited into the exam room by the examiner, they sit down and answer questions, and then they leave with either a pass or fail on their paperwork.

Yet according to one female

T

Nautilus member who undertook her oral exams at the MCA’s Southampton office, when she entered and left the exam room, she wasn’t alone like her male counterparts. She had a chaperone imposed on her.

‘I hold my master mariner certificate of competency and I have sat all three of my oral exams at the Southampton MCA office,’ stated Ms X, who wished to remain anonymous. ‘I sat my first oral exam at the end of 2011. I know, therefore, from personal experience that the chaperone system has been in place since at least then.’

‘From my understanding, the setup at the MCA in the Southampton office is that all female candidates have to have a female in the room during their examinations,’ she continued. ‘The female chaperone

is an admin assistant from the MCA office building.

‘The reason I have always been given by the examiner is to ensure I receive a fair exam. At Warsash Maritime Academy we were always told it was to ensure sexual advances were not made by either party to aid gaining a pass on the exam.

‘My standpoint is if female candidates have a chaperone, then the male candidates should also have one,’ she explained. ‘In today’s society a male is just as likely to make advances as a female.

‘I did find it slightly insulting, as a master candidate, that I had to have a chaperone with me. I have worked in a male-dominated industry for nine years and now I’m not trusted to behave in an appropriate manner within the exam room?

No MCA policy should be applied to one gender and not the other, argues Nautilus member Ms X Picture: Thinkstock

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‘As most officers work on ships with Voyage Data Recorders, the exams could be recorded and held on file for a number of weeks, in which time you could appeal against the result of the exam or express any concerns and then the data would be wiped,’ she added.

Interestingly, Ms X has learned that her ‘insulting’ chaperone experience in Southampton is not an approach applied across all MCA offices throughout the UK: ‘I have spoken to female engineering candidates who sat their exam in Glasgow and they did not have a chaperone present, so there seems to be discrepancies in the policy depending on which MCA office you take your exams at.’

In a statement to the Nautilus Telegraph, the MCA commented: ‘It is best practice for a second person to sit in during oral examinations for both deck and engineering candidates, male or female. This is for training, auditing, peer review and activity monitoring.’

The key aspect of this statement here is that it is ‘best practice.’ It's not a policy, therefore, but more a suggestion – and with a bit more probing from the Telegraph, the MCA acknowledged that the chaperone system was not an enforceable rule and was used more for guidance.

It therefore means that test centres have the ability to interpret the rules in whichever ways they see fit; meaning that women may still find themselves subject to chaperoning when their male counterparts are not.

In fact, the Agency, in its own statement on the Notice of Eligibility for exams, states that the ‘MCA reserves the right for other examiners to attend the oral exam. This is usually exercised for training, quality monitoring, auditing and peer review purposes regardless of gender’.

Yet Ms X doesn’t believe that it was for these reasons that she and her fellow female candidates had an additional person in the exam

room. ‘Every female candidate in the Southampton office has to have a chaperone,’ she pointed out.

‘No male candidates will have a chaperone, but they may have an additional examiner in the room to cross-check the process. What the MCA has stated is that the additional person can be present to audit or learn the process if they are a new examiner. The people who sit in for the female exams are admin assistants and are not there for that purpose.’

All this poses the question of why at least one MCA test centre feels the need to adopt this approach for its women candidates? If there is really a problem surrounding sexual advances to gain inappropriate advantages, should the Agency not be targeting these issues rather than tarring all candidates with the same brush? Are all candidates guilty of inappropriate behaviour until proven innocent?

The MCA says it is good practice for a second examiner to sit in on an oral exam, but Ms X reports that in her exams the additional person present was an admin assistant attending as a chaperone In a further comment, the Agency admitted that it had not received any reports of inappropriate behaviour taking place between examiners and candidates during oral exams.

For Ms X the answer is simple.

Either the ‘best practice’ is rolled out as a standard rule for everyone, or the MCA in should abandon a practice which has the potential to be seen as sexist.

‘It was never made particularly clear from which side the protection was required,’ she continued.

‘They kept using the phrase to

ensure a fair exam is had by female candidates, but how it differs from the men I am not sure.

‘I personally believe either everyone should have a chaperone or no one,’ she concluded. ‘If the MCA is concerned about the conduct of anyone present, they should record the exam and keep it on file for a period of time before deleting the recording.’

What the industry desperately does need to do, however, is avoid creating hurdles that could put the next wave of women seafarers off a life at sea.

Nautilus professional and technical officer David Appleton commented: ‘The purpose of the oral exam is to ensure a consistent level of competency amongst those candidates applying for a CoC. It therefore follows that all candidates should be examined in a consistent manner, but unfortunately recent feedback from members would indicate that this is not always the case.

‘We have no issue with exams being observed or recorded – in fact, we believe that this could go some way to resolving recent issues that have been reported – but this must be done in a fair and equitable fashion,’ he added. ‘The singling out of one group for different treatment from any other leads to feelings of resentment and reinforces the notion that shipping is an industry plagued by old-fashioned and outdated ideas.

‘It is somewhat ironic that having welcomed several initiatives in recent months aimed at increasing the attractiveness of the shipping industry to women, we are still dealing with such fundamental inequality issues as this. If we are to make any progress at all, this is exactly the type of thing that needs to be stopped.’

Have you ever experienced something similar in your workplace or training programme? If so, and you have a story you wish to tell, please contact the Telegraph at telegraph@nautilusint.org

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HISTORY

isiting ancient slave ports like Calabar on ships named after ancient centres of civilisation such as Apapa. Delivering eager missionaries on one-way tickets to developing countries only too recently known as the White Man’s Grave.

This was still the working reality in the late 20th century for seafarers on the cargo and passenger/cargo ships operated by Elder Dempster Lines – with nicknames like Elder Gangster and Every Day Labour. For over 150 years, the Liverpool-based shipping company had been so deeply involved in the development of trade on the 3,840km coast from Cape Verde to Mount Cameroon that its slogan was ’We are West Africa’.

Now the spoken stories of those who worked for this trade maker are available for all to hear. Liverpool John Moores University (LJMU), backed by the Heritage Lottery Fund, has set up Homeward Bound: A Liverpool-West Africa Heritage – described as a ‘people’s history’ of the company from its heyday in the 1950s and 1960s to its demise in the 1980s.

Professor Nick White, an LJMU expert in the history of decolonialisation and international business, established the project in 2016. The outcome? ‘I’m proud to say that there are 24 interviews available on the internet,’ he says. ‘Soon the seafarers’ artefacts, photographs and surviving correspondence will be digitised and articles about the cumulative knowledge gained will be published. We also plan to have more outreach activities with schools and community groups, as well as exhibitions and events to discuss the project.’

This is an unusual initiative, Prof White notes. ‘Most shipping companies’ archives are not available online.

Seemingly none have so far included spoken memoirs of all levels of seafarers and office workers. So this is a rare step.

‘It’s one we hope other companies will follow, because there is a rich maritime heritage which could be lost to posterity. The world of break-bulk general cargo shipping was very different to the containerisation we are familiar with today.’

Project contributors have gathered to create a spoken history of the company, the industry and a particular stage in British colonial development and African independence. Even better, four of those putting the questions are themselves former Elders employees. The Elder Dempster Pensioners’ Association (known as the Elders of Elders) is among those advising the project about its shape.

Homeward Bound’s participants include captains, pursers, engineers, cadets, mates, wives, a couple of managing directors, plus a ship’s printer and a pantryman. Several worked in ’the House of Mirth’, or ‘the Kremlin’, as the headquarters in Liverpool’s India Buildings were known. Many lived in West Africa for a time too.

V

Linking the empire ‒ an old Elder Dempster poster Picture: courtesy of Björn Larsson

LIVING LINKS TO LIVERPOOL LEGENDS Seafarers and shore staff who served with one of the UK’s great shipping companies are recording their stories for posterity in a university project that ties the history of NW England to the coast of western Africa. JO STANLEY reports…

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What was special about sailing with Elders were the ports, cargoes and the crews. ‘Sailing to Africa was something completely new to me,’ remembers Captain John Goble, who had previously only encountered highly-developed port infrastructure (on his New Zealand runs), not places where cranes were rare, palletisation unheard of, and coal was loaded by men bearing it in bowls on their heads.

As Elders employees in the 1950s, 60s, 70s and 80s, both seafarers and HQ personnel had direct experience of independence struggles. Nigeria’s civil war (1967-70) caused much disruption to voyages – and therefore to seafarers’ time away.

Visiting the many ports meant seafarers could compare the different directions that the French, British, Portugese, and German ex-colonies were taking, as the 19th century 'Scramble for Africa' was reversed.

Purser Jim Forsey witnessed ‘the post-independence fragmentation of Africa’, with the 1960s hopes giving way to despair at the destructive rise of kleptocracies, as Capt Goble put it.

Accelerated Africanisation, with attendant problems of corruption and violence, added to existing problems of pilfering and negotiating the demanding of ‘dash’ – the endemic form of bribery besetting every quayside.

Pleasures ranged from sailing the company’s yacht, Forerunner, in Lagos yacht club, to playing football with the locals, tourism, and taking the ship’s lifeboat ashore to a beach, dragging a net of chilled beer cans. Expat clubs were variously hoity-toity or welcoming.

Deck officers and pursers drawing up lading plans were challenged by carrying some of the trickiest cargoes in the world, including palm oil and liquid latex, which had to be stored in heated waxed holds. Humidity wrecked freight.

Ships were very multicultural – and segregated. But the different groups of personnel got on: British officers; Nigerian catering crew; Sierra Leonean deck and engine ratings; and ‘Kru boys’ as day labourers in ports.

Any Yoruba and Igbo tribal opposition onboard ship was sorted out by Nigerians themselves, not by the officers. There was the usual ingrained suspicion of the unfamiliar, but not much violent racism.

What kind of company was it, according to these contributors? Elder Dempster had a family feel, even for non-white people. It paid well, not least to attract those who’d prefer more appealing routes. But no overtime money was given.

When it came to welfare, Elder Dempster was humane Nigerian crew working in an – for example, flying you home if your spouse had engineroom miscarried. Internal communication was good; training was Picture courtesy of Mike Ingham thorough for officers, and crewing was never skeleton-level.

People preferred Elders to other companies because the runs were short (usually four to six weeks). But the company had something of an image problem in comparison to Bibby's Blue Funnel. Bibbys were seen Third Mate Steve as the gentlemen, Elders the workers, says LJMU project New on the deck of Dumbaia, the contributor Captain Brian McManus. company’s last Several contributors felt that as time went on, Elder conventional general cargo Dempster wasn’t managed well by its parent, Blue vessel, in the early Funnel/Ocean, especially as trade worsened. ‘A ship is 1960s Picture courtesy of a hole you pour money down’ became a saying in head Mike Ingham office, recalls purser John Edge. Takeovers, including

by Blue Funnel/Ocean in 1965, didn’t help and the company did not diversify into cruising. Costs rose.

Containerisation brought the end in 1989, with a takeover by Delmas-Vieljeux. Elder Dempster The Homeward finally wound up in 2000.

Bound project has Contributors to LJMU's collective 24 interviews remembering of the company’s 150-year from former Elder Dempster history hope that their stories will be widely employees on its enjoyed, including by people in West Africa website who had a different experience of Elders. It’s fascinating listening.

And the project is making an important wider contribution to Black and Minority Ethnic (BAME) history in the UK. Two of the seafarers and one of the passengers featured in Homeward Bound are BAME people and their stories will be deposited in suitable archives. An interview with third mate Obi Okeke is featured in Black Salt, the first exhibition about black seafarers in Britain, staged by Merseyside Maritime Museum.

Homeward Bound is online at www.ljmu.ac.uk/microsites/ elder-dempster. The project would be pleased to receive life story accounts from other Elder Dempter seafarers. Please contact: Nick White, LJMU, John Foster building, 80-98 Mount Pleasant, Liverpool L3 5UZ or via N.J.White@ljmu.ac.uk

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NAU T I LU S AT WOR K

BOOKSHOP BENEFITS Readers seeking to buy the books reviewed in the Telegraph will now have the chance to support a maritime charity as they shop. Sarah Robinson reports… unique maritime bookshop is being launched this month as a partnership between Nautilus International and the Marine Society charity.

Aimed at general readers in the maritime community, the online Nautilus Bookshop will sell the books reviewed in the Telegraph’s books pages – and any profits from the sales will be ploughed into the Marine Society’s educational work with seafarers.

‘Our book review pages are some of the most popular in the Telegraph,’ noted editor Andrew Linington. ‘We feature recent releases we think our readers will enjoy at sea and ashore, and we’ll consider anything with a maritime connection, whether that’s ship histories, seafarer memoirs, studies of the Merchant Navy in wartime, or even the occasional nautical novel.

‘Because of the “niche” nature of some of these books, they can be tricky to get hold of,’ he added, ‘so we’re very pleased that we’ll now have them all on sale together in the Nautilus Bookshop each month. Readers will also have the satisfaction of supporting a great maritime charity through

A

their purchase – something that many people prefer to buying their books from a “big business” retailer.’

Marine Society book services manager Caroline Buckland said the charity was pleased to revive a partnership that had proved popular in years past. ‘We used to sell some of the books reviewed in the Telegraph in our online shop,’ she explained, ‘but needed to take a break while we were developing a new business model. This year, our shop has been relaunched on a new web platform, and with the Telegraph having been revamped too, it’s the perfect time to get the partnership going again.’

The Marine Society projects that the bookshop will be supporting include the ships’ library service, the provision of textbooks to international maritime academies, and the Hanway Scholarship – a professional development fund for seafarers.

‘And there’s another bonus for us in hosting the Nautilus Bookshop,’ added Ms Buckland, ‘because Telegraph readers visiting our site

to buy a book will also learn about the courses we offer. In the main, though, we want to be part of this because it’s a core principle of the Marine Society to encourage seafarers to read for pleasure, and the Telegraph provides a fantastic service in identifying books of interest to the maritime community.’

The Nautilus Bookshop is located at www.marinesocietyshop.org/ books. As a starting point, it has been stocked with books recently featured in the Telegraph, and as each new edition of the magazine comes out, fresh titles reviewed here will be added to the shop.

Later this year, we are also planning to introduce a discounted ‘Book of the month’ – identified in the Telegraph review pages – available at a special price offered only in the Nautilus Bookshop.

The Nautilus Bookshop is intended mainly for online sales, but readers with limited or no internet access can place debit/ credit card orders over the phone by calling the Marine Society Shop team on +44 (0)20 7654 7012.

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M A R I T I M E B O OK S

A century undersea The Titanic Expeditions

By Eugene Nesmeyanov The History Press, £30 ISBN: 978 07509 85482 t was perhaps unsurprising that the Titanic’s relentless grip on the popular imagination spawned ambitious missions to locate and explore the wreck.

In this fascinating and very well produced title, Russian academic Eugene Nesmeyanov provides remarkable detail and analysis of the variety of different expeditions to the wreck since its discovery in 1985.

Aided by some superb illustrations, he explains the symbolism of the ship’s loss in 1912 and the way in which advances in deep ocean exploration began to make the potential of locating and exploring the wreck a very real possibility.

The book includes some interesting reflections on the

I

NAUTILUS BOOKSHOP

morality of such explorations young Canadian called James and it notes some of the Cameron that he went on to concerns about the ‘pillaging’ begin work on a blockbuster of artefacts from the wreck – Oscar-winning movie a decade which prompted the 1986 RMS later. The making of the film Titanic Maritime Memorial merits a whole chapter, which Act in the United States, with contains some great material the aim of protecting the about the meticulous efforts vessel from ‘wanton grave for accuracy. robbers’.

Another fascinating There are also some chapter looks at the very interesting Cold marine life which Now protected War references has moved into by the United underpinning the the wreck, while Nations, the wreck book, with the the phenomenon of the Titanic has author explaining of ‘rusticles’ – not been disturbed since 2010 the international complex microbial rivalry over deepsea growths on the ship’s exploration and structure – is described in technology and repeatedly a section which also considers referring to the secrecy that future decay and the likely has surrounded a lot of the eventual fate of the wreck. expeditions and their findings.

As well as detailing The book explains how the the original Ballard 1986 mission to the wreck expeditions, the book covers by the US oceanographer Dr the subsequent salvage Robert Ballard so inspired a expeditions of the private

conglomerate RMS Titanic Inc, the exploratory dives of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, and the recordings made by James Cameron and his IMAX crew, and explains how these have widened knowledge about the circumstances of Titanic’s loss.

There’s a seemingly endless flow of books about the Titanic, but this title brings a fresh perspective to the subject and it raises some very important questions along the way. Now protected by the United Nations, the wreck has not been disturbed by any explorations since 2010, and this thoughtful book concludes by considering where the ‘unquenchable, inexhaustible interest and fascination in Titanic’ will lead to next.

Buy the books reviewed on these pages in the new Nautilus Bookshop at www.marinesocietyshop.org/books and support a great maritime charity! Hosted by the online Marine Society Shop, the Nautilus Bookshop will stock the books reviewed in the Telegraph each month, and any profi ts from sales will go towards the Marine Society’s educational work for seafarers.

• Go to www.marinesocietyshop.org/books and click on the Nautilus Bookshop logo to purchase this month’s reviewed titles online and browse a selection of recent releases.

• You can also call the Marine Society Shop team on +44 (0)20 7654 7012 to order this month’s titles over the phone with a debit or credit card. nautilusint.org 50 May 2018

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The long and fruitful life of a ‘gallant foe’ For a two-year period during the Second World War, Allied ships lived in fear of running across the man known as ‘Silent Otto’.

Believed to be the most successful German U-boat commander, Otto Kretschemer sank 47 ships totalling a massive 274,333 tons between September 1939 and March 1941, and had the knack of keeping his U-boats undetectable.

Author Lawrence Paterson explores this intriguing individual’s life from his formative years – where he studied literature at Exeter University, helping to make him fluent in English – to enlisting as an officer candidate in the Weimar Republic’s small navy.

Kretschemer took to the sea quickly and soon rose up the ranks before moving into the U-boat service. As the war intensified, Silent Otto’s reputation started to grow. By April 1940 he’d already sunk eight ships, including the destroyer HMS Daring.

Without trying to glorify his achievements for the Third Reich, the author explains how this skilled seafarer was not only feared but also greatly respected by the Allied forces.

Kretschmer’s war ended early when he was captured in 1941 and spent time as a prisoner of war. However, Paterson explains how Kretschmer would go on to live a long and fruitful life. Shortly after the war finished, he was allowed to return to Germany, where he would go on to serve for many years in the West German navy.

And Kretschmer’s love for the navy remained throughout his later years, even helping computer game companies in the 1990s make their U-boat games as realistic as possible.

The final chapter of this book, however, demonstrates the respect that the British had for his seafaring skills.

Invited to a function in London in 1955 as guest of honour, alongside British officers, he met one of his former enemies – Donald Macintyre – who handed back to Kretschmer his binoculars.

On them was inscribed: ‘Returned to Otto Kretschmer, a gallant foe.’

Otto Kretschmer: The Life of the Third Reich’s Highest Scoring U-boat Commander

By Lawrence Paterson Greenhill Books, £25 ISBN: 978 17843 81929

New edition of respected cargo guide This bulky tome – running to almost 600 pages – is now out in the form of the 2018 consolidated edition, providing a wealth of updated guidance on best practice for the safe carriage, handling and storage of cargoes ranging from coffee to uranium hexaflouride.

Produced by the UK Club’s loss prevention department, the book is organised into 12 sections that are linked to broad categories of cargoes, with 55 chapters on specific cargoes and associated safety issues, such as their inherent characteristics and risks, hold preparation and hatch covers, and best practice when loading and unloading.

This new edition brings the book into line with recent regulations such as the

Verified Gross Mass requirements and the 2016 safe carriage of bulk cargo code, and it also addresses problems such as container crime and entry into enclosed spaces.

Produced to a very high standard, well illustrated and edited, the book includes detailed checklists and easyto-follow guidance. It’s a worthy initiative and one that should not only help to prevent seafarer accidents but also reduce the risks of costly cargo damage.

Carefully to Carry By the UK P&I Club Witherby Publishing, £50 ISBN: 978 18560 97376

Passionate about paddle steamers The decline of the British paddle steamer has seen a drop from 43 in 1955 to just two in operation today: Kingswear Castle and Waverley.

John Megoran – who spent nearly 30 years of his maritime career with Kingswear Castle, including serving as master from 1985 to 2012 – explains in the introduction to his book how his fascination with paddle steamers began while growing up in Weymouth at the tail end of their heyday. Over the following 37 chapters, he takes the reader from 1955 and the end of the 64-year career of the P&A Campbell vessel Ravenswood to the present-day efforts to restore the Loch Lomond steamer Maid of the Loch to operational service.

Each chapter is devoted to a single vessel, giving a brief history of its career and the circumstances surrounding its withdrawal from service. Along the way, these individual stories shed light on the wider context of the rise and fall of paddle steamer services – and most notably the changes in tourism in the 50s and 60s – as well as the diverse fates of many of the vessels, including subsequent service as nightclubs, bars, restaurants, a tea ship and even a sailing school.

Packed with a wealth of colour and black and white pictures, the book gains added depth from the personal reflections and insight that Mr Megoran brings to a subject he clearly has a passion for.

British Paddle Steamers: the Twilight Years

By John Megoran Amberley Publishing, £14.99 ISBN: 978 14456 72267

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H I STORY

SHIPS OF THE PAST

By Andrew Linington

his year marks the 40th anniversary of one of the worst ever maritime oil spills, when the Liberianflagged VLCC Amoco Cadiz, transporting 227,000 tonnes of crude oil, suffered steering gear failure and ran aground off the coast of Brittany.

In the fortnight after the grounding, the entire cargo of light crude and some 4,000 tonnes of bunker fuel was spilled as the ship split apart – causing pollution to some 360km of shoreline and killing more than 20,000 seabirds.

Amoco Cadiz was only three years old and had been built for the US-based Amoco Transport Company by the Spanish yard Astilleros Españoles.

The 233,690dwt vessel was 334m loa and powered by a 22,700kW diesel engine, with a 42-strong all-Italian crew.

The vessel had loaded a full cargo of Iranian crude in the Gulf in mid-February, and sailed for Rotterdam via the Cape of Good Hope before running into heavy seas and gale force winds off the coast of Spain.

On the morning of 16 March 1978, as Amoco Cadiz approached the traffic separation scheme off Ushant, the steering gear failed when hydraulic pipes ruptured after the ship was struck by a huge wave.

A nearby German tug, Pacific, offered assistance to the tanker – but the ship’s master, Captain Pasquale Bardari, was reluctant to enter into a salvage agreement without the approval of his company's management in the United States.

As the ship drifted closer to the shore and the negotiations continued, the tug’s master decided to intervene anyway and managed to connect a line to pull the tanker’s bow up into the wind.

T

At 1545, Amoco’s marine operations manager at the company’s head office in Chicago fi nally gave the go-ahead for a Lloyd’s Open Form agreement with the salvage tug.

Over the next four hours, Pacific made a series of unsuccessful attempts to pull the ship to safety – with one line breaking and another proving ineffective – before the grounding occurred at 2104.

The immense scale of the subsequent spill caused public and political outcries, and resulted in the French government overhauling its pollution response plans and imposing a mandatory traffic separation scheme off the Brittany coast. The incident also helped to provide the impetus for the launch of the Paris MOU port state control system in Europe.

Nine days after the accident, the French premier Raymond Barre declared that the accident had been the result of ‘grave negligence’. Capt Bardari was charged with breaking French pollution laws and his certificate was suspended for three years.

A flag state accident investigation report published in 1981 criticised the lack of effective communication between the tanker and the tug. The report also noted ‘the ultimately inexcusable failure of the master of the Amoco Cadiz to send out a general distress signal until the situation became hopeless’. In addition, there was criticism of the insufficient monitoring of the ship’s technical condition, inadequate training of the crew and deficiencies in the safety management onboard.

The 1978 Amoco Cadiz oil spill led to improved pollution response plans and influenced the Paris MOU

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Yacht crew Join now!

As part of our growing support for seafarers serving in the large yacht sector, all members are entitled to a free copy of the Nautilus service record book, which has been produced to assist in the recording and calculation of qualifying sea service for the purpose of certification.

Nautilus International works closely with the MCA and regulatory authorities in Europe and around the world, and this SRB is recognised by the MCA as evidence of acceptable service.

Once your yacht service is verified in our office in Antibes, the MCA accepts the Nautilus SRB as sufficient proof of onboard and sea service.

No further supporting documentation is required, and the process with the MCA is quicker than using individual testimonials. g Contact the membership department either via email or telephone to receive your free SRB.

SUE HOLMES MARINE TAX CONSULTANT LTD For an annual fee of £225.00 (plus VAT) you can rest in the knowledge that your 100% deducation claim will be calculated by an expert in Marine Taxation with over 20 years’ experience.

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To find out about advertising opportunities in the Telegraph contact: Philip Johnston T: 020 7324 2727 E: philip.johnston@redactive.co.uk

email: recruitment@ nautilusint.org or call: +44 (0)151 639 8454

DDRC Professional Services offer a full range of courses and medicals for offshore, maritime and diving professionals including Ship’s Captains, Senior Officers, Divers, Chamber Operators and designated medical personnel.

Courses: MCA Certificate of Proficiency in Medical Care MCA Proficiency in Medical First Aid IMCA DMT Chamber Operator HSE Offshore Medic Medicals: ENG1 & HSE

call +44 (0)1752 209999 email training@ddrc.org www.ddrc.org DDRC Professional Services is the trading subsidiary of the charity DDRC Healthcare, Hyperbaric Medical Centre, Research Way, Plymouth Science Park, Plymouth PL6 8BU nautilusint.org 53 May 2018

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telegraph Z E E W AT E R D O O R D E A D E R E N

Resultaten sectoronderzoek duurzame inzetbaarheid in de zeescheepvaart gepresenteerd Het bestuur van de Stichting Opleidings- en Ontwikkelingsfonds Zeescheepvaart en het bestuur van de Stichting Zee-Risico 1996 gaven Factor Vijf Organisatieontwikkeling in 2017 de opdracht tot het uitvoeren van een sectoronderzoek naar duurzame inzetbaarheid (DI) in de zeescheepvaart.

Op 11 april jongstleden werden de resultaten in Postillion Hotel Amersfoort gepresenteerd.

In totaal 506 zeevarenden en 28 werkgevers deden aan het onderzoek mee. Onder de titel ‘Zeewater door de aderen’ werden onder meer 10 conclusies en aanbevelingen gepresenteerd: Conclusie 1: ‘Goede communicatie met de wal is een ‘must’ om zeevarende te blijven’ De communicatie tussen zeevarenden en de walorganisatie lijkt vaak te verdrinken tussen wal en schip. Pak deze kloof aan. Bijvoorbeeld via periodieke gesprekken tussen zeevarenden en hun leidinggevenden over duurzame inzetbaarheid en functioneren. Spreek af wie (zeevarende en/of werkgever) welke acties neemt om vooruitgang te boeken. Houd tussentijds contact.

Conclusie 2: ‘Zeevarenden willen vooral varen’ Laat zeevarenden zoveel mogelijk zeevarende zijn. Ondersteun en faciliteer zeevarenden zoveel mogelijk met zaken die zij ervaren als ‘bijzaken’, zoals administratie.

Conclusie 3: ‘De verschuivende AOW-leeftijd baart zeevarenden grote zorgen’ Ga het gesprek aan over langer doorwerken.

Wat is er nodig om dit mogelijk te maken?

Wat kan een zeevarende daarin zelf doen

en welke ondersteuning is gewenst vanuit de werkgever of de sector? Steek het hoofd niet in het spreekwoordelijke zand.

Conclusie 4: ‘Zeevarenden schatten hun vakmanschap gemiddeld hoog in’ Houd het vakmanschap van zeevarenden op peil. Werkgevers: investeer in (niet-verplichte) opleidings- en ontwikkelmogelijkheden.

En zeevarenden: blijf altijd leren!

belemmeringen aan boord. Deze verlagen immers de duurzame inzetbaarheid van zeevarenden, onder andere omdat ze kunnen bijdragen aan fatigue. Betrek zeevarenden bij het bedenken van oplossingen. En zeevarenden: zorg goed voor jezelf, kaart belemmeringen en fatigue aan, en kom zelf met ideeën voor verbetering.

Conclusie 8: ‘Werkgevers wisselen sterk in wat ze doen om de duurzame inzetbaarheid van de Nederlandse zeevarenden te stimuleren’ Start kenniskringen waarin werkgevers kunnen leren van elkaars voorbeelden.

‘Zeevarenden Wissel ruimhartig kennis, informatie snakken naar en fraaie praktijken uit. Leer van begrip en elkaars successen en fouten.

Conclusie 5: ‘Werkgevers en zeevarenden zijn bezorgd over de toekomst van Nederlandse zeevarenden’ Ga in gesprek over een ‘Plan B’: waardering wat nou als je als zeevarende toch van de wal’ Conclusie 9: ‘Voldoende bemanning een baan buiten de zeescheepvaart aan boord is sterk bepalend voor zou moeten of willen vinden? duurzame inzetbaarheid’ Loopbaanadvies van ‘neutrale’ coaches Wanneer meer bemanning aan boord van kan hierbij helpen. Zeevarenden raden we aan een schip niet mogelijk is, onderzoek dan hoe om volop gebruik van te maken van de geboden werkdruk op andere manieren verminderd kan mogelijkheden. worden. Ga als rederij en zeevarende hierover Conclusie 6: ‘Zeevarenden snakken naar begrip het gesprek met elkaar aan, en verken de en waardering van de wal’ mogelijkheden.

Begrip en waardering zijn gemakkelijk te Conclusie 10: ‘Werken in multiculturele en verbeteren zonder dat het veel geld kost. wisselende teams vraagt om aandacht’ Bijvoorbeeld door het geven van complimenten, Leer samenwerken in wisselende en over en weer, of door na het afmonsteren te multiculturele teams, bijvoorbeeld via een vragen hoe de termijn aan boord was. teambuildings- of diversiteitstraining.

Organiseer een jaarlijks event voor zeevarenden Sta open voor andere mensen en hun ideeën en hun partners. Of … bedenk iets anders. en werkwijzen.

Maar, geef aandacht!

Conclusie 7: ‘Belemmeringen aan boord verminderen de duurzame inzetbaarheid van zeevarenden’ Blijf alert op het verminderen van

Oud Olympisch schaatskampioen Jochem Uytdehaage trad op als gastspreker.

Het rapport is opvraagbaar via: infonl@nautilusint.org

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Loonstijging van 2,75% We hebben een structurele loonstijging afgesproken van in totaal 2,75%. Per 1 april met 1,75% en per 1 oktober met nog eens 1%. Gaven de werkgevers in de eerste twee onderhandelingsrondes aan niet veel te voelen voor een behoorlijke loonstijging, zijn wij er naar onze mening toch in geslaagd een mooie loonstijging af te spreken.

GEEF UW MENING Vorige maand vroegen wij: Bent u ook van mening dat de scheepvaartindustrie langer de tijd mag krijgen om te voldoen aan de 2020 zwavel limiet?

67%

Reparatie 3e WW-jaar Voor reparatie van het 3e WW jaar hebben werkgevers nog even tijd nodig om te onderzoeken wat het administratief voor hen betekent.

Wij willen vervolgens binnen enkele maanden overgaan tot reparatie.’

Zoals bekend heeft het kabinet de opbouw en de lengte van de WW verkort. De maximale duur werd van 28 maanden naar 24 maanden teruggebracht. Tijdens de voorbereidingen van de cao onderhandelingen hebben onze leden aangegeven dat zij het belangrijk vinden om de WW via cao afspraken te repareren. En de duur van 2 jaar weer naar 3 jaar te brengen. Zij hebben aangegeven bereid te zijn daar ook voor te willen betalen.

In het kader van 5 mei Bevrijdingsdag is de tentoonstelling ‘Eerbetoon aan de Nederlandse Koopvaardij’ samengesteld.

Deze tentoonstelling gaat over de aan de Nederlandse koopvaardij toegekende Militaire Willems-Orde, de Koninklijke Vermelding bij Dagorder en de ‘Kapiteinflats’ in Zwijndrecht.

Dagelijks te zien vanaf 5 mei tot eind oktober 2018 in de vitrines op de zesde etage van het gebouw van de STC-Group aan de Lloydstraat in Rotterdam.

ee

Toelichting op hoofdlijnen onderhandelingsresultaat Ramdas, in een verdere toelichting: ‘Het onderhandelingsresultaat bevat een looptijd van 1 jaar; van 1 april 2018 tot en met 31 maart 2019. Daar hebben wij immers zelf op ingezet, omdat wij zien dat in 2018 de sector gelukkig al uit het dal begint te klimmen en de vooruitzichten vanaf 2019 en verder er al beter uit beginnen te zien.

Afspraken over ouderenregeling en opleiding- en ontwikkelingsbudget Daarnaast zijn er serieuze afspraken gemaakt om op korte termijn tot een ouderenregeling en tot een individueel opleiding- en ontwikkelingsbudget te komen. Ook weer passend bij onze cao inzet.

Bij de ouderenregeling gaat het om afspraken die het mogelijk maken om minder te gaan werken, met het behoud van een groot deel van het salaris en volledige pensioen opbouw.

Wat betreft de ombijscholingsafspraken gaat het om een individueel inzetbaarheidsbudget, waarover je als werknemer zelf beschikt en dat je onder andere kunt inzetten voor omscholing, zodat je breder inzetbaar bent. Afgesproken is dat een paritaire werkgroep concrete, financieel onderbouwde voorstellen doet, die vanaf 1 april 2019 in werking moeten treden.

%

Werkgevers en werknemers, waaronder Nautilus/FNV Waterbouw hebben op 5 april een onderhandelingsresultaat bereikt voor de Waterbouw cao.

Nautilus/FNV Waterbouw voorzitter Charley Ramdas: ‘Wij leggen dit resultaat positief aan onze leden voor, daar wij van mening zijn dat we op hoofdpunten recht doen aan onze cao inzet. Deze was gebaseerd op de bij onze leden uitgezette cao enquête, waar we vele honderden reacties op hebben gehad, en op tal van gesprekken tijdens kaderledenbijeenkomsten en vlootbezoeken. Ook onze FNV Waterbouw Raad van Advies heeft inmiddels ingestemd met dit onderhandelingsresultaat. Maar uiteindelijk is het uiteraard aan onze leden om kenbaar te maken of men hiermee akkoord gaat of niet. Voor 1 mei a.s. moet dit duidelijk worden.’

TENTOONSTELLING ‘EERBETOON AAN DE NEDERLANDSE KOOPVAARDIJ’

Ja 33

ONDERHANDELINGSRESULTAAT WATERBOUW CAO 2018-2019

N

This month we ask Op welke soort papier wilt u dat de Telegraph wordt afgedrukt?

• ‘GLANZEND’ ‒ de papiersoort die deze maand is gebruikt • ‘MAT’ ‒ de papiersoort die werd gebruikt in de maanden januari tot april Geef ons uw mening online, op www.nautilusint.org/nl

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SMASH-UP SEMINAR: SLIMMER, VEILIGER, DUURZAMER

AUTONOOM VAREN IN DE BINNENVAART KOMT ER STAPSGEWIJS AAN Voor het management van een toenemend aanbod van goederen in de Rijkswaterstaat(RWS) staat het als een binnenvaart’, viel keynote speaker Serge van paal boven water: autonoom varen in de Dam, Topadviseur Verkeersmanagement, Binnenvaart komt er aan. Dat bleek tijdens zijn chef even later bij. ‘We onderscheiden een aantal lezingen en workshops op inmiddels diverse fasen: ‘van Bemand het seminar SMASH-UP, dat op 20 maart Ondersteunend Varen naar Bemand jongstleden werd gehouden in Kinepolis in Automatisch Varen -in 2025- en uiteindelijk Dordrecht. En de meeste van de ruim naar volledig Autonoom Varen in 2035.’

150 bezoekers, waaronder ook tal Voor spreker Antoon van Coillie ‘Er wordt nog van schippers, adviesbureaus, (CEO Blue Line Logistics) bleek altijd veel te Erasmus onderzoekers, alles gewoon een kwestie weinig op studenten en Haven (Rotterdam) van kostenefficiency. Ook op cybersecurity autoriteiten, onderschreven dit bemanningskosten kan volgens gecheckt in deze sector’ uitgangspunt eveneens aan het de onderkoeld speechende eind van de middag.

Vlaming behoorlijk worden bezuinigd. ‘Het gaat er gewoon allemaal Bemand Automatisch Varen aankomen. Bovendien is het voor mij ook ‘Hoe halen we deze toekomst, die er gewoon ‘fun’ om je hier mee bezig te onherroepelijk aankomt, dichterbij? houden.’

Dat is onze gezamenlijke uitdaging, Hacken AIS vrij eenvoudig stelde dagvoorzitter en RWS directeur IT deskundige Vincent van Ossewaarde nam Scheepvaart & Watermanagement Nancy het publiek mee in een virtuele tour waarin Scheijven, tijdens haar openingsspeech. onder meer duidelijk werd dat onder meer ‘Het gaat allemaal om kosten besparen, het huidige AIS systeem vrij eenvoudig te veiligheid verbeteren en het inspelen op

hacken is. ‘Elke handige Harrie is hiertoe in staat’. Er wordt nog altijd veel te weinig op cybersecurity gecheckt in deze sector. Dat moet snel veranderen. Vertrouw niet blind op de huidige en ook toekomstig toegepaste technologie. Onderken als sector gewoon dat dit een essentieel onderdeel dient te vormen van Smart Shipping.’

Autonome schepen in haven Rotterdam?

Tijdens de workshop ‘Autonome schepen in de haven van Rotterdam?’, geleid door Martijn Streng van de Erasmus Universiteit Rotterdam, werd met name de rol van het Havenbedrijf Rotterdam gezien als ‘faciliteren en innoveren ’in haalbare en toetsbare projecten richting autonoom varen. Ook in een door ESE, samen met de TU Delft, in opdracht van het Havenbedrijf Rotterdam, onlangs gepubliceerd onderzoek wordt autonoom varen in de haven van Rotterdam als een haalbaar, economisch en technologisch verantwoord, scenario gezien.

Met ook hier de horizon gesteld op 2035.

Tal van bezoekers namen een kijkje bij de autonome testscheepjes op het water

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DIENSTVERLENING

NAUTILUS INTERNATIONAL EN FNV WATERBOUW

Waarom Smart Shipping?

Net als op de weg, in de lucht en op het spoor verslimt de scheepvaart.

Innovaties zorgen ervoor dat (vergaand geautomatiseerd) varen, verladen, bedienen en begeleiden beter op elkaar afgestemd zijn. De verwachting van Smart Shipping is dat de scheepvaart veiliger, duurzamer en concurrerender maakt. De Rijksoverheid steunt deze ontwikkeling en biedt daarom ruimte voor experimenten. Samen met de markt, kennisinstellingen en het onderwijs wil het Rijk de sector verder brengen door Smart Shipping te faciliteren en waar nodig te stimuleren.

Vragen over Smart Shipping?

Experimenteren?

Mail naar loket.smartshipping@ rws.nl

Martijn Streng (Erasmus Universiteit): ‘Autonoom varen in de haven van Rotterdam is haalbaar’

Privacy: Hoe is dat bij uw bedrijf geregeld?

Op 25 mei 2018 moeten alle bedrijven en overheidsinstanties voldoen aan nieuwe wetgeving.

Deze nieuwe wet heet: de Algemene Verordering Gegevensbescherming (AVG). Dit is Europese wetgeving en moet door alle bedrijven die in Europa diensten aanbieden worden na geleefd. Dus naast uw werkgever ook door de Google’s en Facebook’s van deze wereld. Wij gaan in dit artikel in op de situatie bij uw werkgever.

u dus niet vragen om uw gegevens in algemeenheid te gebruiken.

Dus geen papiertje voorleggen met de zin: ‘de werknemer X stemt in met de verwerking van zijn gegevens voor de doeleinden te bepalen door de werkgever (of woorden van gelijke strekking)’.

Mocht de werkgever uw gegevens willen verstrekken aan of delen met derden, dan moet hij verwerkersovereenkomst(en) sluiten met deze derde partijen en daarin moet onder andere worden vastgelegd hoe uw rechten zijn gewaarborgd.

Persoonsgegevens Uw werkgever heeft persoonsgegevens van u en moet nu vastleggen hoe deze gebruikt worden en hoe ze zijn beschermd. De werkgever heeft personeelsdossiers, uw adres en bankgegevens, etc. De AVG legt verplicht de werkgever hoe deze gegevens behandeld moeten worden. Overtreding van deze verplichtingen kunnen gevolgd worden door grote boetes.

Werknemer U als werknemer moet dus in bepaalde gevallen instemmen met verzoeken van verwerking van uw persoonsgegevens. U moet dit uit vrije wil kunnen doen. Dit is natuurlijk een mooi begrip, maar in de praktijk blijkt dit nogal eens lastig te zijn. Immers wat als u geen toestemming geeft en de werkgever dreigt u te ontslaan? Je kan dan niet spreken van vrije wil. Let dus op in deze omstandigheden.

Werkgever De werkgever mag zonder toestemming met uw gegevens werken voor zover dit volgt uit uw arbeidsovereenkomst; denk aan de salarisverwerking of de aanleg van een personeelsdossier.

Voor verwerking van uw gegevens voor andere doeleinden heeft de werkgever uw toestemming nodig. De werkgever moet u dan expliciet aangeven waarvoor hij uw gegevens wil gebruiken en moet dit per doel aangeven. De werkgever kan

Ondernemingsraad De OR heeft instemmingsrecht op de implementatie van deze wet bij de werkgever. Dus als er een OR bij uw bedrijf aanwezig is, dan zouden zij op dit moment hier druk mee bezig moeten zijn.

U kunt meer lezen over de AVG op: www.autoriteitpersoons gegevens.nl En u kunt natuurlijk ook altijd uw licht opsteken bij Nautilus: infonl@nautilusint.org

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ARBEIDSVOORWAARDEN

Ledenvergaderingen VWH en Spliethoff stellen cao voorstellen vast Op 9 maart jongstleden hield Nautilus een 3-tal ledenvergaderingen te Amersfoort. In de ochtend vond de ledenvergadering met de leden werkzaam in de Handelsvaart plaats. Aansluitend vond een ledenvergadering plaats over de impasse in het pensioen dossier, waarover we u al uitvoerig hebben geïnformeerd in de Telegraph van april. In de middag vond de ledenvergadering Spliethoff plaats. Bij zowel de ledenvergadering Handelsvaart als Spliethoff stond op de agenda: het vaststellen van de voorstellen voor de komende cao-onderhandelingen.

werken, waarbij de zeevarende 100 % van het pensioen blijft opbouwen. Met de vrijgekomen uren dient werkgelegenheid voor Nederlandse jongeren te worden gecreëerd.

• Werkdruk en fatigue: werknemers ervaren perioden met hoge werkdruk, onder andere veroorzaakt door administratieve lastendruk. Met reders willen we in overleg hoe de werkdruk verminderd kan worden. Ook willen we afspraken maken dat de zeevarende na een lange vlucht voldoende rust kan genieten alvorens de dienst aan te vangen.

Voorgesteld is een looptijd van 1 jaar,

maar een langere looptijd is bespreekbaar afhankelijk van het resultaat.

Aanvullende voorstellen Spliethoff cao Voor de Spliethoff cao zijn nog een aantal aanvullende voorstellen gedaan, waaronder het verwerken van de toeslag grote schepen in de maandgage. En tevens het integreren van de twee regelingen voor Spliethoff en Biglift, met betrekking tot bijzondere arbeid.

De brieven met voorstellen zijn inmiddels uitgestuurd naar Spliethoff en de VWHwerkgevers. Verwacht wordt dat in de maand mei de onderhandelingen van start zullen gaan.

Speerpunten Nautilus cao onderhandelaar Marcel van Dam, die, samen met Nautilus vice voorzitter Sacha Meijer, de onderhandelingen voert: ‘Het arbeidsvoorwaardenwaardenbeleid voor 2018 van de FNV is richtinggevend geweest voor het vaststellen van de cao voorstellen.

Speerpunten van dit beleid zijn: meer zekerheid voor werkenden, hogere lonen en het herverdelen van werk door generatiepacten.’

Belangrijkste voorstellen De belangrijkste voorstellen die zijn vastgesteld zijn: • Een gageverhoging van 3,5 % per jaar.

• Het voortzetten van de laatstelijk gemaakte cao-afspraken met betrekking tot de Nederlandse werkgelegenheid en plaatsing van Nederlandse stagiairs.

• Uitbreiding van het verlof, zodat er minder dagen gekocht hoeven te worden om 1 op / 1 af te varen.

• In het kader van levensfase bewust personeelsbeleid de zeevarende de mogelijkheid te geven om vanaf een aantal jaar voorafgaand aan de AOW leeftijd (bv 60 jaar) minder te gaan May 2018 58 nautilusint.org

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Geslaagde jaarvergadering Maritiem Platform Gepensioneerden Op 29 maart jongstleden hield het Maritiem Platform Gepensioneerden haar algemene jaarvergadering in Rotterdam. Dit Platform is de vereniging van gepensioneerde leden van Nautilus International en de Nederlandse Vereniging van Kapiteins ter Koopvaardij (NVKK).

De taken van het Verantwoordingsorgaan Naast de bespreking van de activiteiten over het afgelopen jaar, werd het thema ‘de taken en invulling van deze taken door het Verantwoordingsorgaan’ besproken.

Spreker was Rob Vlietman, voorzitter van het Verantwoordingsorgaan van het Bedrijfspensioenfonds voor de Koopvaardij (BPFK). Uit de gehouden presentatie

bleek dat de taken vastgelegd zijn in de pensioenwet en dat deze taken met name bestaan uit controle van het bestuur. Het Verantwoordingsorgaan van het BPFK heeft een Normenkader ontwikkeld, waarmee zij de besluiten van het bestuur toetst. Hoewel de wetgeving vrij expliciet de verantwoordelijkheden van het Verantwoordingorgaan heeft vastgelegd, heeft het Verantwoordingsorgaan natuurlijk ook de vrijheid om ongevraagd adviezen uit te brengen. Ook van dit recht wordt door het Verantwoordingorgaan van het BPFK regelmatig gebruik gemaakt. De presentatie werd zeer goed ontvangen en bijzonder gewaardeerd door de aanwezige leden.

Kandidaten voor Verantwoordingsorgaan Nautilus International/FNV Waterbouw doet met regelmaat oproepen voor kandidaten die zitting willen nemen in het Verantwoordingsorgaan. Bent u werkzaam, heeft u pensioen opgebouwd (of geniet u pensioen) in de sector Binnenvaart, Waterbouw of Zeevaart en zou u zitting willen nemen in het Verantwoordingsorgaan? Dan kunt u altijd contact opnemen met Nautilus/FNV Waterbouw. Heeft u als gepensioneerd lid ideeën voor een pensioenthema?

Laat het ons weten, via: infonl@ nautilusint.org of via: infowaterbouw@ nautilusint.org

LEDEN EN HUN WERK

NAUTILUS STAAT VOOR U KLAAR Adviescentrum Werken aan Werk Vanaf mei 2017 doet Nautilus International / FNV Waterbouw in de regio Rotterdam mee aan de landelijke pilot van het adviescentrum Werken aan Werk.

Nautilus werkt hierin landelijk met de FNV samen in de Rotterdamse vestiging van WERKEN AAN WERK. Fit voor de arbeidsmarkt Tijdens het traject naar het vinden van werk is er vanuit de adviescentra begeleiding door trajectadviseurs. Zij ondersteunen de individuele werkzoekende in zijn of haar werktraject. Het werktraject is gericht op: verliesverwerking, zelforiëntatie – wie ben ik ? wat wil ik ? wat kan ik? waar sta ik op de arbeidsmarkt? – en de vertaling daarvan naar concrete acties rondom werk zoeken of scholing.

Er is een trainer beschikbaar, die tijdens het werktraject zowel de Nautilus- als FNV deelnemers trainingen aanbiedt.

Competenties en talenten Als eerste voorbeeld het verhaal van een lid die, na een varende carrière, al een aantal jaren bij zijn huidige werkgever aan de wal werkte, maar het in zijn functie niet goed naar zijn zin had. Hij had zich bij ons adviescentrum gemeld en bij de intake hebben we samen in kaart gebracht welk traject voor hem het meest passend was.

In de oriëntatiefase hebben we met behulp van een aantal testen zijn competenties en talenten in kaart gebracht, waarmee we verder konden bepalen welke beroepssectoren en beroepen hiermee matchen. Daarnaast heeft ons lid uit ons aanbod de

trainingen Werk zoeken anno nu, Social media & Linkedin plus Netwerken gevolgd. Gewapend met deze kennis is ons lid nu bezig om vacatures te zoeken die aansluiten bij zijn vaardigheden en talenten.

en – naast contact met een verliesdeskundige- heeft ons lid drie spiegelbeeld testen gemaakt.

Tevens volgt hij de trainingen: Veerkracht, CV maken, sollicitatie-gesprekken en Netwerken.

Zonder werk door omvlaggen Het tweede voorbeeld betreft een lid die, doordat de werkgever het schip heeft omgevlagd, zonder werk kwam te zitten.

Nautilus heeft de belangen van het lid bij de beëindiging van de arbeidsovereenkomst behartigd en hem gewezen op de dienstverlening van het adviescentrum. Tijdens de intake was de gezamenlijke conclusie dat ons lid, naast de oriëntatiefase, ook behoefte had aan hulp bij verliesverwerking. Beide trajecten hebben we opgestart

Afspraak maken Leden en ook niet leden uit de maritieme sector kunnen bij Nautilus terecht als zij kampen met transitievragen.

Over werkloosheid, maar ook over duurzame inzetbaar-heid of loopbaanplanning. Voor verdergaande vakbondsdienstverlening moet men uiteraard wel lid worden.

Neem voor een afspraak met het Nautilus adviescentrum contact op met Jelle de Boer via 010-4771188 of infonl@nautilusint.org

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NL NEWS

DIENSTVERLENING

NAUTILUS JAARVERGADERING EN SYMPOSIUM 2018 Op dinsdagmiddag 26 juni 2018, van 13.00 tot 14.30 uur, vindt de jaarvergadering van de Nederlandse Branch van Nautilus International plaats in Hilton Rotterdam. Alle leden zijn van harte welkom.

Hierna wordt een openbaar toegankelijk symposium georganiseerd, van 15.00 tot 17.00 uur, met als titel: OFFSHORE (WIND): KANSEN VOOR MARITIEME PROFESSIONALS

jaarverslag. Tijdens de jaarvergadering ontvangt u een harde kopie van het jaarverslag. Het verslag is ook op de Nautilus website terug te vinden.

Bij agendapunt 4 Verkiezingen Raad van Advies Omdat de zittingstermijn van ongeveer de helft van de Nautilus Raad van Advies leden afloopt, zullen er dit jaar verkiezingen plaats vinden. Vastgesteld is dat de huidige indeling In kader van Jobs, Skills and the Future van de kiesgroepen toe is aan revisie. Zo Dit symposium staat geheel in het teken van is bijvoorbeeld de kiesgroep Maroff in de de Energietransitie. En de impact daarvan ook loop der tijd dusdanig gekrompen dat een op kansen en mogelijkheden voor met name aparte kiesgroep voor de Maroff niet meer te Nederlandse maritieme professionals. Want rechtvaardigen is. bij duurzaam omgaan met energie past ook Nautilus algemeen secretaris Charley duurzaam omgaan met werknemers. Of ze Ramdas: ‘Tevens is er wat nauwkeuriger nu werkzaam zijn in de Off shore olie en gas, gekeken naar de kiesgroepen ‘Wal’ en de Off shore Wind en/of de Waterbouw.

‘Scheepsgezellen’. Wat opviel was dat de Welke toekomstscenario’s kiesgroep ‘Scheepsgezellen’ inmiddels ‘Hoe staat het liggen er klaar? En hoe staat enigszins ‘vervuild’ is geraakt, met met de om- en het met de om- en bijschol posities waarvan je je kunt afvragen bijscholingsmosmogelijkheden van of ze wel onder deze kiesgroep thuis gelijkheden in de werknemers in bijvoorbeeld horen, zoals bijvoorbeeld duikers.

Waterbouw- en in de Offshore olie en de Waterbouw- en in de Daarnaast is vastgesteld dat het gas sector?’

Off shore olie en gas sector? aantal leden onder de kiesgroep Binnenkort wordt het walmedewerkers inmiddels ook geen definitieve programma bekend aparte kiesgroep meer rechtvaardigt. Deze gemaakt. U kunt zich nu al opgeven voor dit constateringen leiden tot het idee om symposium, via: mschmidt@nautilusint.org de kiesgroep ‘Wal’ om te vormen tot de kiesgroep’ OC’ (overige categorieën). En daar Agenda Jaarvergadering onder andere naast de wal medewerkers Het bestuur nodigt alle Nautilus leden de groep leden onder te brengen die graag uit voor de jaarvergadering van de vrijkomt na het opschonen van de kiesgroep Nederlandse branch.

Scheepsgezellen. Onder de kiesgroep vallen De agenda ia als volgt: ook de studenten en stagiairs.

1. Opening door voorzitter Marcel van den De meerderheid van de Nautilus Raad van Broek Advies heeft hier inmiddels een positief advies 2. Bestuursverslag van het gevoerde beleid in over afgegeven. Indien de jaarvergadering 2017 dit advies volgt dan ontstaat de volgende 3. Financieel jaarverslag zetelverdeling: 4. Verkiezing leden Raad van Advies Zetelverdeling 5. Wat verder ter tafel komt.

De zetelverdeling afgezet tegen de Bij agendapunt 2 verkiezingsjaren 2018 en 2020 komt er na de Het verslag van het gevoerde beleid in 2017 introductie van de voornoemde aanpassingen zal het bestuur doen aan de hand van het als volgt uit te zien:

Kapiteins en stuurlieden Werktuigkundigen Scheepsgezellen OC (overige categorieën) Binnenvaart Pensioen- en uitkeringsgerechtigden

2018 2 zetels

2020 3 zetels

1 zetel 0 zetels 1 zetel

1 zetel 1 zetel 1 zetel

0 zetels 5 zetels

2 zetels 0 zetels

Wat hier opvalt is dat voor allen in de kiesgroep ‘gepensioneerden en uitkeringsgerechtigden’ het tijdstip van de (her)verkiezingen telkens in het zelfde jaar komt te vallen. Dat is niet optimaal voor het behoud van kennis en kunde in deze groep omdat in het slechtste geval alle leden uit die kiesgroep niet zouden kunnen gaan voor herverkiezing. Daarom zal aan de jaarvergadering worden voorgesteld om tijdens de komende verkiezingen 3 zetels uit deze kiesgroep te laten vervullen voor een periode van 4 jaar en de overige zetels voor 2 jaar.

Schema van Raad van Advies van verkiesbare posities en kandidaten Inmiddels is de sluitingsdatum van kandidaatstelling verstreken en hebben de volgende personen zich gekandideerd: Kiesgroep kapiteins en stuurlieden: Chris Kuiken en Joris van Vuuren Kiesgroep Werktuigkundigen: 1 Vacature Kiesgroep Scheepsgezellen: Geen vacature Kiesgroep Overige Categorieën: Caro Cordesben Roel Ballieux Kiesgroep Binnenvaart: Geen vacature Kiesgroep Pensioen-en uitkeringsgerechtigden: Willem Kwak en 4 vacatures Na de sluitingstermijn van de kandidaatstelling blijkt dat voor de kiesgroepen Werktuigkundigen (1) en Pensioen- en uitkeringsgerechtigden (4) nog vacatures zijn.

Uiteraard zal het bestuur de komende tijd op zoek gaan naar geschikte kandidaten.

Geen voorstellen van de leden Er zijn geen voorstellen door de leden ingediend.

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B O E I E N D M A R I -T I M E / N E S S Y M P O S I U M I N L E E U W A R D E N

NIEUWE REGELGEVING NODIG VOOR AUTONOME SCHEPEN MELD U SNEL AAN

‘Autonoom varen komt eraan. Technisch kan het allemaal. Maar qua regelgeving moet er nog wel wat gebeuren. Dat is duidelijk. En daar moeten we gewoon met elkaar aan gaan werken. Nationaal en internationaal. Ruim 100 jaar geleden kregen we stoomschepen en hadden we internationaal recht gebaseerd op zeilschepen. Toen is het ook gelukt qua nieuwe regelgeving. En ik zie niet in waarom dat nu niet zou lukken.’

Dit stelde Welmoed van der Velde, lector Maritime Law aan de NHL Stenden Hogeschool, tijdens haar lezing op het Mari-Time/NES symposium, gehouden op 23 maart jongstleden, op de vestiging Leeuwarden.

Tweetrapsraket ‘We hebben uiteraard te maken met onder meer aanpassingen in: de wet Zeevarenden, de IMO regelgeving, SOLAS, aansprakelijkheidsregels, de Collission Regulations, etc. Dat kost de nodige tijd ja, maar we moeten er gewoon mee aan de bak met elkaar. Ik zie het als een tweetrapsraket. Een eerste stap zou kunnen zijn het ontwikkelen van

Veel maritieme studenten lieten zich uitgebreid voorlichten op de bedrijvenmarkt

nieuwe richtlijnen voor de huidige regelgeving.

Een volgende stap wordt dan het opstellen van een nieuw internationaal verdrag over autonoom varen. Deze dag alleen al stimuleert mij tot het gezamenlijk -als bedrijfsleven, lectoraat en studenten- doen van verder onderzoek hierin.’

De ruim 130 aanwezigen lieten zich deze dag ook verder informeren over zaken als: • Accelerated Concept Design • Collission Avoidance 2.0 • Visie op toekomst Computer Aided Ship Design

OR-CONTACTDAG OP 16 MEI IN ROTTERDAM Op woensdag 16 mei 2018 wordt alweer voor de 11e keer de OR-contactdag gehouden, georganiseerd door advocatenkantoor Wybenga en Nautilus International.

Net zoals vorig jaar wordt de OR-Contactdag gehouden op een bijzondere mooie locatie, namelijk: Wouter Kramer: ‘Wij zoeken sponsors voor de Nessie III’

STC Training- & Simulatorcentrum Wilhelminakade 701, 3072 AP Rotterdam

• Bestaat de scheepsbouwer nog in 2025?

Bedrijvenmarkt Ook de gelijktijdig gehouden bedrijvenmarkt, met tal van innovatieve stands van onder meer C-Job, Damen Schelde Naval Shipbuiding en Royal Huisman Shipyard werd drukbezocht. Vooral ook door tal van studenten van de NHL Hogeschool.

De dag werd mede georganiseerd door de Studievereniging Navigo Ergo Sum.

De contactdag is een uitgelezen mogelijkheid het contact tussen Ondernemingsraden en Nautilus International aan te halen en met elkaar van gedachten te wisselen. Ter afsluiting krijgen de deelnemers een hapje / drankje aangeboden in Hotel New York.

NESSIE III zoekt sponsors NessCie lid Wouter Kramer, probeerde, samen met Luite Bolhuis, Eric Leegwater en Jan-Lourens Tolsma, op de bedrijvenmarkt bezoekers enthousiast te maken voor de nieuw te bouwen NESSIE III. Het verenigingsschip van Studievereniging Navigo Ergo Sum. Wouter: ‘Het gaat het hier om een sloepje, hoofdzakelijk ontworpen om in de Leeuwarder grachten te varen. Zo zijn de kruiphoogte, lengte en andere parameters zo gekozen dat dit, op een veilige manier, precies in de Leeuwarder grachten past. We proberen het schip zo duurzaam mogelijk te maken. Zo wordt er onder andere gekeken naar varen op waterstof en naar een romp van recyclebare plastics. Maar bovenal zoeken we nog enkele sponsors, om ons mooie plan echt te realiseren!’

Sponsors kunnen zich melden bij: nessie@svnes.nl

Het programma ziet er als volgt uit: 09.30 uur Ontvangst / inloop / koffie 10.00 uur Welkom / inleiding dagvoorzitter Hans Walthie 10.15 uur WOR updates • uitspraken in de maritieme sector 11.30 uur Koffiepauze 11.45 uur De algemene verordening gegevensbescherming (AVG) • algemene rechten en verplichtingen voor ondernemingen • advies- en instemmingsrecht OR 13.00 uur LUNCH 13.45 uur De OR en onderhandelen over een sociaal plan en/of cao.

14.15 uur Interactief deel in het kader van onderhandelen met de ondernemer over een sociaal plan / cao.

16.00 uur Discussie & evaluatie 16.30 uur Borrel ter afsluiting – Hotel New York Deelname aan de OR-contactdag is kosteloos. Meld u snel aan via: infonl@ nautilusint.org

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R E C RU I T M E N T

DEEP SEA & COASTAL PILOTS LIMITED We currently have several vacancies for full time Deep Sea Pilots and are looking to recruit Masters with a valid STCW II/2.

You will need to have a minimum of three years deep sea command experience and be required to meet the criteria for Certification by the UK Trinity House. A knowledge of the English Channel/North European water will be of requirement to your application.

All applicants will be required to attain a valid license issued by Trinity House (London, Newcastle or Hull).

We are primarily looking for candidates who reside in the UK. All applicants must have existing EU working entitlement and be able to demonstrate a legal right to take up residence in the UK. Applications to be sent to seapilots@dscp.net for the attention of Chris Brooks.

For background on our company profile please refer to www.deepseapilots.com

Find your ultimate job at sea or ashore an average of

jobs.nautilusint.org Nautilus International Jobs is the official jobs board for Nautilus International

224

jobs posted every month on Nautilus jobs

Fleetwood Boating Lake Rescue Mariners working throughout the world have been taught sea rescue and survival techniques at Fleetwood Nautical Campus – and can attest to the high standard of training they received in the College’s outstanding facilities.

five-month-old baby sister, which was situated some distance from the edge of the lake, rolled in and became fully submerged.

The team of staff and students nearby heard the screams and leapt into action.

ambulance arrived to take them to hospital for a check up.

John said: “We were running the Personal Survival Craft and Rescue Boats course in the classroom here at the lake at the time, which is all to do with survival training.

As well as a 49-year career at the nautical campus, lecturer John Bradbury has worked with HM Coastguard for 37 years while colleague David Jordan has more than two decades experience working with the RNLI. And this month a group of staff and students found out that you never know when those skills will be called into action.

A class from the campus were at the College’s facility on Fleetwood Boating Lake undertaking lifesaving training when a family got into difficulty nearby.

A four-year-old girl fell into the water while crabbing and her mum went in to rescue her.

However, the pram holding her

They arrived on the scene and found the two children were already back on dry land but the mother was unable to get out of the lake. They pulled her to safety and got the whole family back to the College facility to dry off and get warm.

Colleague Graham Williamson contacted an ambulance and helped cadet Phil Devoy, who has previous paediatric care training, to support the family until an

“We heard a loud scream and realised there was a commotion going on so we all sprinted down the quay to where it was happening. We didn’t know what was going on at first but soon realised a disaster was unfolding.

“We all work in the Maritime area at the College and deliver many courses which have elements related to personal safety and safety at sea, as well as backgrounds working with the RNLI and the Coastguard, so we were well prepared to help.

“When you work in this area you have the skills and training to provide assistance in rescue situations. We’re just pleased we were able to help and the family were all ok.”

Since the incident, dad Antony Gilderdale returned to the scene on Tuesday to thank the team and give a £50 donation to the staff members’ chosen charity.

CONTACT US T 01253 504800 E offshore@blackpool.ac.uk WWW.BLACKPOOL.AC.UK/OFFSHORE

Contact us... nautilusjobs@redactive.co.uk / 020 7880 6212

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Nautilus Plus makes membership of the Union even better value for money – giving you access to an unrivalled range of benefits and discounts which have been designed to support members both personally and professionally.

FREE case of craft beers from Beer52 Claim your exclusive free case of beer (worth £24) from Beer52! Eight incredible craft beers, the 100-page Ferment Magazine and a tasty snack.

All you need to pay is postage and packaging.

This month’s highlights include:

What’s more, you’ll enter a special pricing plan giving you 10% off every month’s selection of craft beer going forwards.*

Enjoy a 10% discount on Forest Holidays Escape to one of nine idyllic UK locations and stay in a luxurious woodland cabin with private hot tub*. g Log in to nautilusint.org/nautilusplus or call +44 (0)3330 110 495 and quote NAUTILUS17

Home cover for ‘unoccupancy’ up to 90 days in a year Nautilus Plus offers members special home insurance cover that reflects the fact that you may be away from home for long periods. With standard ‘unoccupancy’ for up to 90 days in a year, and the ability to extend this to suit your needs, make your enquiry today: call Members’ Insurance Solutions (Cornmarket Insurance Services) on +44 (0)2890 44 2 206 and quote ‘Nautilus’.

Great savings on Apple products Nautilus members can make savings on a wide range of Apple products including iPad, iPhone, iPod, MacBook Air, MacBook Pro, iMac, Apple Watch, and Magic accessories.

You can now order online and arrange to collect most items from your chosen Apple Retail Store – usually within an hour.*

g To access these benefits and more, log in to nautilusint.org/nautilusplus g *Terms and conditions apply to all benefits. See website for details. Forest Holidays – the 10% discount applies to the cabin price only and not any extras.

May not be used in conjunction with any other offer and cannot be applied retrospectively. Forest Holidays reserves the right to withdraw this offer at any time. Apple – annual purchase limits apply. Discounts are subject to availability. For the latest offers visit the Apple EPP store. Beer52 – full terms at www.beer52.com/terms.

g For more information, log in to Nautilus Plus

Nautilus Plus is managed on behalf of Nautilus by Parliament Hill Ltd.

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TA K E 5

Telegraph prize crossword The winner of this month’s cryptic crossword competition will win a copy of the book British Paddle Steamers: The Twilight Years by John Megoran (reviewed on the books pages).

To enter, simply send us the completed crossword, along with your name and address, 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.

Closing date is Wednesday 9 May 2018.

QUICK CLUES Across 1 Start to story (4,4,1,4) 10 Fit (7) 11 Edible stalks (7) 12 Semi-fact (4-5) 13 Male name (5) 14 Made softer (6) 15 Female name (8) 18 Bird (8) 20 Shipping line (6) 23 Diving (5) 25 Soviet reformer (9) 26 Greek region (7) 27 Hair stylist (7) 28 Bicycle (5-8) Down 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 16 17 19 21 22 24

Got snug (7) Performance (9) Arrive (4,2) Hemisphere (8) Support (5) Noxious (7) Request (4,4,1,4) Piano keys (5,3,5) Easily upset (9) Cross-country skiing (8) Paint (7) Ancient Greek (7) Rather have (6) Shakespearean Forest (5)

CRYPTIC CLUES Across 1 Resorted to help by clerk at decryption centre (9,4) 10 Blaze trail with ratio of circumference to diameter, lowest cardinal and the Queen (7) 11 Ruler sounds fair – oh (7) 12 Composed a solo in it as appropriate (9) 13 Limited over cricket match, with a little hesitation, creates revulsion (5) 14 Put on weight but staff at tennis

15 18

20 23 25 26 27 28

tournament keep it hidden (6) Disturb peacekeepers then colonise (8) “A double blessing is a double grace; --- smiles upon a second leave” (Hamlet) (8) Credit union and pink paper put on second canine show (6) Thirty nine of which first appeared in nineteen fifteen (5) Fail to win with nothing in it after walker appears free to roam (9) Tar makes snake pull up (7) Support to get jockey pumped (7) Trade in illegal crossword squares, this one a road management device (7,6)

Down 2 Be on the alert for broken watch (4,3) 3 They’d agree nest no longer what it was (9) 4 Figuring prominently in adversity the female’s ring in charge (6) 5 Thrown open next to advocate (8) 6 The soft keys (5) 7 Madrid football team appear first to a non-romantic (7) 8 Full tax rebate for all – when’s that then? (5,5,3) 9 They have stacks to brush up on (7,6) 16 Registration process in some small measure down to the Stones (9) 17 Papers thrown by study cover iron cycle race on small Island (8) 19 Ivy’s bordello shoe (7) 21 Hoof ailment spread round fort too (4,3) 22 Put Nazi group in to prevent sedimentary impression (6) 24 Antonio Montana loses trump card but gets warmer (5)

Crossword answers are on page 66.

Quick quiz

Back in time 50 years ago The number of British seafarers has fallen by around 30,000 over the last eight years and will continue to decline further as a result of bigger new ships coming into service with smaller crew levels, a House of Lords debate was told — The Telegraph, May 1968

revise minimum manning rules to ensure that they reflect actual, rather than theoretical, shipboard workloads. The Union says commercial operating patterns of ships should be recognised when crew levels are assessed — The Telegraph, May 1993

25 years ago

10 years ago

NUMAST has urged the Department of Transport to

The International Maritime Employers’ Committee is

exploring new sources of seafarer supply in response to evidence that the shortage of skilled and experienced officers is growing faster than expected. Vietnam is being used in a pilot project to examine the potential for developing new seafarer training areas, it revealed last month — The Telegraph, May 2008

1. Roughly how many offshore support vessels are currently cold-stacked around the world?

2. Which container shipping company has the biggest orderbook at present, in terms of ship numbers?

3. Royal Caribbean’s Symphony of the Seas came into service last month, claiming to be the world’s biggest cruiseship. How many passengers and crew can the vessel carry?

4. What is the most common ship type in the world merchant fleet?

5. Roughly how many ships visit the port of Singapore every year?

6. In which year was the Fred Olsen Line founded?

Quiz answers can be found on page 66.

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PE OPL E

THE FACE OF NAUTILUS Allan G Graveson, raveson, ssenior eniior n national ational ssecretary ecretary

eading figures from the UK recognition for electro-technical officers. shipping industry, maritime As the European Transport Workers’ education and training, and Federation representative to the seafarer unions and welfare International Labour Organisation (ILO), he organisations have paid a fond farewell contributed significantly to the adoption to Nautilus senior national secretary Allan of The Work in Fishing Convention (ILO188) Graveson, who retired at the end of March. and to the publication of the ILO Guidelines for Having served at sea between 1973 and 1993, Implementing the occupational safety and health he then spent 20 years with the Union, leading provisions of the MLC. its professional and technical work at national, Domestically, Allan played a pivotal part in the Allan Graveson European and international levels. His role is development of modern and relevant standards WORKED FOR THE being taken over by Nautilus professional and for the training and certification of UK seafarers as UNION FOR 20 YEARS technical officer David Appleton. chair of the Merchant Navy Training Board technical AND IN THE INDUSTRY FOR FOUR DECADES The young Allan Graveson trained at South committee and as co-chair of the National Maritime Shields Marine School and took his cadetship Occupational Health and Safety Committee. He was with CP Ships, serving with the presented with the Merchant company until he obtained his Navy Medal last year for his master's certificate in 1988. He services to seafarer training, then went on to work on a wide welfare and safety. variety of vessels – including the At a special retirement Harwich-Hook of Holland ferry event held on HQS Wellington – whilst studying for a degree in central London, Nautilus in Business Studies and then an general secretary Mark MSc in International Transport Dickinson told guests: ‘Allan at the University of Wales. has given two decades of In 1993, Allan came ashore dedicated and devoted service, and obtained a position as a lecturer at Warsash Maritime displaying unbridled passion and determination to serve Academy, where he taught masters, officers and cadets. He the best interests of seafarers’ health, safety and welfare. rose to the post of academic head of the deck section, with He will leave a huge hole for all of us at Nautilus. His drive responsibility for course content and design, incorporating and determination, together with an absolute refusal to SOLAS, MARPOL and STCW, before joining the Nautilus compromise on principles, are an example to us all, and we’ll predecessor union NUMAST in 1998. miss him deeply.’

His work since then has included serving as representative ‘I look back with a great deal of pleasure at the great time I to the International Maritime Organisation (IMO) for the have had working in this fabulous industry, and I have really International Federation of Ship Masters' Associations (IFSMA). enjoyed working for Nautilus,’ Allan said. ‘The industry has At the IMO, he was deeply involved in such important initiatives changed massively in the 45 years since I started work, and I as the 2010 Manila amendments to the STCW convention – am leaving at a very interesting time, with changes that we helping to secure the long-awaited training and certification could never have imagined before.’

L

'I look back with pleasure at the

great time I have had working in this fabulous industry, and I have really enjoyed working for Nautilus'

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AT T H E B A C K

Member meetings and seminars

College contacts

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.

Nautilus International organises regular meetings, forums and seminars for members to discuss technical matters, maritime policies and legal issues. Coming up in the next few months are:

Induction visits See www.nautilusint.org event section for dates of upcoming college visits by the Nautilus recruitment team.

For further information, email recruitment@nautilusint.org or call Martyn Gray on +44 (0)151 639 8454.

Your enquiry will then be directed to the relevant industrial organiser for your employer/sponsoring company.

Professional & Technical Forum 4 September 2018 in Belfast at a venue to be confirmed The forum deals with a wide range of technical, safety, welfare and other professional topics.

All full members are welcome.

To attend, contact Sue Willis: +44 (0)20 8530 1660 protech@nautilusint.org Young Maritime Professionals Forum TBA in October 2018 For members under 35. To attend, contact Danny McGowan: +44 (0)20 8989 6677 ymp@nautilusint.org

Women’s Forum TBA in October 2018 This forum provides guidance to Nautilus Council on the challenges facing women in the industry and encourages female participation in Union activity. All female members welcome.

To register your interest, call or email Lisa Carr: +44 (0)20 8989 6677 women@nautilusint.org

Industrial support for cadets An industrial official is appointed to each of the main nautical colleges.

Pensions MNOPF member forums provide a focal point for members to discuss and ask questions about the cross-industry maritime pension schemes.

Contact Nautilus International Nautilus International welcomes contact from members at any time.

Please send a message to one of our offices around the world (details below) or use the Nautilus 24/7 service in an emergency.

For other 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.

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 UK 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 Netherlands office • 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 Switzerland office Gewerkschaftshaus, Rebgasse 1 4005 Basel, Switzerland Tel: +41 (0)61 262 24 24 Fax: +41 (0)61 262 24 25 infoch@nautilusint.org

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 should contact Danny McGowan at ymp@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 Sovren Crew (formerly Dovaston Crew) Carrer de Versalles 9A, 07015, Palma de Mallorca, Spain Tel: +34 971 677 375 recruitment@nautilusint.org www.sovrencrew.com Nautilus 24/7 Out of European office hours, members of Nautilus International and the Nautilus Federation unions can contact our round-the-clock assistance service by phone, text or online: • Go to www.nautilusint.org and click on the Nautilus 24/7 link to access our Live chat instant messaging service.

You’ll also find a list of freephone numbers from 45 countries that you can use to call us free of charge.

• Send an SMS text message to +44 (0)7860 017 119 and we’ll reply.

• Email us at helpline@nautilus247.org.

• Reach us via Skype (username nautilus-247).

Next MNOPF member forum: 9 May 2018, 10am Radisson Blu Cardiff Bute Terrace Cardiff CF10 2FL Tea and coffee will be available from 10am, with the main presentation starting between 10.30am and 11am.

Afterwards, a light buffet lunch will be served, during which you can meet the MNOPF trustee chair and the MNOPF executive team.

Please register in advance online via www.mnopf.co.uk – scroll down to the Events section on the homepage – or call +44 (0)20 3150 0850.

Quiz and crossword answers – from our brain teasers on page 64 QUICK QUIZ

QUICK CROSSWORD

1. According to the industry analysts Clarksons Research, around 1,100 offshore support vessels are currently cold-stacked globally.

2. Evergreen has the biggest orderbook for new containerships ‒ a total of 45 as at 1 March 2018.

3. Symphony of the Seas can carry up to 6,680 passengers and 2,200 crew.

4. General cargo ships are the most common ship type ‒ accounting for around one-third of the world merchant fleet.

5. On average, the port of Singapore attracts 130,000 vessel calls annually.

6. The Fred Olsen Line was founded in 1838 by the Norwegian shipmaster Frederick Christian Olsen.

Across: 1. Once upon a time; 10. Install; 11. Rhubarb; 12. Half-truth; 13. Simon; 14. Padded; 15. Griselda; 18. Nightjar; 20. Cunard; 23. Scuba; 25. Gorbachev; 26 Arcadia; 27. Friseur; 28. Penny-farthing.

Down: 2. Nestled; 3. Enactment; 4. Pull up; 5. Northern; 6. Truss; 7. Miasmal; 8. Wish upon a star; 9. Ebony and ivory; 16. Squeamish; 17. Langlauf; 19. Gouache; 21. Achaean; 22. Prefer; 24. Arden.

CRYPTIC CROSSWORD Each month, the cryptic crossword is a prize competition, and the answers appear in the following Telegraph. Congratulations to Nautilus member Tony Tibbott, who was first out of the hat in April. Here are the answers to last month’s cryptic crossword: Across: 1. Carpet; 4. Pippin; 9. Boil; 10. Upholstery; 11. Muesli; 12. King Lear; 13. Lend-lease; 15. Once; 16. Ural; 17. Gentleman; 21. Assessor; 22. Augean; 24. Exorbitant; 25. Acid; 26. Excite; 27. Groove.

Down: 1. Closure; 2. Rolls; 3. Erudite; 5. Island; 6. Petulance; 7. Narrate; 8. Shakespearean; 14. Diametric; 16. Unsex me; 18. Tractor; 19. Avarice; 20. Assist; 23.Guano.

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Wherever you are, join today so we can be there for you!

Photo by ANDREW WALDER Nautilus member Winner of the Nautilus International photography competition

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.

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 Ship Masters’ 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.

Join us today…

Workplace support Nautilus International officials provide expert advice on workrelated 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 £122,300, against the loss of income if their certificate of competency is cancelled, suspended or downgraded following a formal inquiry.

Call

+44 (0)151 639 8454

Visit www.nautilusint.org Email membership@nautilusint.org g To see the full range of member benefits, visit www.nautilusint.org g Speak to our membership team on +44 (0)151 639 8454

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.

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.

Your union, your voice The Union represents the voice of more than 22,000 maritime professionals working in all sectors of the industry at sea and ashore – including inland navigation, large yachts, deepsea and offshore.

For members, by members Nautilus International is a dynamic and democratic trade union offering members many opportunities to become actively involved and have your say – at a local, national and international level.

Join now

Call now to join Nautilus: UK: +44 (0)151 639 8454 NL: +31 (0)10 477 11 88 CH: +41 (0)61 262 24 24 May 2018 67 nautilusint.org

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smm-hamburg.com /trailer

the leading international maritime trade fair

53

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ha 33´ 47 ˝ mb N, 9 ur ° 58´ 3 g 3˝ E

setting a course 4 – 7 sept 2018 hamburg 3 sept

Maritime Future Summit

4 sept

TradeWinds Shipowners Forum

5 sept

gmec, global maritime environmental congress

6 sept

Offshore Dialogue

6–7 sept

MS&D, international conference on maritime security and defence

7 sept

Maritime Career Market

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