Nautilus Telegraph October 2015

Channel crossed Australian union official swims for seafarer charity 35

Meet the cadets Trainees tell the world about their sea experiences 27

NL nieuws Drie pagina’s met nieuws uit Nederland 32-34

Volume 48 | Number 10 | October 2015 | £3.50 €3.70

Study urges action to tackle growing UK skills shortage Nautilus calls for ministers to act urgently to implement Maritime Growth Study proposals

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Nautilus International has welcomed the publication last month of the UK government’s Maritime Growth Study — and is calling for ministers to act urgently to implement its recommendations.

The 137-page report followed an extensive industry-wide consultation on ways in which the UK can maintain its position as a world-leading maritime centre.

It sets out 18 recommendations on issues ranging from seafarer training to reform of the Maritime & Coastguard Agency (MCA) and the UK Ship Register (UKSR), and promoting the maritime sector.

Study chairman Lord Mountevans said the report was a ‘call to arms to industry and government to actively support and raise the profile of a vital sector that contributes significantly to the economy and which the nation relies on to meet its daily needs’.

Describing the study as ‘a hugely important document’, transport secretary Patrick McLoughlin promised that the government would work with the industry ‘to ensure we do all we can to keep Britain a great maritime nation’.

Nautilus general secretary Mark Dickinson commented: ‘This is a very welcome and muchneeded report which provides a clear message about the critical importance of the UK maritime sector and the worrying scale of the challenge it faces.

‘Nautilus commends the government for commissioning the report and for sending out a strong statement of its commitment to the maritime sector. We stand ready to work with ministers and other industry partners to translate the report’s recommendations into the positive actions and proactive policies

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Merchant Navy Day was marked across the UK last month. Pictured, left to right, flying the flag at Tower Bridge in London are: Captain Rob Booth, Senior Warden, Honourable Company of Master Mariners; Merchant Navy Welfare Board chairman Bob Jones; Trinity House deputy master Captain Ian McNaught; former First Sea Lord The Rt Hon Lord West of Spithead; the Lord Mayor of London, Alderman Alan Yarrow; Seafarers UK chairman Vice-Admiral Peter Wilkinson; Marine Society & Sea Cadets chairman Captain Nigel Palmer; UK Chamber of Shipping CEO Guy Platten; and former shipping minister Jim Fitzpatrick ‒ see page 18 for more reports.

that the sector needs,’ he added.

The study identifies three main areas where coordinated action by government and industry are needed — leadership, skills and marketing.

It argues for measures to create ‘a more commercial and responsive UK maritime administration within government’ — including changes to the focus and culture of the MCA and the UKSR, and the creation of a single, industry-wide promotional body to raise the sector’s domestic profile and ‘effectively market the UK abroad as a

place for maritime business’.

The report points to evidence of a growing gap between supply and demand for skilled seafarers, and warns that the opportunities to expand the UK maritime sector will be ‘severely undermined’ without a strong pool of expertise.

It says more work needs to be done to assess future needs for UK seafarers, and calls for the proposed industry-wide body to develop a ‘skills strategy’ to address these issues. The study recommends a fresh review to

ensure the government’s Support for Maritime Training scheme is ‘fit for purpose’ and proposes the creation of a Maritime Skills Investment Fund to coordinate various programmes to assist seafarer training and to encourage more maritime businesses to contribute to the costs.

Mr Dickinson said he welcomed the fact that half of the recommendations address maritime skills. ‘We are pleased to see that the study reflects many of the points that we presented in our evidence —not least the fun-

damental role of seafaring skills in underpinning so many aspects of the multi-billion maritime sector,’ he added.

‘Our London International Shipping Week seminar on shore demand for experienced seafarers highlighted the serious threat facing the UK maritime cluster as a consequence of more than two decades of inadequate recruitment into the industry and we believe it is essential that the government acts without delay on the report’s recommendations.

‘However, we are concerned that there is nothing in the report to provide more financial support for seafarer training and employment and that difficult decisions may be kicked into the long grass,’ Mr Dickinson said.

‘The report seems to suggest that the skills gap is all about marketing,’ he noted. ‘However, the reality is that there is no shortage of young people wanting to go to sea — instead there is a lack of sufficient training opportunities for them.’

Mr Dickinson said the UK should pay close attention to the policies adopted in the Netherlands, which have delivered fleet growth and increased seafarer employment and training. ‘There is a lot we can learn from the action being taken in other countries and the Dutch model is one that the UK could do well to consider,’ he pointed out.

Mr Dickinson said Nautilus also has reservations about the proposals to reform the MCA and the UKSR. ‘There is undoubtedly a case for change,’ he said, ‘but great care should be taken to ensure that the traditional values of the Merchant Navy and the red ensign’s quality reputation are not watered down in the scramble to compete with other registers.’ g Full report — see page 21.

Seminar puts spotlight on shore threat maritime services will be F lost unless effective action is taken Britain’s global lead in

to boost UK seafarer training and employment, Nautilus warned on the first day of London International Shipping Week last month.

Opening a high-level seminar to put the spotlight on shore-based demand for experienced seafarers, general secretary Mark Dickinson warned of a long-term failure to recruit anything near the levels required to meet future needs.

Expert speakers said shore-based companies will face rising costs as the gap between supply and demand grows. And Phil Parry, chairman of the recruitment firm Spinnaker Global, revealed details of a survey carried out with Nautilus showing that almost two-thirds of former seafarers working ashore consider that seagoing experience is essential for their job. g Full report — see pages 22-23.

Inside F Capital ideas

Union plays a full part in London’s international shipping week — pages 19-27 F Future perfect?

New report shows how shipping and seafaring may change in the next 15 years — page 29

F Final frontier?

P&I expert tells how to avoid the risks of enclosed space accidents — page 28

23/09/2015 18:25

02 | telegraph | nautilusint.org | October 2015

NAUTILUS AT WORK

TUC warned over seafarer decline Nautilus urges Congress to support campaign to boost maritime training

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Britain needs to break out of a ‘relentless spiral of decline’ in seafarer employment and training, Nautilus Council member Martyn Gray told the TUC Conference in Brighton last month.

He warned the audience of more than 200 delegates from TUC-affiliated unions that in just three decades the number of British seafarers has slumped from 90,000 to 25,000.

Moving a Nautilus motion highlighting the need for government action to increase the training and employment of British seafarers, he warned: ‘On current trends, a further decline of 20% will be realised by the end of this decade.’

Mr Gray said the statistics should shock and shame the nation. ‘British seafarers matter,’ he pointed out. ‘Not just for the safe carriage of cargo and passengers, but also for the future of our wider maritime industries and services.’

Without a continued supply of experienced seafarers, the UK’s maritime cluster — which contributes around £12bn a year to the UK economy and supports the employment of around half a million people — will face a bleak future, he warned.

Mr Gray said Britain is very fond of celebrating its maritime heritage, but in revelling in the past it often overlooks its maritime present — and ignores the

TU Bill ‘is worst attack on unions in 30 years’ O’Grady condemned the A government’s Trade Union Bill

TUC general secretary Frances

Nautilus delegate Martyn Gray addresses the TUC conference last month Picture: Andrew Wiard

ever-present need for a sustainable maritime future.

With forecasts that world seaborne trade will double over the next 15 years, shipping is far from a sunset industry, he argued.

‘Why, then, should British seafarers become an endangered species?’

Mr Gray said the UK government needs to act against unfair competition and substandard working conditions at sea. ‘If we are to break out of this spiral of decline and train the next genera-

tion of British seafarers, we must start by better protecting employment rights in the industry,’ he added.

The motion was supported

by RMT delegate Ian Boyle, who works for the Royal Fleet Auxiliary. He pointed out that British seafarers are often excluded from employment legislation — including rules covering the minimum wage and equal opportunities.

‘This means that some of the ships sailing around the UK

coast are paying their seafarers as little as £2.30 an hour,’ he said.

‘Many are working 12 hours days for three months on low wages whilst shipping companies take all the profits.’

The motion — which was unanimously supported by delegates — called on the TUC to support the maritime unions in persuading the UK government to implement policies to increase the training and employment of British seafarers by UK ship operators.

Union calls for strategy to protect vital skills from offshore cutbacks F

Plunging petrol prices may have cut household bills — but they have also put more than 65,000 North Sea workers out of a job, Nautilus national secretary Steve Doran told the TUC conference.

‘There’s no disputing that the slump is bad — it’s the worst I can remember,’ he said. ‘However, operators are using the situation to undermine existing terms and conditions and safety measures, and many workers are paying the price.’

Moving a Nautilus motion on the North Sea, Mr Doran told delegates that the sector remains critically important to the UK, providing more than 70% of the country’s energy needs and contributing more than £316bn in taxes since 1970.

‘It is therefore essential that the sector is protected from short-term cuts that could create long-term damage,’ he added. ‘Short-sighted cost-cutting is bad for employees, bad for business, bad for the UK economy and bad for safety.’

Mr Doran called on the TUC to support the offshore industry and join Nautilus in urging the government to

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TUC general secretary Frances O’Grady Picture: Andrew Wiard

Steve Doran warned of the threat to North Sea jobs Picture: Andrew Wiard

adopt measures to protect skills and experience in the sector.

‘The offshore industry is vital to the nation and we believe that the government must do more to safeguard the sector’s skills and keep the UK Continental Shelf competitive,’ he added. ‘The quick fixes adopted by government so far have done little to incentivise the industry to take a longer term view.

‘Ministers must develop a holistic and far-reaching strategy that will protect workers and ensure that safety and training standards are maintained, whilst also helping the UK offshore sector to transition into renewables,’ he argued. ‘Operators should be working with unions to preserve skills and safety standards rather than imposing unsustainable changes on workers’ conditions.’

The motion, which was accepted, was supported by RMT member Ian Boyle, who reminded the audience that it was 27 years since the Piper Alpha disaster and 25 since the subsequent Cullen Report, which introduced a wide range of safety improvements in the industry.

‘In the last six years alone there have been five offshore accidents, and instead of the culture of continuous improvement recommended by the Cullen report, there have been cutbacks and growing lists of safetycritical work needed,’ he said.

‘We must act before it is too late.

We must protect jobs and ensure companies put safety before profit.’

The motion was also supported by the airline pilots’ union BALPA. Its delegate John Moore said that one company his union deals with in the offshore sector had already cut 40% of helicopter pilot jobs.

‘Employers are cutting jobs, freezing pay and implementing other painful cost-cutting measures,’ he said. ‘There is no proper plan to maintain the high skills base which underpins the success of the sector.’

proposals in her keynote speech to this year’s Congress.

She described the proposed legislation as ‘the biggest attack in 30 years’ — with vindictive restrictions on the very principle of the right to strike, restrictions on lawful protests and pickets, and limits on the time that reps can spend looking after members.

Without the right to strike, there would not be safe workplaces, paid holidays and equal pay, Ms O’Grady pointed out. ‘Of course, no one takes the decision to strike lightly.

It’s the route of last resort — when your employer just won’t talk, won’t negotiate, won’t compromise.’

The conference was also addressed

by Jeremy Corbyn, the new leader of the Labour Party, who told how he had been a union organiser before he became an MP. Good trade union organisation protects people in the workplace, he said, and leads to better pay, better conditions, better salaries, better promotion prospects — and even better management.

And John Bercow became the first speaker of the House of Commons to make a speech to the conference — saying that he was proud to do so.

‘I say that because I respect and admire the invaluable and precious work that you do in promoting fairness in the workplace, and the wider work that you do in pursuit of greater equality across society as a whole,’ he concluded.

TUC urges better SAR in the Med by the TUC general council A calling for the UK government to fulfil

Nautilus supported a statement

its moral and legal obligations to refugees.

The statement noted that people — smugglers are using unsuitable vessels to transport people across the Mediterranean and applauded the merchant seafarers who are upholding safety of life at sea and rescuing thousands in distress — ‘often putting their own health and safety at risk in the process’.

It called for greater resources for humanitarian and maritime search and rescue services on major migration routes and also demanded stronger action by governments and the international community to prevent dangerous sea passages.

Speaking in support of the statement, Nautilus Council member Martyn Gray said seafarers go to sea well aware of the risks — but for refugees fleeing persecution, war and famine in ‘flimsy floating death-traps’ the risks were ‘incalculable’.

He told the TUC that EU governments ignored industry warnings about the risk of changes to search and rescue capacity in the Mediterranean that came into effect at the beginning of the year. ‘They drastically and heartlessly slashed the resources available to render assistance at sea and, as ever, the charity sector has been forced to step in,’ he continued.

Governments should also do much more to combat the horrific trade in people smuggling in unsafe vessels, Mr Gray said. ‘These boats wouldn’t last very long in a paddling pool, let alone being exposed to waves and weather, whilst being sailed with a callous disregard for the international standards for safety at sea,’ he added.

The world should look to the response to the Vietnamese ‘boat people’ crisis in the 1980s, in which a comprehensive plan of action was agreed based upon the international agreements for search and rescue operations, reception and resettlement availability.

Election success for Nautilus Mark Dickinson has been F re-elected to the ruling body of the Nautilus general secretary

TUC for the seventh consecutive year.

He received 237,000 votes in the elections for the seven TUC general council seats reserved for smaller specialist unions.

‘It is an honour to be returned to TUC general council for a further term,’ said Mr Dickinson. ‘I will continue to work to ensure that

maritime issues remain high on the TUC agenda, and that trade union issues such as online voting, which will vastly improve our members’ access to democracy, remain a priority.

‘For a small union, in UK terms, Nautilus continually punches above its weight within the UK trade union movement, and I will work to ensure that this continues to happen,’ he added.

23/09/2015 18:26

October 2015 | nautilusint.org | telegraph | 03

NAUTILUS AT WORK

Fitness checks are vital, top medic tells members MCA doctor questioned on issues including obesity, malaria and diabetes

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Nautilus International members had the chance to question the UK Maritime & Coastguard Agency’s chief medical advisor on issues ranging from fatigue to obesity.

Dr Sally Bell — who served at sea for 13 years as a ship’s doctor — took up the post at the MCA some 18 months ago and spoke to members at the Union’s professional and technical forum in Wallasey last month.

She explained the MCA’s responsibilities for health and safety — including the ENG seafarers’ medical system, the management of the memorandum of understanding on radio-medical advice to ships, medical stores, and the contents of the Ship Captain’s Medical Guide.

Highlighting the ‘catastrophic’ case of a US ferry in which 11 people died and 165 were injured as a consequence of an accident resulting from a pre-existing medical condition suffered by the master, Dr Bell stressed the importance of ensuring that seafarers are fit for their duties.

The 227 MCA-approved doctors carried out 54,000 seafarer medicals last year — and there were just 31 appeals against their findings. ‘This is a pleasing statistic and may reflect the fact that the newer fitness standards, coupled with the guidance to doctors, has delivered a more flexible system that is better understood,’ she explained.

Dr Bell said the MCA has rigorous checks and audits which seek to ensure that medicals are carried out in a consistent way and that seafarers will get the same decision wherever they go.

Common issues raised by the medical system include obesity, hypertension, vascular disease, diabetes, and hip and knee problems. Doctors try to work with seafarers to provide advice on factors

HOURS RISE: the number of people working excessive hours in the UK has risen by 15% since 2010, according to a new TUC analysis. The biggest increases have been in mining and quarrying (64%), agriculture, fishing and forestry (43%), accommodation and food services (36%), health and social work (32%) and education (31%). TUC general secretary Frances O’Grady commented: ‘Britain’s long hours culture is hitting productivity and putting workers’ health at risk. Working more than 48 hours a week massively increases the risk of strokes, heart disease and diabetes.’

DFDS DEAL: following talks at the French transport ministry last month an agreement was reached to end the long-running dispute over the closure of the MyFerryLink service. Under the terms of the deal, unions ended the occupation of two ferries in Calais and DFDS agreed to take on 402 former MFL seafarers and Eurotunnel 130 for the Calais-Dover freight ferry service it plans to operate.

SHORE POINT: high levels of unhappiness with port calls have been revealed in the second seafarer satisfaction survey conducted by the online social network Crewtoo. It found a significant proportion of seafarers expressing concern about the workloads caused by audits and inspections in port, as well as reduced opportunities for shore leave and high costs of getting ashore.

CARD SHARP: the marine insurance firm Seacurus has launched a new scheme to enable seafarers to check that their employers have proper cover in place, in line with Maritime Labour Convention requirements. The Seafarer Assistance Card will give crew members the ability to access details that will allow them to make ‘timely notification’ of claims.

Pictured, left to right, are: professional and technical forum chairman John Thomson, assistant general secretary Marcel van den Broek, forum vice-chairman Clive Evans, senior national secretary Allan Graveson, and MCA chief medical advisor Dr Sally Bell

such as diet and exercise, Dr Bell said, and they will often use risk assessments and functional tests to ensure that seafarers can carry out the tasks expected of them.

A high BMI score — 30 or over — does not mean automatic ENG failure, she stressed. ‘The BMI is not the problem, but it may be the indicator of a problem,’ she explained. ‘We try to keep seafarers in work, but also to help them understand that it is their responsibility as well.’

Questioned by members on the global variations between seafarer medical tests, Dr Bell told the meeting that efforts are being made to harmonise standards.

‘The revision of the ILO guidelines on medical examinations and the STCW Manila amendments

should lead to greater consistency,’ she added.

However, even within Europe there can be discrepancies between national criteria and interpretation of standards in such areas as colour and monocular vision, hearing tests, and obesity, diabetes and epilepsy.

Asked about the risks of malaria, Dr Bell said these change frequently and seafarers should seek up to date advice from travel clinics or specialist websites — such as www.travelhealthpro. org.uk — on the most appropriate protection. Companies also have a responsibility to advise their crews on the potential dangers, she added.

Asked if there was anything she would like to see onboard

ships, Dr Bell said the carriage of malaria testing kits in relevant areas would be the item of equipment she would most welcome.

Blood sugar testing kits would also be useful to determine whether someone was in a diabetic coma, she added.

Dr Bell was also questioned by a UK member who had served on a ship where a foreign seafarer — who was found dead in his cabin — had failed to disclose that he was on medication for a serious condition. She agreed that it can be difficult to prevent such cases, but she warned that withholding such information can render a medical certificate invalid and changes to the medical system may make it easier for seafarers to be truthful about problems.

Worries raised on new STCW rules International professional and technical F forum last month raised concerns over the Members attending the Nautilus

forthcoming STCW requirements for seafarers to undertake refresher training in a number of key areas.

The Manila amendments to the STCW Convention (STCW 2010) — which take effect in January 2017 — will require all seafarers to update some elements of their mandatory STCW safety training.

In the UK, seafarers revalidating their MCA certificate of competency will have to submit certificates to show that they have completed courses such as basic safety training, proficiency in survival craft and rescue boats, and advanced fire-

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fighting within the past five years, or that updating training has been undertaken.

Nautilus senior national secretary Allan Graveson told the meeting that the Union has been urging members to ensure that they attend these courses well ahead of the deadline, because of concerns that colleges will struggle to cope with a last-minute rush.

But one member said he was worried about the cost of compliance with the rules — warning that he saw evidence of a ‘free-for-all’ on course fees — and another member said he feared that seafarers might become unemployable if they couldn’t afford to pay for the training.

Mr Graveson said Nautilus has been pressing for companies to cover the costs of ensuring that

their crews comply with the rules. ‘It works out to just one day of training a year and if your company says that they cannot afford it, that is pretty poor,’ he added. ‘We believe that employers should meet their obligation to keep their seafarers fully trained.’

Another member said he was concerned that ‘freelance’ seafarers would be particularly penalised by the new requirements. Mr Graveson said some government support might be available, although this could not be guaranteed.

‘Nautilus is aware of the dangers, and that is why we negotiated exemptions from the requirements so that members could have negative endorsements in areas where they don’t need the training,’ he added.

FISHING FINE: the master of a Dutch fishing vessel was fined a total of £4,589 by a UK court last month after pleading guilty to four offences following an inspection by the fisheries enforcement vessel HMS Mersey. The owners of the Stella Polaris were fined £42,821 after admitting the same offences — with £24,126 reflecting the value of the catch.

PIRACY ALERT: the head of the EU Naval Force has urged countries not to scale down counter-piracy operations in the Indian Ocean. Major General Martin Smith warned that while the number of attacks has dropped significantly, Somali pirates still possess the intent and capability to attack shipping.

WIGHT LINK: a new ferry service between Lymington and the Isle of Wight port of Yarmouth was launched last month. Scoot Ferries says it plans to run services across the Solent throughout the year, with other routes planned between Portsmouth and Cowes and Hamble to Cowes.

MARLINS BOOST: the Glasgow-based maritime training firm Marlins is to double its range of e-learning courses for seafarers. Twenty new courses are to be launched in January 2016, including one dealing with the demands and challenges of rescuing migrants and refugees at sea.

VEDER ADDITIONS: the Dutch operator Anthony Veder is expanding its fleet with the acquisition of four gas tankers from the Italian firm LGR di Navigazione. The Rotterdam-based owner said the ships will be deployed on services in NW Europe.

CMAL ORDER: Scotland’s first minister Nicola Sturgeon has approved plans to build two new ‘dual fuel’ ferries for the Caledonian Maritime Assets Ltd fleet. The first ship is due to be delivered in early 2018, with the second expected a few months later.

CITY CRUISES: the Lord Mayor of London has given the go-ahead to a new cruise terminal in London.

Up to 55 cruiseships a year are expected to use the facilities at Enderby Wharf, Greenwich, when they open in 2017.

23/09/2015 18:36

04 | telegraph | nautilusint.org | October 2015

NAUTILUS AT WORK

shortreports SMIT VOLUNTEERS: Nautilus industrial organiser Paul Schroder has confirmed that redundancy talks at Smit International have concluded, as enough volunteers applied. Mr Schroder thanked all those who came forward, and said the company had dealt with the situation in a quick and sensitive manner.

ANGLO ASPIRATIONS: members employed

by Anglo Eastern on car carriers are being asked for their pay and conditions aspirations ahead of the 1 January 2016 review date. Members should submit details of any increases in workloads and responsibilities that have taken place in the last 12 months.

RFA WAITING: national secretary Jonathan Havard has met liaison officers and company representatives at the Royal Fleet Auxiliary to discuss this year’s pay and conditions claim. The Union is awaiting a formal response to the meeting which will be sent to members once it is received.

and senior assistant organiser Danny A McGowan are pictured above left visiting

Nautilus industrial organiser Paul Schroder

members employed by Hanson Ship Management and serving onboard the Arco Dijk in Southampton

last month. Mr Schroder also met members onboard the Arco Beck the following week in London, pictured above right.

The meetings came ahead of the Union’s pay and conditions claim, which seeks a 5% pay rise

MINIMUM CHECKS: national ferry organiser Micky Smyth has met with Derek MacKay, minister for transport in the Scottish government, to continue discussions on the application of the national minimum wage to seafarers working off the coast of Scotland.

MAN MADE: members employed by the Isle of Man Steam Packet Company have been invited to submit aspirations for the 2016 pay and conditions claim and to inform the Union of any increases in officers’ workloads and responsibilities by Thursday 1 October.

PG TIPS: details of increases in member workloads and responsibilities have been sought from members employed by PG Tankers. These will then be submitted to the employer ahead of the 1 January 2016 pay and conditions review.

PLA PAY: a pay and conditions claim has been submited on behalf of members employed by the Port of London Authority. The claim is ahead of the 1 January 2016 review date and includes a substantial above-RPI increase in pay.

STENA DELAYS: Nautilus is still awaiting a meeting with Stena Line to discuss the proposed transfer of crew management to Northern Marine Manning Services. Members will be informed when a date has been set.

CARISBROOKE OFFER: a pay and conditions offer has been received on behalf of members employed

by Carisbrooke Shipping. The two-year offer includes a 2% increase in pay.

COASTEL CLAIM: pay and conditions aspirations are being sought from members employed by Bibby Ship Management on the coastels agreement.

Ex Tax Inspector at Cardiff Marine - 30 years experience with seafarers’ tax

£195.00 FLAT FEE PER TAX RETURN

organiser Micky Smyth is F pictured above meeting Scotland’s Nautilus national ferry

first minister Nicola Sturgeon during an SNP drop-in session on the island of Oban last month. During the meeting Mr Smyth spoke to the first minister and members of the Scottish government about the tendering process for Scottish

More pension forums Pension Fund and the Nautilus A Pensions Association met members The Merchant Navy Officers’

from across Scotland at the latest joint forum, which was held in Aberdeen last month.

Assistant general secretary Mike Jess and MNOPF chief executive Andrew Waring discussed the current state of the Fund and the plans to keep it in its current healthy condition.

Nautilus senior national secretary Garry Elliott spoke about the Union’s services for retired members and their beneficiaries. ‘Membership of the Nautilus Pensions Association is a

www.taxaidforseafarers.co.uk

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valuable way of staying in touch with the Union, but also to have a voice on your future,’ he told the meeting. f The next forums will be held in January 2016 at the Leas Cliff Hall in Folkestone, and those eligible to attend will be written to individually with details of how to register.

If you would like more information on the NPA, or would like to join, email membership@nautilusint.org or call +44 (0)20 8989 6677.

Further venues and dates will be announced in due course and similar invitations will be issued to members near to each venue.

To find out about advertising opportunities in the Telegraph contact: Jude Rosset T: 020 7880 6217 E: jude.rosset@ redactive.co.uk

Minister pressed on crews MP calls for safe manning changes

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Shipping minister Robert Goodwill has rejected a call for new rules to require the Maritime & Coastguard Agency to consult seafaring unions when owners apply to change safe manning certificates.

The statement came after a series of Parliamentary questions tabled by Labour MP Ian Lavery revealed that there have been more than 460 amendments to safe manning documents for UKregistered ships since 2010.

‘The vast majority of these changes have been changes to names of ships or companies,’ Mr Goodwill told the House of Commons. ‘A small number relate to changes in engine power or crew numbers.’

The minister said there are no prescriptive regulations requiring certain numbers of crew for ship types, trade routes or types of cargo on UK-flagged ships, although vessels over 500gt must hold a safe manning document.

And Mr Goodwill said there are no plans to amend the existing legislation to require the MCA to consult maritime unions when owners apply for a change to a vessel’s safe manning document.

Under current regulations, owners should consult the master, seafarers, seafarers’ repre-

sentatives and the MCA on their proposed manning levels and draw up a schedule of manning, he pointed out.

‘If agreement cannot be reached, the MCA will consider the views put forward and if necessary require the schedule to be revised,’ Mr Goodwill added.

‘Where disagreement occurs it may be necessary to arrange a practical demonstration of the crew’s ability to carry out the essential tasks in the context of the principles of safe manning.’

Mr Lavery also asked what steps the MCA is taking to ensure that members of the Red Ensign Group comply with the safe manning levels recommended by the agency.

The minister told him that the MCA undertakes a maximum four-year cycle of audits, which cover an obligation to ensure that ships are subject to safe manning criteria and properly crewed and certificated to IMO standards.

Nautilus senior national secretary Allan Graveson commented: ‘From the replies it is clear that the MCA gives a low priority to safe manning. This is demonstrated by the acceptance of and inability to give any precise figure for changes in crew numbers on safe manning certificates.’

‘Special’ case at BAS Thames talks on Clippers claim A Lisa Carr is pictured meeting F Thames Clippers members last

Nautilus industrial organiser

01908 583 738

islands ferries.

Meanwhile, the the actuary for the Caledonian MacBrayne pension fund has confirmed that the scheme is around £60m in deficit.

Discussions between CalMac and the unions are ongoing and must be concluded by June 2016 when a revised recovery plan will be presented to the pension regulator.

and discussions on an annual bonus scheme, a reduction in extra work days, a full day’s pay for joining and leaving vessels, improvements to sick pay and pilotage exemption payments, and a ‘fit for purpose’ wi-fi.

month. Discussions covered the contents of this year’s pay and conditions claim, which has now been submitted.

The Union is seeking a substantial above-RPI pay increase, enhancements to the current sick scheme and an increase in annual leave. Ms Carr is due to meet management on Friday 16 October to discuss the claim.

Nautilus officials Jonathan Havard and Lisa Carr met with British Antarctic Survey (BAS) management last month to continue talks following the rejection of a 1% pay offer in line with the government’s public sector pay restraints.

The Union has called on BAS to recognise that seafarers are a ‘special’ category of public sector workers, with

unique issues such as retention that need to be acknowledged in their pay.

Improvements have been made towards harmonising the pay structure and the company has confirmed that no members will have their pay reduced, and many will see an increase.

The Union is now awaiting a formal response from BAS.

24/09/2015 08:28

October 2015 | nautilusint.org | telegraph | 05

NAUTILUS AT WORK

shortreports

Big increase sought from Fleet Marine

FERRIES MEETINGS: meetings continue to secure a pay and conditions deal for members employed

by P&O Ferries, P&O Irish Sea and P&O North Sea. The Nautilus claim included a significant increase in pay, a review of salary scales and additions to travel allowance. The Union has also requested a fatigue study to be carried out in the Irish Sea. The company has received the submission and a financial briefing is being prepared in response. This summary is due to be presented on 13 October and national ferry organiser Micky Smyth will report back on the findings.

and conditions claim on behalf A of members employed by Fleet Nautilus has submitted a pay

Maritime Services Ltd and serving as deck and technical officers on Cunard and P&O Cruises vessels.

The claim seeks a substantial above-inflation pay increase, possibly over a longer term, and a 10-on/10-off rotation pattern with no loss of pay.

Nautilus is also urging the company to pay door-to door-travel expenses, as well as equal pay for the Euro contract.

Industrial organiser Paul Schroder will be conducting more ship visits this month when he visits Azura on 19 October in Lisbon, Adonia on 20 October in Lisbon, and Aurora and Queen Victoria on 31 October in Gibraltar. g The next Partnership at Work meeting is due to take place on Thursday 29 October.

CROWNING AGREEMENT: a pay and conditions offer on behalf of members employed by Crown Crewing has been accepted by Nautilus. The package includes a 1% pay increase and substantial improvements to sick pay and accident at work pay.

In additional to the general increase, the company has substantially increased the terms for newly qualified second engineers and second mates during their first three years in post.

5% pay claim for Princess pay and conditions claim on A behalf of members employed by Nautilus has submitted a

Fleet Maritime Services and serving onboard Princess Cruise Line and P&O Cruises Australia vessels.

The claim seeks a 5% pay rise, with the possibility of a two-year deal, a ‘meaningful’ loyalty bonus, the availability of a discounted share option scheme, airport priority passes and improvements to cadets’ terms and conditions.

The company has confirmed receipt of the claim and agreed to introduce three stripes for SECOs. Members will be informed when a formal response to the remaining items has been received.

Nautilus visits more HAL ships ahead of next pay discussions Carr and Maarten Keuss continued the latest round F of ship visits to Holland America Line (HAL) vessels by Nautilus International industrial organisers Lisa

meeting members onboard Ryndam and Eurodam in the Norwegian port of Bergen last month.

Members serving on the two ships had the opportunity to meet the officials to discuss their views on the ongoing collective bargaining and pay negotiations.

The industrial organisers will now take these views to the company as negotiations continue.

Members onboard Ryndam also expressed their

great fondness for the 1994-built ship, which left the home port of Rotterdam last month for a final voyage to the Far East. Ryndam and Statendam are being transferred to the P&O Australia fleet under the name of Pacific Aria and Pacific Eden, and will be replaced by HAL’s 99,500gt newbuild Koningsdam, presently under construction in Italy.

Nautilus will also be visiting Maasdam in the US port of Boston on 10 October, ahead of the next round of negotiations taking place on 12 and 13 October at HAL’s offices in the city.

TUC steps up online ballots campaign

HEYN REJECTION: members employed by Heyn Engineering Solutions and serving onboard RV Corystes have rejected the company’s revised pay and conditions offer. The new offer included a salary increase of 1% along with previously proposed increases to death in service benefit. Industrial organiser Lisa Carr is currently awaiting a date to discuss the rejection with management.

SERCO SOON: following talks between Nautilus and Serco Ferries, new terms and conditions contracts will shortly be sent out to members. Once the documents have been delivered, the Union will consult members on the proposed changes. Pay negotiations are also ongoing and national ferry organiser Micky Smyth is due to meet the company to continue discussions on 3 November.

STENA THOUGHTS: details of increases in member workloads and responsibilities have been sought from members employed by Stena Marine Management and serving onboard ro-ro and ro-pax ferries. These will then be submitted to the employer ahead of the 1 January 2016 pay and conditions review.

CRAFT CLOSURE: P&O Ferries has confirmed plans to close the fast craft service between Larne and Troon. National ferry organiser Micky Smyth has been in discussion with the company over the closure and is seeking to ensure that there are no redundancies and members will be redeployed to other services.

UECC VIEWS: members employed by UECC were due to submit their pay and conditions aspirations before the 1 October deadline. Once received, industrial organiser Derek Byrne will submit a pay and conditions claim to the employer.

Nautilus motion to 2013 Congress sparked national call for voting reform

P

The TUC has stepped up its campaign to urge the UK government to allow online voting in official union ballots.

The campaign was launched following a motion tabled by Nautilus at the TUC Congress in 2013 and has been intensified now the Trade Union Bill has been put before Parliament, passing the second reading in the House of Commons last month.

‘The block on electronic voting is a real problem for unions such as Nautilus, with members spread around the world in a diverse, fragmented and globalised industry,’ Nautilus general secretary Mark Dickinson explained.

‘It is simply unacceptable that members can be excluded from the democratic processes when

04-05_at work.indd 5

the solution is so readily available.

‘Ending the obstacle to online voting will not only open up e-democracy for the union movement, it will increase engagement and also help to save money.’

The call to introduce online voting as part of the Trade Union Bill has been welcomed by crossparty MPs, but business secretary Sajid Javid is opposed to it for security reasons.

TUC general secretary Francis O’Grady called the objection a red herring. ‘Online voting is good enough for choosing the current Conservative candidate for London Mayor, so it seems like one rule for them and one for everyone else,’ she said.’ Blue chip companies use online voting too to let shareholders vote in corporate ballots.

‘Ballot turnouts are sometimes low because unions have a specially restrictive set of rules on how the votes can be run,’ she added.

‘Allowing members to use phones and computers to engage rather than the post would raise turnouts, giving more members a clear say in the union and any future strike ballots.’

During the second reading, backbenchers from both sides of the political divide raised objections to the Bill.

Conservative MP David Davis said he had some sympathy with criticisms of the Bill. ‘I particularly am offended by the idea that a picket organiser needs to give his name to the police. This to me is a serious restriction of freedom of association,’ he said.

Former business secretary, Liberal Democrat Vince Cable said the Bill was ‘vindictive’ and had ‘no evidence base at all’.

Concerns have also been raised by the Regulatory Policy Committee (RPC) — an independent body appointed by the government to verify the costs and savings of proposed legislation — who said the government’s impact assessment was ‘not fit for purpose’.

The Bill will now go through the ‘committee stage’ where it is scrutinised line by line before being passed to the House of Lords. f Nautilus members are encouraged to visit the website www. goingtowork.org.uk and sign the petition to halt the Bill and introduce online voting for trade unions.

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

DELIVERY WORLDWIDE

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23/09/2015 18:07

06 | telegraph | nautilusint.org | October 2015

OFFSHORE NEWS

shortreports BIBBY TECHS: industrial organiser Derek Byrne has reluctantly accepted a pay freeze on behalf of members employed by Bibby Ship Management as dive techs on the DSV agreement following the company’s agreement to reverse its decision on changes to crews’ terms and conditions. The company had originally sought to reduce the number of contractually guaranteed working days from 183 to 120.

FLETCHER SALE: the Scottish support vessel operator Fletcher Shipping was put into administration last month, blaming a slump in spot rates over the past year. The administrators, PriceWaterhouseCoopers, organised the sale of the four ships and other assets to FS Shipping — stating that the deal would ensure ‘continued stability for the self-managed crew, suppliers and clients across the oil and gas industry’.

CAREER CHOICE: the overwhelming majority of professionals working in the oil and gas industry would still recommend a career in the sector to young people despite the current downturn. An industry-wide poll of more than 1,000 people carried out by Rigzone found that 84% would recommend a career in the sector, citing factors such as wide career prospects and competitive salaries.

FIELD BOOST: the UK government has welcomed the go-ahead for a £3bn plan to develop the Culzean gas field in the North Sea. The Maersk Oil field is expected to support up to 6,000 jobs and one of the first beneficiaries is Subsea 7, which has secured a major pipeline contract for the project.

OCEAN LAY-UP: members employed by Ocean Supply have been informed that the company intends to lay up the Ocean Clever in response to poor market conditions. This will mean that six positions will be made redundant, and management are currently seeking volunteers to apply.

DEMAND FORECAST: demand for all types of offshore vessels is set to grow by around 3.7% a year over the next decade, driven by the development of deep offshore fields, according to a report from the Organisation for Economic Cooperation & Development published last month.

COOK ENHANCEMENTS: industrial organiser Derek Byrne has confirmed the Union’s request to give enhanced redundancy terms to all second cooks made redundant by Bibby Ship Management was granted.

UKCS cuts hit 65,000 jobs Operators’ report spells out the impact of oil price slump

P

As many as 65,000 jobs have been lost as a result of cuts in the North Sea since the oil price collapsed last year, new figures have revealed.

And the report, published last month by Oil & Gas UK, warned that more cutbacks are to come as a consequence of operators seeking to reduce capacity even further.

The trade association’s annual economic report estimates that employment in the sector has been slashed by 15% since 2013 — from 440,000 to 375,000.

Around 6,000 of the jobs have been front-line posts on rigs and installations, with 30,000 in the supply chain and a further 30,000 in other related sectors.

The study says efficiency gains will help to reduce operating costs by around 22%— more than £2bn — by the end of next year.

Oil & Gas UK noted that output from existing fields has actually increased, with production in the first half of 2015 being 3% higher than over the same period last year.

But exploration has dropped to the lowest level since the 1970s and capital investment in the sector could fall from almost £15bn last year to as little as £3bn in 2017.

Chief executive Deirdre Michie warned that the sector is facing ‘very challenging times’ and further contraction is likely.

‘Last year, more was spent than

Ceona Amazon, pictured A above, has been put up for sale after The 33,000gt pipe-layer

nine companies owned by the UK subsea firm Ceona Offshore were put into administration last month, with an initial loss of just over 100 jobs.

Administrators said the

company’s cash flows came under significant strain as a result of falling demand in depressed market conditions. ‘Despite attempts to restructure the group, it was unable to achieve a turnaround on a solvent basis and was therefore placed into administration by the directors,’ they added.

was earned from production — a situation which has been exacerbated by the continued fall in commodity prices,’ she added.

‘The industry is under a lot of pressure and it is now widely recognised that a transformation in the way business is done is required if the UK sector is to become more resilient and competitive in a world of sustained lower oil prices,’ she noted.

Oil & Gas UK last month launched an industry task force to

‘step up the pace of change’. Talks about ‘unitisation’ — in which companies pool their assets and collaborate in such areas as the use of support vessels and subsea equipment — are being held under this banner.

The organisation warned that a continued low oil price will ‘inevitably cause companies to reflect on the long-term viability of their assets’ and it urged the government to take more steps to reduce the industry’s tax bills.

proposed redundancies in the Sealion fleet.

The company has sent members information on the general downturn in the offshore industry which has caused it to lay-up vessels, but no information on the scope of the redundancies it is planning to make.

National secretary Jonathan Havard said the Union has received no correspondence from Seahorse on the proposed redundancies since the end of August, when the company confirmed job losses were likely.

Nautilus had previously urged the company

www.oceantraining.com enquiries@oceantraining.com

06_offshore.indd 6

GulfMark Guernsey has revised

feedback from Nautilus.

In response to the downturn in oil prices, the company tabled plans for a 15% reduction in the base rate of salary for second officers, third engineers, electricians, bosuns, ABs and cooks, and to scrap the senior management bonus for masters, chief officers, chief engineers and second engineers.

Management has also proposed ending the Christmas bonus and experience increments. However, following feedback from members, the company is now proposing to move from a 4/4 rotation to a 5/5 rotation. The original proposal to move to a 6/6 rotation will now be delayed until spring 2016.

Members have until Friday 9 October to accept or reject the proposals and industrial organiser Gary Leech is encouraging as many members as possible to take part.

Technip meets on cutbacks Technip management late F last month for further talks about proposed redundancies, cost efficiencies and the pay review.

The company has told the Union that the unprecedented reduction in work means management are unable to commit to only making voluntary redundancies.

Technip did agree to drop the ‘company justified retirement age’ and confirmed that it will seek sustainable pay rate reductions as reviews fall due in each group.

Seahorse members consulted over ballot for action on redundancies Nautilus members serving with Seahorse

MCA Master 200 MCA OOW < 3000 GT MCA Celestial Navigation MCA/RYA Yachtmaster

proposals for cuts in members’ F terms and conditions following

Nautilus was due to meet

Maritime are being consulted about whether F they want to be balloted on industrial action over

Learn MCA theory at sea or at home

GulfMark members consulted

to comply with the spirit of the Trade Union & Labour Relations Act 1992 by carrying out collective consultation with the Union on a voluntary basis over the potential job losses.

In order to ensure that the Union is doing all it can to prepare a case for any possible future action when the company does respond, a consultation is being conducted on whether members would be prepared to be balloted on some form of industrial action throughout the redundancy process.

‘Notwithstanding the outcome of our legal deliberations, Nautilus believes that as the recognised union for collective bargaining purposes, the employer should be working actively with us

in such matters so as to maintain a clear line of communication and to assist in consultation with its employees in order to ensure a fair redundancy process is put in place,’ Mr Havard said.

‘It is essential that all members participate in the consultation exercise in respect of potential industrial action, should the employer continue to refuse to engage with us and pending any legal advice we may receive,’ he added.

Members had until Friday 2 October to respond to the consultation. Members are also reminded that they should contact industrial@nautilusint. org as soon as possible if they are issued with any form of redundancy notice.

New Swire PSV delivered Offshore (SPO) has taken A delivery of the 3,585gt platform

Singapore-based Swire Pacific

supply vessel (PSV) Pacific Grackle, pictured left.

Built by Japan Marine United Corporation, the Singapore-flagged vessel is the fourth in a series of 10 G-Class PSVs commissioned by SPO. When all the ships enter into service in 2017, the company will be

one of the top 10 PSV owners in the world.

The G-Class DP2 vessels have a deadweight of 4,087 tonnes and are powered by a four-engine diesel electric propulsion plant and equipped with counter-rotating azimuth thrusters. They have 810 sq m of deck space and deck cargo capacity of 1,750 tonnes, and have been built to allow for future methanol carriage.

23/09/2015 17:42

October 2015 | nautilusint.org | telegraph | 07

NEWS

MEF trainees go Outward Bound Nautilus backs Foundation’s ‘gold standard’ approach to cadets’ induction

KVH vice-president Brent Bruun unveils the new broadband service

New package ‘set to boost connectivity’ KVH has unveiled its secondA generation mini-VSAT Broadband

The communications company

— promising that it will transform the availability of internet connectivity at sea.

Announcing details of the new package during last month’s London International Shipping Week, the company said it hoped to end the excuses used for the lack of broadband at sea by providing a service which is fast, cheap and effective.

KVH’s mini-VSAT Broadband 2.0 will include usage-based plans, designed around each ship’s monthly requirements for operational and crew data, delivering data at maximum speeds on the network.

It also includes a unique ‘myKVH’ management portal which allows for usage limits to be applied

to each crew member or group.

For example, those with bridge responsibilities which involve downloading data can be given much higher usage rates than crew who are only able to access the internet when off-duty.

Alerts can be sent to the master or shore-based representative when limits are near to decide if additional usage needs to be provided, all within one cost plan.

Vice president Brent Bruun said that KVH was already a leading provider of VSAT connectivity in the maritime industry and the new features will boost its service and increase seafarers’ health and wellbeing.

He urged the industry to re-think the way broadband is provided onboard to bring costs down and allow more seafarers to keep in touch with home while away at sea.

Owners pledge action on women’s health issues to act on concerns raised by F women seafarers in a survey of

Shipowners have promised

health issues conducted by the International Transport Workers’ Federation (ITF) and seafarers’ welfare organisations.

During a conference to discuss the findings last month, the International Chamber of Shipping (ICS) committed to calling on its members to provide sanitary bins onboard their ships.

The health needs survey found that a large number of women were still having to go to sea without a proper means of disposal for their sanitary products.

ICS director of employment affairs

Natalie Shaw said her background working in a male-dominated paint shop enabled her to relate to the frustration felt by women seafarers.

She said she ‘didn’t accept’ the argument that the provision of sanitary bins onboard may be too costly for shipowners to consider.

‘That is sheer rubbish,’ she added. ‘I am going to personally take this issue up with our labour affairs committee, as I believe it is something that we should easily be able to do something about.’

Ms Wiseman said the message should go out to all national shipowner associations that a lack of sanitary bins onboard is ‘simply not acceptable in this day and age’.

MEF cadet Christina Coates

P

Nautilus assistant general secretary Mike Jess joined September 2015’s intake of Maritime Educational Foundation (MEF) officer trainees as they kicked off their cadetships with an induction course with the Outward Bound Trust (OBT) in Cumbria.

The 31 cadets — managed by Bibby Ship Management (Western Europe), Chiltern Maritime, Clyde Marine Training, and SSTG — took part in the four-day course at the Outward Bound Trust centre in Eskdale, in the Lake District.

MEF strategy manager Kate Gillespie said it was impossible to over-emphasise the value of the programme. ‘This is the sixth induction course we have run with the Outward Bound Trust, and they just keep getting better

Nautilus assistant general secretary Mike Jess with MEF cadets on their induction course Picture: Kate Gillespie

and better,’ she said. ‘As well as embedding the MEF’s core values of respect, responsibility and resourcefulness, we also use the course to instigate a peer support network that the trainees can contribute to and access throughout their careers.

‘Working with the Outward Bound Trust on the creation and delivery of this course has really added value to our MEF cadets’ training experience,’ she added.

‘One of the key outcomes we’ve seen has been that the retention and success of trainees has improved markedly. We’ve found that the cadets are more prepared for a life at college and at sea, with an improved self-awareness and sense of personal responsibility.’

Mr Jess, who also serves as chairman of the MEF, said he was

impressed at the way in which the course covers important career-relevant elements such as self-awareness, teamwork, communication skills, self-management and planning. ‘It made me proud to be associated with the MEF and its values in promoting a gold standard of training for future maritime professionals,’ he added.

MEF director and Merchant Navy Training Board head Glenys Jackson said the course gives trainees an understanding of the MEF’s course values — ‘to help cadets understand the value of respect in themselves and others; to help the cadets become aware that they are responsible for their future successes and failures; to develop the resourcefulness of the cadets’.

Christina Coates, an 18-yearold deck cadet managed by Clyde Marine Training and due to start at Warsash Maritime Academy, summed up the value of the course to the trainees: ‘I had such an amazing experience, practising current skills and pushing myself out of my comfort zone, being more resourceful, finding things out, asking proactive questions rather than sitting back and waiting to be told what to do, and also using the skills I have to my advantage to help the group.

‘Not only that,’ she added, ‘but I met so many amazing people, and made friendships that should last a long time.’ more information g For about the work of the Maritime Educational Foundation , visit the website www.meftraining.org

Your views wanted on training F

Nautilus members are being asked to help shape the future of maritime training in the UK. The Union is urging members to participate in a survey of seafarer education and skills, which is being conducted as part of a far-reaching Merchant Navy Training Board (MNTB) study.

The Training 2025 review is looking at a wide range of issues — including officer cadet training frameworks, rating entry routes, career progression and professional development,

We are able to offer competitive, specially negotiated fares for all types of air travel, be it UK Domestic, European or Worldwide.

training and assessment, and projected demand for seafaring skills at sea and ashore.

The MNTB’s Futures Working Group has produced three seafarer education and skills questionnaires, seeking the views of serving and ex-seafarers on key elements of the review.

The surveys cover deck ratings, deck officers and engineer officers — with separate feedback to be sought on electro-technical and deck rating syllabuses. The questionnaires are

focused on training delivery and seek feedback on the topics currently covered within existing syllabuses, including whether they are taught in too much or too little depth.

Members can complete the surveys via the following links: z deck AB/rating at: www. surveymonkey.com/r/CMWY72R z deck officer at: www. surveymonkey.com/r/5PY85X9 z engineering officer at: www. surveymonkey.com/r/KFFP2SR Each survey is anonymous, and

views expressed will be combined with the views of fellow seafarers, company technical managers and the UK regulator to ensure that the skills and training provided to current ratings, officer trainees and officers (during their subsequent professional examinations) are developed as appropriately as possible to meet industry needs into the future.

The deadline for completing the questionnaires is 30 October, and the Union hopes that as many members as possible will participate.

Contact us today for a quote vikingrecruitment.com/travel +44 (0) 300 303 8191 (opt 1) travel@vikingrecruitment.com

Staff employed in the marine industry, from crew and shore-based staff to spouses travelling to and from vessels, can make use of our extensive marine fare programme, while those seeking flights for other types of travel will benefit from our efficient and personal service.

07_news.indd 7

23/09/2015 17:43

08 | telegraph | nautilusint.org | October 2015

LARGE YACHT NEWS

Burgess lands sweet refit contract

by Michael Howorth

the crew on his last superyacht, H Lord Sugar — then Sir Alan Sugar — Famous for his rudeness about

once vowed that he would never own a superyacht again. Time moves on, and it seems that the self-made millionaire has had a change of heart.

He is now the owner of Lady A — a 55m motoryacht that was built in Japan back in 1986 and has carried the names Southern Cross III, Emihar Chios and Indian Princess.

The UK ship repairer Burgess Marine has secured a contract to give yacht a winter refit at its facilities in Portsmouth.

Lady A arrived in Portsmouth from San Remo last month, and after a short layover in the commercial port was docked on the syncrolift at

Trafalgar Wharf, Portchester. The planned package of works includes minor structural, mechanical and electrical modifications, and the installation of new Naiad stabilisers.

The refit will also include modifications and improvements to both the interior and exterior styling, and a new external paint scheme.

The project is being directly managed by the owner’s team, with Burgess Marine acting as the primary contractor in partnership with Shemara Refit. Design and naval architecture support is being provided

by Houlder.

Technical director Ray Cutts commented: ‘Lady A is a wonderful yacht and we genuinely look forward to working with the Shemara Refit team on another unique and seriously exciting project.’

UK marine sector in collaboration pact Alliance aims to boost industry’s voice as survey shows employment growth

P

With a new report revealing significant growth in the UK superyacht sector, three leading maritime organisations signed an agreement last month that should pave the way to increased cooperation to develop the industry further.

Shipping minister Robert Goodwill was at the Southampton Boat Show as representatives from the Society of Maritime Industries, British Marine, and the UK Chamber of Shipping signed the memorandum of understanding (MOU) for collaboration to benefit the wider marine and maritime industries.

The agreement was sealed on the back of the publication of the Department of Transport’s ‘Maritime Growth Study, which sets out proposals for boosting Britain’s maritime cluster and calls for closer working relationships between industries and services in the sector.

Mr Goodwill described the agreement as ‘a welcome initiative’ and said the government was determined to support the work to increase the UK’s share of global marine business.

British Marine chief executive

New sailing yacht is a record-breaker title of the world’s largest A sailing superyacht was unveiled The new contender for the

last month as the 142.81m Sailing Yacht A, above, emerged from the build-dock for a test voyage in Kiel, Germany.

Due to come into service next year, the vessel is described as the world’s most advanced sail-assisted motor yacht, and is being built by the German yard Nobiskrug for the Russian billionaire Andrey Melnichenko at a reported cost of some US$400m.

Work on the yacht — originally bearing the title project White Pearl — has been shrouded in secrecy.

But it was confirmed that it will bear the name ‘A’ — reportedly to ensure that it comes first in shipping registers.

Powered by a custom dieselelectric propulsion system, utilising two MTU 3,600kW diesel engines in tandem with two 4,300kW electric

motors linked to a set of adjustable pitch propellers, Sailing Yacht A will have a cruising speed under power of 16 knots and a top speed of 21 knots.

Secondary propulsion will be through three Dutch-designed freestanding carbon fibre masts, with a total sail area of some 4,500 sq m.

The eight-deck yacht will feature an underwater ‘observation room’ and will be able to accommodate 20 guests and a crew of 54.

French designer Philippe Starck worked on the project and described it as a ‘sort of a stealth yacht’ that features ‘extraordinary technical innovations that yield extraordinary comfort’.

‘One of the most innovative aspects of the yacht is the hull that I developed in conjunction with Martin Francis,’ he added. ‘It produces nearly zero wake at 25 knots and that indeed confirms the concept of harmony with nature.’

Industry group bids to increase NZ visits industry is set for a major F boost with the launch of a new

New Zealand’s superyacht

Shipping minister Robert Goodwill watches as Duncan Cunningham, of The Society of Maritime Industries, British Marine president Fiona Pankhurst, and Grahaeme Henderson, of The UK Chamber of Shipping, sign the MOU

Howard Pridding commented: ‘The three organisations that have entered into the MOU are aware of the changes we anticipate seeing in the way the government interacts with the marine and maritime industries.

‘British Marine, along with the other two parties, endeavours to ensure that our combined members have a strong voice in the discussions that will take place over the coming months on the recommendations made in that report,’ he added.

Chamber of Shipping chief executive Guy Platten said a lot of work has been done to pool resources and cooperate within the sector. ‘We welcome the Maritime Growth Study’s recognition of this process and the industry remains well placed to build a broad alliance across the maritime community to effectively represent its interests, and promote the UK as a world-class place to do maritime business,’ he added.

The agreement came as British

Marine published its bi-annual Marine Industry Trends survey, reporting a number of upward trends across sectors the leisure marine, superyacht and small commercial marine industry.

The survey, completed by a sample of 321 British Marine members, found that one in three businesses reported a rise in employment levels — up by 6% from the last survey in November 2014. Profits were also reported to have increased for 50% of the members surveyed.

HOTLINE

industry group that has been created in response to the lack of support shown to the sector from within the country’s wider marine cluster.

The group has been launched with an initial 15 members, and aims to promote New Zealand as a superyacht destination and to foster collaboration and alignment within the country’s superyacht industry.

New Zealand is becoming more popular as a superyacht destination, with last season being the busiest in 15 years — with 57 vessels arriving in the summer, up from 37 in the previous year.

Gregg Kelly, CEO of Fastmount, said the group was being launched at a perfect time. ‘Superyacht construction has suffered severe reduction in its potential over the last two years with the closure of several

top yards,’ he added.

Viking Recruitment’s New Zealand managing director Andrew Howarth said he was delighted by the creation of the new group.

And Asia Pacific Superyachts New Zealand MD Duthie Lidgard added: ‘The needs of the superyacht sector have traditionally been squeezed between the marine leisure and the professional marine industries.

‘The NZSG will fully support its members, who are the best in their field and pride themselves in being able to meet the high standards demanded by owners, guests and crew.’

Recent visitors to New Zealand have been two of the largest superyachts in the world — the 140m Ocean Victory and the 134m Serene.

‘Each visit contributes significantly to New Zealand’s economy through tourism, hospitality and marine services,’ Mr Lidgard pointed out.

FOR YACHT CREW Nautilus at Monaco show Nautilus has established a dedicated phoneline in Antibes to offer advice and assistance:

+33 (0)9 62 61 61 40 Nautilus International, in strategic partnership with D&B Services, 3 Bd. D’Aguillon, 06600 Antibes, France.

08_yachts.indd 8

F

Nautilus officials were on hand to meet members taking part in the 25th Monaco Yacht Show last month.

More than 33,000 were expected to attend this year’s show, which featured a total of 121 superyachts with a combined estimated value of €3bn. Among the 52 newbuilds at the event were the 77m Silver Fast,

the 73m Yalla, the 66m Ester III, the 69m Suerte and the 63m Imirari, as well as three new Benetti yachts. The largest yacht at the show was the 85m Solandge.

With extra berths and a larger exhibition area, this year’s show was expected to be the biggest on record — with more than 500 exhibitors taking part.

23/09/2015 18:05

October 2015 | nautilusint.org | telegraph | 09

NEWS

Owners warned after MLC ruling High Court case shows the need for care with complaints, Nautilus stresses

P

the Agency ought to be ordered to take any further action.

Clyde & Co said the case showed how failure to follow the onboard complaints mechanism set out in the MLC could lead to court proceedings — and the associated need for owners and masters to show that they manage complaints properly.

‘This case should focus shipowners’ minds since it highlights how they might be exposed to a complaint under the regulations and therefore to a fine and/or imprisonment,’ Clyde & Co noted.

‘The MLC is so widely drawn that there are a myriad of ways in which a complaint could fall within the obligations in the regulations.’

Charles Boyle, director of Nautilus International’s legal services, said he is studying the 25-page judgement very closely to analyse its full legal implications. It was

encouraging to see that the International Labour Organisation had joined in the proceedings as ‘an interested party’, he added.

‘It is interesting to see that a seafarer has sought judicial review in the High Court regarding the MCA’s alleged failure to properly investigate his complaints of detriment,’ he pointed out.

‘This should sound a timely warning to regulators and shipowners that complaints received from seafarers must be dealt with fairly, promptly and without detriment to the complainant.

‘If shipowners don’t investigate the matter properly, this could result in legal action leading to fines being imposed or prison sentences handed out,’ Mr Boyle stressed.

‘If the regulator is being soft on the issue, seafarers may seek judicial review,’ he added.

Nautilus has backed a warning from a leading shipping law firm to owners and masters following a legal challenge over the enforcement of the Maritime Labour Convention.

Clyde & Co said the UK High Court decision in a claim against the Maritime & Coastguard Agency (MCA) had highlighted the need for owners and masters to be able to demonstrate that they have taken ‘all reasonable steps’ to comply with the MLC if they are to avoid the threat of prosecution.

In what was described as the first case of its kind, a seafarer applied to a judicial review of a decision by the MCA to dismiss a complaint brought under the terms of the Merchant Shipping (Maritime Labour Convention) (Survey and Certification) Regulations 2013.

The seafarer — a fleet trainer with Princess Cruise Line — had filed complaints with the MCA after being sent home from a voyage and dismissed when he raised a series of grievances with management.

But the court turned down his application for a judicial review of the MCA’s decision to reject his complaints that he had ‘suffered detriment’ as a result of raising MLC-related grievances.

It determined that his complaints were not about breaches of the convention but rather about his annoyance at his cabin allocation, clerical errors with his pay and his perception that the company was not complying with its stated values.

Dismissing the case, Judge Andrew Keyser ruled that the seafarer had failed to show any grounds on which the MCA’s decision ought to be quashed or that

Piracy reports raise concern

NZ union hits out at pilotage ruling for Dutch dredger

Bureau (IMB) has called for a F harmonised global reporting system The International Maritime

to improve the coordination of counter-piracy efforts.

IMB director Pottengal Mukundan told a conference in Malaysia last month he was concerned that ‘a proliferation of reporting centres in some regions could create a degree of confusion that can leave seafarers and ships unnecessarily at risk’.

Capt Mukundan said a rapid response was crucial if pirates are to be apprehended, and a common worldwide information-sharing framework would help to ensure that naval forces and law enforcement agencies get the data they need.

masters and officers in New F Zealand has lodged complaints

The union representing ship

with the country’s maritime safety authority over its decision to allow a Dutch-flagged dredger to operate without complying with national pilotage rules.

The NZ Merchant Service Guild said it was disturbed by Maritime New Zealand’s decision not to require the 2,176gt hopper dredger Brage E to carry a pilot or for the master to hold a pilotage exemption certificate while operating in harbour limits.

The authority said the harbour master in the port of Gisborne had

taken the decision following a risk assessment, and that a pilot would only be required for berthing and unberthing operations.

Maritime New Zealand director Keith Manch also argued that the pilotage rules focus on the navigation of a ship from the pilot boarding station to its berth and are ‘not primarily directed at a ship conducting a dredging operation’.

But Guild general secretary Helen McAra said the union considered the ruling to be unsafe and unlawful.

She said there were concerns over commercial pressures and that the ‘strained interpretation’ of the

rules amounted to a device to allow a foreign company to avoid New Zealand regulations.

‘Amazingly, the New Zealandflagged dredger Pelican was always required to have a pilot or exempt master for the 20-plus years of operation here — and still does — and never had such preferential treatment,’ she added.

The Guild said it was concerned that other shipping companies could exploit the rules in the same way — raising the fear that vessels such as ferries and containerships would no longer require pilots or pilotage exemptions.

The bulk carrier Wisla under detention in the port of Liverpool last month Picture: Tommy Molloy

Unpaid wages won for crew on FoC ship detained in Liverpool Molloy has helped to recover A owed wages totalling almost

Nautilus/ITF inspector Tommy

US$100,000 for seafarers onboard a flag of convenience ship that was detained in the UK last month.

He was called to the Vanuaturegistered bulk carrier Wisla in the port of Liverpool after crew members complained that they had not been paid since May this year. The 13,770dwt ship was then detained by the UK Maritime & Coastguard Agency (MCA) under port state control authority for the non-payment of the seafarers’ salaries.

Mr Molloy said it had been a last resort to notify the MCA of the breach of the Maritime Labour Convention (MLC) 2006, but he described the company as ‘a serial offender when it comes to nonpayment’ and it had repeatedly broken promises to the crew.

‘The company was telling me they could not get wages at such short notice and that they promised to pay in the next port,’ he explained. ‘The problem is that they have been making such promises for

many months now and there was no next port fixed for the vessel.’

As well as lodging a claim for unpaid wages, Mr Molloy was also seeking repatriation for some of the crew. However, the company — Rikson International of the British Virgin Islands is listed as ‘owner’ with Primo-Faro of Mariupol, Ukraine, as ‘managers’— had refused to repatriate the crew as they had not given the 30 days’ notice it claimed was required under the crew collective bargaining agreement.

The crew were put in touch with solicitor Bruce Hailey, of the Manchester-based firm Salvus Law, who agreed to represent them on a direct basis. He resolved the claims, confirming that the outstanding amounts were received by the crew, and recovered fees and court costs from the owner.

‘Here is another case which confirms, if confirmation were needed, that despite the introduction of the MLC many seafarers are continuing to experience appalling treatment,’ Mr Molloy pointed out.

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09_news.indd 9

23/09/2015 18:06

10 | telegraph | nautilusint.org | October 2015

NEWS

‘Milestone’ for ship comms

Hospital ship to spend nine months in Madagascar Mercy is pictured arriving in the A port city of Toamasina, Madagascar,

The 16,572gt hospital ship Africa

to begin a nine-month deployment providing free specialised surgeries and healthcare services to the world’s fourth-largest island nation.

The 400-plus crew members onboard Maltese-registered Africa Mercy will be providing surgical and dental services, as well as training and mentoring to Malagasy

The Scottish government has

time — providing a valuable resource for academics and family historians.

The official genealogy website www.scotlandspeople.gov.uk now offers full listings of the deaths of Scottish seafarers (at sea and ashore) from late Victorian times until 1974.

Compiled by the Registrar General of Shipping and Seamen, the listings include those who died of illness or were murdered. Major maritime incidents also appear as causes of death, as in the case of first officer William Murdoch of the Titanic, and the Scottish crew members who died when Lusitania was torpedoed in 1915.

These records, known as the Returns of Deaths of Seamen, were kept under the provisions of the Merchant Shipping Act 1894, with the purpose of informing register offices and maritime welfare organisations throughout the British Isles and helping them contact the dead seafarers’ next of kin.

There is also a database called the

Returns of Deaths at Sea, which lists Scottish passengers as well as crew members who lost their lives at sea.

Parts of this database have already been available online for some time, but the years 1902-1905 have now been added to complete the series beginning in 1855.

Some of the listings in this database are of emigrants who never reached their destinations, and many other records involve Scotsmen who drowned after falling or being accidentally knocked overboard from fishing boats.

Merchant seafarers include Captain John McLauchlan, of the steel-hulled sailing ship Durbridge. On 13 December 1902 he died suddenly at sea off the southern tip of Africa, and the online records include a report by the next most senior officer of how he found the captain dead in his cabin. g Charges may be incurred for accessing records on www. scotlandspeople.gov.uk. Information is also available via the National Records Scotland website www. nrscotland.gov.uk.

New film highlights criminalisation risk threat of criminalisation F following maritime accidents has A new film highlighting the

been released by Seafarers’ Rights International (SRI).

The film focuses on a number of high-profile cases in which shipmasters and other seafarers have faced criminal charges after incidents at sea, and it aims to draw attention to the way in which seafarers can be exposed to prosecutions arising from their professional duties.

Commissioned by the International Transport Workers’ Federation, the ‘Criminalization of Seafarers’ film also seeks to raise awareness of the actions seafarers can take to protect themselves from unfair treatment and where they can get support and advice.

It explains how the international

guidelines on fair treatment of seafarers in the event of a maritime accident should provide important safeguards to crew members detained by public authorities after accidents.

SRI executive director Deirdre Fitzpatrick commented: ‘Despite the advances in safety in the industry, maritime casualties continue to happen and the consequences for seafarers are dire: their lives, liberty and professional certificates all being put at grave risk.

‘The film highlights the fact that criminalisation is a daily risk that seafarers need to be aware of, and that all stakeholders need to be sensitised to the unfairness of any attempt to scapegoat seafarers caught up in such incidents,’ she added. g The film can be seen on the website: www.seafarersrights.org

www.irishseafarerstax.ie

10-11_news.indd 10

The satellite communications

healthcare workers, following an earlier seven-month visit in which more than 1,260 surgeries were provided to local people.

Africa Mercy is the world’s largest civilian hospital ship and is operated by volunteers from more than 35 different countries. The charity is always keen to hear from professional seafarers who can donate their time and skills to support its work — see www.mercyships.org

Scottish maritime records go online made over 14,000 maritime F records available online for the first

company Inmarsat has claimed A a ‘milestone’ for marine connectivity with the launch of the third satellite in its Global Express (GX) constellation.

It says the new satellite will help to change the face of the industry by providing the first globally available high-speed mobile network delivered by a single operator.

Full worldwide GX services are due to be up and running by the end of this year.

App aims to aid crews’ welfare Charity’s smartphone system will increase efficiency of ship visitor services

P

An international seafarer welfare charity has launched a new smartphone app to help its chaplains and ship visitors to deliver more effective care to crew members.

The Sailors’ Society says its ‘Chapplaincy’ system is the first of its kind in the world and will enable real-time reporting of welfare work as well as improved information exchange on ship visits and seafarers’ needs.

The charity is also working on a similar app for seafarers, enabling them to access information on welfare services and facilities in ports they are due to visit, and it hopes this might be available by the end of next year.

Developed with the support of Augustea Group, the app uses global ship tracking data from MarineTraffic, which helps chaplains see which vessels are in port and those due to arrive. The result is more effective use of time and improved coordination with other welfare organisations, the charity says.

Chapplaincy enables real-time activity reporting and maintains a history of ship visits and support provided to seafarers. Data can then be accessed by chaplains in other ports and, subject to confidentiality and data protection

Ship visitor Bill McCrea puts the Sailors’ Society app into action

policies, can be used to provide ongoing care and assistance as ship and crew continue their voyage.

Sailors’ Society programme director Sandra Welch said the

app will enable its 45 chaplains in 65 ports around the world to share information with colleagues at the next port of call to ensure that appropriate assistance can be provided over a ship’s voyage.

‘It will make a huge difference to the way our chaplains work,’ she added. ‘It provides real connectivity and better provision of services, enabling them to respond quickly and follow up on seafarers.’

The app will simplify chaplains’ reporting requirements and the data it delivers will help the charity to identify problems and trends in seafarer welfare and wellbeing, such as stress, poor mental health and fatigue, she said.

Initially available for the Android operating system, Chapplaincy guides the user through the visit — including check-in, status update and statistical reports.

An admin dashboard informs support staff and management, in real-time, of the location and status of the ship visitor, as well as compiling data which is then stored for reporting and analysis.

Antwerp port chaplain Marc Schippers said he was very happy with the performance and portability of the app. Around 14,000 vessels visit the port each year and 50% of them stay less than 24 hours, he added. ‘Ships are getting faster, and port visits are getting shorter, so this makes a world of difference in being able to get to the right place at the right time.’

MN makes it into A-Z maps the Merchant Navy Memorial to its drawings F of Tower Hill, after campaigners pointed out the The world-famous London A-Z map is to add

surprising omission of the monument from previous editions.

As the focus of remembrance for civilian seafarers lost in war, the monument is the Merchant Navy’s equivalent of the Cenotaph national war memorial in Whitehall. It should therefore be marked on London maps — something the A-Z company readily admitted when this was brought to its attention a few months ago.

A-Z drawing office manager Mark McConnell told the Telegraph he had been dismayed to learn

of the oversight. ‘There has been a renewed interest in sites of remembrance in recent years,’ he noted, ‘and when the new Bomber Command and 7/7 memorials were built in London, we made sure we added them to our maps. But we didn’t realise we needed to check back to see if any other memorials had been overlooked in the past, and we were surprised to find that the very substantial Merchant Navy Memorial had been there since 1928.’

To put matters right, new drawings have been done of Trinity Gardens, the site of the Merchant Navy Memorial on Tower Hill, which overlooks the Tower of London.

As with many other war memorials, the scale

of the map means there is only room for the abbreviation ‘mem’ on the page, but Mr McConnell said that the full name and location would be appearing in the index.

The familiar book version of the London A-Z map is not due to appear in a new edition until 2017, but the revised section covering Trinity Gardens will be used before then in other formats. It is due to appear shortly in the single-sheet A-Z London Visitors’ Map, and is available for use in apps and other digital formats. g See page 18 for more on the Merchant Navy Memorial and other UK sites of remembrance on Merchant Navy Day last month.

23/09/2015 18:06

October 2015 | nautilusint.org | telegraph | 11

NEWS

IMO calls for action on ballast Secretary-general warns owners that countries may act unilaterally if convention does not come into force soon

P

The head of the International Maritime Organisation has urged shipowners to do more to get the Ballast Water Management convention put into effect.

Speaking at the International Chamber of Shipping’s annual conference last month, IMO secretary-general Koji Sekimizu said he was disappointed that the convention has still not entered into force despite being adopted 11 years ago.

The convention needs to be ratified by flag states accounting for 35% of the world fleet before it takes effect. Last month, the total was running at 44 member states

representing just under 33% of the global merchant fleet.

Urging owners to support the IMO’s campaign to persuade governments to sign the treaty, Mr Sekimizu added: ‘It dismays me to see that it has still yet to receive sufficient ratifications to trigger its entry into force. If the industry really has stopped discouraging governments from ratifying it, then what, I wonder, is now holding them back?’

The IMO leader warned that continued failure to enact such an important environmental measure would pose an increasing challenge to the concept of

RFA Commodore Rob Dorey with Nautilus reps Alistair Brew and Dave Gatenby at the Ebola campaign medal event last month

global regulation of shipping — with the prospect of more countries following the US in imposing their own controls.

‘Until the Convention is in force, the door is left open to such unilateral action against the vacuum of international regulations, which will be undesirable and damaging — damaging to the value of IMO and damaging to the whole of the maritime community,’ he added.

‘My real concern now is that, putting aside the collective failure in environmental stewardship, the lack of a global regime to regulate ballast water management may lead to the situation where we

would see exactly the sort of unilateral and regional actions that I have repeatedly warned against and which will, quite rapidly, undermine the ability of international shipping to operate effectively,’ Mr Sekimizu told the meeting.

Describing the convention as ‘absolutely vital’, the IMO head said widespread ratification, effective implementation, stringent oversight of compliance and vigorous enforcement of IMO measures are also important as a way of upholding the image of the industry — and, in turn, recruiting and retaining seafarers.

‘Shipping’s public perception and

RFA Commodore in Chief the Earl of Wessex presented the James Coull Memorial Award to Argus commanding officer Captain David Eagles

Medal honours for Argus Ebola mission A

Nautilus national secretary Jonathan Havard attended an event last month to honour crew members from the Royal Fleet Auxiliary vessel Argus who took part in a six-month deployment to West Africa to help combat the spread of the Ebola virus.

Ebola campaign medals were presented to personnel who had served on the ship while it operated in Sierra Leone between October 2014 and April this year, providing vital logistical and medical support to the international relief efforts.

In his role as Commodore-in-Chief RFA, The Earl of Wessex presented seven medals onboard RFA

Argus in a private ceremony following an earlier presentation to RN medical personnel by the First Sea Lord Sir George Zambellas.

The Earl also presented four Long Service and Good Conduct clasps for 30 years’ service to personnel who have shown exemplary behaviour — including one for Commodore Rob Dorey.

Argus commanding officer Captain David Eagles accepted the James Coull Memorial Award on behalf of the whole ships’ company in recognition of their work in the Ebola relief programme and said he was delighted to see the ships’ company recognised for

their efforts. ‘They worked in arduous conditions to ensure that RFA Argus and the Tri-Service personnel onboard were able to meet the UK’s response to the Ebola epidemic in West Africa,’ he added.

During the deployment, the ship ensured that 16,000 people received a month’s worth of food.

More than 400 patients were treated and the three Merlin helicopters flew 294 missions from the ship’s deck. The chefs in the galley also pulled out all the stops — serving 50,000 hot meals a month, and providing 80 packed lunches a day for personnel operating in the field.

reputation is vital in the context of bringing new generations into seafaring,’ he stressed. ‘It must be seen to appeal as a rewarding and fulfilling career option because, without a quality labour force, motivated, trained and skilled to the appropriate international standards, the industry cannot survive.’

Despite his appeal, several shipowner delegates at the conference expressed their continued concern about critical aspects of the ballast water management convention — including port state control sampling methods and the reliability of equipment.

The RFA Lyme Bay arrives in storm-hit Dominica last month

RFA relief to Dominica Fsupport ship Lyme Bay has

The Royal Fleet Auxiliary (RFA)

been praised for providing vital aid to the island of Dominica following the devastation left behind by a tropical storm last month.

The ship spent six days delivering emergency supplies, food, and other support to remote communities suffering from the effects of flash flooding, mudslides, landslides and rock falls.

Defence secretary Michael Fallon commented. ‘The men and

women onboard can be very proud of their efforts helping the people of the island to rebuild their lives and return to normality.’

Lyme Bay’s commanding officer, Nautilus Council member Captain Paul Minter, said: ‘I am very proud of my team, which has been actively involved in providing humanitarian and disaster relief after the devastating storm, and I am delighted that we have been able to make a difference to some of the communities affected.’

Report warns of a ‘forgotten’ sector GET FUNDED TO GO FURTHER! new report from a UK-based F maritime charity that seeks to raise Nautilus has supported a

public awareness of the Merchant Navy and the welfare needs of the seafaring community.

The Bridge Report, published by the Royal Merchant Navy Education Foundation (RMNEF) last month, warns that the shipping industry and the people who work within it are in danger of becoming ‘the forgotten sector’.

‘If we continue to overlook this sector, not only will we be snubbing centuries of history but we will be overlooking the needs of tens of thousands of people in the here and now, and into the future,’ it argues.

The report provides a brief history of merchant shipping in the UK and explains the continuing importance of the industry to the nation.

10-11_news.indd 11

It examines the scale of the welfare needs faced by serving and retired seafarers and their families, pointing out that there are 46,000 former merchant seafarers aged 55 and over with limiting long-term illnesses.

The report highlights some of the organisations working to support seafarers and also provides information about the RMNEF, which was founded in 1827 to give educational and training support to seafarers’ children.

Today, it has set an ambitious aim of a sixfold increase in its beneficiary numbers and offers assistance with such things as school or university fees, educational books, equipment and visits, some travel between home and school, and some university expenses. g For more information, visit the website: www.rmnef.org.uk.

Find out how we can help you go from Rating to Officer with STCW 2010 OOW Certification: education@ms-sc.org

marine-society.org

Registered with ELC and SLC Marine Society & Sea Cadets, a charity registered in England and Wales 313013 and in Scotland SC037808

23/09/2015 17:07

12 | telegraph | nautilusint.org | October 2015

HEALTH & SAFETY

Masters could face fines for fatigued crew fines’ if they fail to ensure that F their crews are abiding by hours

Shipmasters could face ‘severe

of work and rest requirements, an accident investigation report has warned.

Excessive working hours have been highlighted in yet another accident — this time a collision between two cargoships off the coast of Germany last September.

Investigators called for improvements to manning and working time arrangements in a report on the incident involving the Antigua & Barbuda-flagged Francisca and the Cyprus-registered RMS Bremen in the Kiel Firth.

The German accident investigation board BSU ruled that watchkeepers on both ships had failed to verify displayed GPS positions with other independent systems, such as radar or visual bearings.

The 2,377gt Francisca was detained after the accident when an inspection showed that the watchkeeping officers were not complying with hours of work and rest requirements and there were inconsistencies in the working time

records kept onboard.

Both ships were operating with the minimum safe manning stipulated by their flag states — six seafarers — and at the time of the accident the Francisca’s OOW was alone on the bridge, as the lookout was on deck preparing to enter the Kiel lock.

The report says the six-on/six-off rotas onboard Francisca meant it was not possible for the master and chief officer to get sufficient hours of rest.

However, the five-by-seven pattern followed onboard RMS Bremen enabled compliance with the rules with the same manning levels.

BSU said owners and operators should ensure that their ships are manned sufficiently for the requirements of the area of operation and the navigational equipment on the bridge, and it warned that fines may be imposed on masters who do not ensure that work and rest rules are being followed on their vessels.

Masters have a responsibility to pay attention to their crews’ hours, it added, and should inform owners ‘in good time’ if there is a possibility that the rules cannot be complied with. g See feature, page 20.

Investigators in pool safety call Language gap highlighted in report on death of Princess Cruises passenger

P

Communication problems between mixed nationality crew members may have delayed the emergency response in an incident in which a passenger died onboard a Princess Cruises vessel, the UK Marine Accident Investigation Branch (MAIB) has found.

The passenger drowned in a swimming pool onboard the UKregistered Sapphire Princess during a voyage between China and South Korea in August last year.

Investigators said the circumstances leading to her death could not be determined, as the pool area was not supervised and she had last been seen alive around 30 minutes before the alarm was raised by other passengers using the pool.

‘The lack of dedicated pool attendants potentially delayed the response to the incident in respect of raising an alarm and administering appropriate medical treatment,’ the report notes. ‘The monitoring of CCTV coverage of the area might have prompted an earlier response and would have given post-incident information.’

Investigators said the effectiveness of the emergency response may have been further compromised as a consequence of the initial emergency call from a Serbian catering assistant not being understood by the Chinesespeaking customer service agent who answered the phone in the purser’s office.

‘Fortunately another assistant

was able to understand the caller, otherwise the medical team’s response might have been further delayed,’ the report adds.

The MAIB said there were further delays in administering first aid to the passenger, with initial resuscitation attempts being carried out by other passengers as crew in the vicinity of the pool had not had any first aid training.

The report notes that there was no formal risk assessment in place for the use of the ship’s pools, and as a result, associated hazards relating to their use by unsupervised passengers had not been formally assessed.

Since the Sapphire Princess incident, the MAIB said it had been notified of two other swimming pool accidents onboard Princess

Cruise Lines vessels. It noted that the company had issued guidance to passengers warning that lifeguards are not on duty around the pools and that they use the facilities at their own risk.

However, the MAIB recommends the company to complete a ‘suitable and sufficient’ risk assessment on the use of pools throughout its fleet and formally document it.

Princess has also been urged to ensure its hotel staff — including stewards, shop staff, hairdressers and entertainers — receive sufficient training and information to take immediate action in the event of an accident or other medical emergency before seeking further medical assistance onboard.

New guide Jet lag was a to pilotage factor in fire A

New guidance to navigating with a pilot has been produced by a P&I club in conjunction with the International Marine Pilots’ Association and the UK Marine Pilots’ Association.

Published by the North P&I Club, the advice is aimed at bridge teams and pilots and has been developed in response to investigations into incidents in which a breakdown of communications and failure to discuss the voyage plan were revealed as causes. g The first briefing covers the masterpilot exchange and is freely available on the websites www.nepia.com, www.impahq.org and www.ukmpa. org.

MARINE TAX SERVICES (CARDIFF) LTD

on cableship

to mistakes which led to a A fire onboard a cableship during a

Fatigue may have contributed

bunkering operation.

The French accident investigation body BEAmer said an engineer officer coordinating the refuelling on the 13,978gt Ile de Sein in May this year had been affected by fatigue and jet lag as a result of travelling from France to join the ship in Honolulu on the day before the accident.

His fatigue had probably contributed to an operating error in controlling the marine diesel oil tank filling valves, the report notes.

The mistake resulted in overpressure of the tank venting pipe and sounding circuit. Vapours leaking from the pipe were projected onto the exhaust and ignited, investigators found.

The report said the crew had responded well to the blaze as a result of regular safety drills.

Concerns over the number of passengership fires, such as the blaze onboard the ferry Norman Atlantic earlier this year, were raised at the International Union of Marine Insurance conference Picture: Marina Militare, Italy

Insurers warn of accident risks the maritime sector this year should serve as a A clear wake-up call for the industry.

Marine insurers have warned that accidents in

The annual International Union of Marine Insurance (IUMI) conference heard that while losses last year had reduced, there are worrying signs of big claims arising from accumulated risks.

Incidents such as the Tianjin port explosions and the Hoegh Osaka capsize have resulted in huge insured losses which are expected to have a major impact on the market, the IUMI meeting was told.

The conference heard concerns that while the claims frequency is reducing, the scale of incidents is increasing. Astrid Seltmann, from the Nordic Association of Marine Insurers, said the increased number of large high-value vessels such as ultralarge containerships and cruiseships is making the insurance market very volatile — with fears that a catastrophic mega-boxship loss could lead to claims totalling billions of dollars.

IUMI’s ocean hull committee chairman, Mark Edmondson said the risk profile of the world’s fleet

is improving, with fewer vessels having detainable deficiencies. But he added: ‘Some practitioners are asking if the current reduction in frequency of major losses is the norm rather than the exception.

Although we’ve seen a relatively low major casualty rate for 2013-2014, I believe this will be short-lived.’

Delegates also expressed concern at the number of fires on ro-ro vessels and passengerships, as well as engine and machinery damage claims as a consequence of emission regulations or slow steaming.

Dcomplete service for mariners Drun by certificated ex-officer Dqualified accountants always available Dcomputerised 100% claims and forecast projection DLimited Company Formation & Admin 26 High Street, Barry CF62 7EB, South Glamorgan, UK Tel. Barry (01446) 739953 MARINETAX@YAHOO.COM Established 1974

12-13_h+s.indd 12

Dutch firm launches simulator fire-fighting training VSTEP has launched a new F simulator-based shipboard fire-

The Dutch training company

fighting package for seafarers following an extensive trial period.

Developed with the help of professional instructors and crews, the Advanced Fire Fighting Simulator (AFF) enables seafarers to experience and train for all types of shipboard incidents and to fully comply with STCW courses.

VSTEP says the compact simulator

can be used almost anywhere and set up according to training requirements and team size. A typical set-up includes an instructor station and training stations for the on-scene commander and fire team leaders.

During simulator training, participants assess the situation and determine the best response strategy.

They then implement it and observe the consequences of their decisions in real-time. The simulator allows users to try out different response

strategies for an incident in a safe, controlled environment.

An instructor is in full control during the training and can build specific onboard incident scenarios as well as influencing the scenario for participants during the exercise.

As an additional feature, the RescueSim AFF simulator can be linked with VSTEP’s NAUTIS ship bridge simulators for additional incident command training of bridge personnel.

23/09/2015 18:03

October 2015 | nautilusint.org | telegraph | 13

HEALTH & SAFETY

Code of safe working practices is overhauled to launch a radically revised A version of the Code of Safe Working

Nautilus International helped

Practices for merchant seafarers during a London International Shipping Week event last month.

The new Code has been extensively overhauled by an industry working group over an 18-month period, and it was unveiled during a UK Ship Register reception at the Foreign Office, with speakers including shipping minister Robert Goodwill.

It is the first time since 1998 that the Code has undergone such a thorough update and the changes include the restructuring of the contents and a stronger focus on safety culture, as well as new or

The Code of Safe Working Practices review team at the launch event last month

Nautilus concern at bulker safety IMO warning on bauxite cargoes does not go far enough, Union warns

P

Nautilus has supported flag state calls for changes in the rules governing the carriage of bauxite cargoes, following an investigation into the loss of a bulk carrier in which 18 crew members died in January this year.

The 31,246gt Bulk Jupiter sank off the coast of Vietnam during a voyage from Malaysia to China with a cargo of 46,400 tonnes of bauxite. Only the chief cook was rescued.

The Bahamas maritime safety investigation report says there was insufficient evidence to determine why the ship capsized after developing an unrecoverable list.

However, it notes that heavy rain in the days before the accident had resulted in an average moisture content of 21.3% in the cargo.

The absence of an independent inspection resulted in the bauxite being loaded without its physical properties and moisture content being verified against the parameters of the International Maritime Solid Bulk Cargoes (IMSBC) Code, the report adds.

Investigators said the most likely causes of the ship’s loss were liquefaction of the cargo or a free surface effect.

In response to the findings, the flag state last month presented a paper to the International Maritime Organisation’s (IMO) carriage of cargoes and containers (CCC) sub-committee, calling for urgent changes to the IMSCB carriage requirements for bauxite.

The Bahamas called for safeguards to ensure that cargoes meet the correct criteria for classification as a category C cargo — unlikely to liquefy — under

the IMBSC Code. ‘Seafarers have a right to expect that the cargoes loaded onto their ships are properly declared,’ its paper states. ‘In this case, it cannot be argued that the declaration received onboard accurately reflected the cargo being loaded.’

It suggests that cargoes should be treated as category A — prone to liquefy — if test certificates are not provided.

The IMO responded to the report by issuing a special alert, warning masters not to accept bauxite cargoes unless the moisture limit is certified as less than 10%, the cargo is declared as Group A and the shipper declares the moisture content, or the cargo has been assessed as not presenting Group A properties.

Speaking at the meeting on behalf of the International Federation of Ship Masters’ Associa-

tions, Nautilus professional and technical assistant David Appleton said that while a warning circular is welcome, it does not go far enough to protect the lives of seafarers.

‘The only acceptable shortterm solution to prevent more seafarers from unnecessarily losing their lives in the interim period whilst research is carried out is to reclassify bauxite as a group A cargo,’ he added.

‘The long-term solution is to build ships with a sufficient safety margin so that the safety of seafarers is not determined by highly subjective cargo analysis.’

The IMO has also agreed to establish a correspondence group with the aim of evaluating the properties of bauxite and coal (some types of coal may liquefy) and consider any necessary amendments to the IMSBC Code.

Bulker wreck removed after two-year project Authority (SAMSA) has paid F tribute to a ‘complex and difficult’

South Africa’s Maritime Safety

salvage operation, completed last month, to remove the wreck of a bulk carrier which ran aground in 2013.

The 151,279dwt Smart broke up after running onto a sand bar shortly after sailing from Richards Bay with a cargo of coal.

In the first stage of the salvage, 1,769 tonnes of fuel oil and 129 tonnes of diesel were removed by Dutch salvor Smit, together with Smit Amandla Marine and the Subtech Group. Some 10,000 tonnes of coal slurry was then removed, before the separated stern section was refloated and scuttled offshore.

Titan Salvage worked on the project to lighten, refloat and scuttle

12-13_h+s.indd 13

revised advice on issues such as fatigue, ergonomics, use of display equipment and entry into enclosed spaces.

Changes from the previous (2011 consolidated) edition include an increased emphasis on practical guidance rather than legislation, improved guidance on risk assessment, simplified advice on permits to work, and a revised chapter on vessels serving the offshore oil and gas sectors. It also contains revised guidance on snapback zones in mooring operations, reflecting the results of accident investigation recommendations.

At least one printed copy of the Code should be readily available onboard UK-flagged ships.

Nautilus International senior national secretary Allan Graveson, who was part of the working group responsible for the new Code, commented: ‘We are very pleased with the outcome of the review, and particularly welcome the improved presentation and content of the Code. It needs to be readily accessible to everyone onboard ships.’

Maritime & Coastguard Agency chief executive Sir Alan Massey told guests at the launch event that he was grateful to the team who developed the new Code: ‘It is a great example of the way the UK flag is prepared to work closely with industry partners to set standards which are embraced worldwide.’ g See M-notices, page 42.

Owners urged to pass over ships’ records calls for ship owners and F managers to provide records on the Nautilus has backed insurers’

condition of a vessel and its machinery when they are sold.

The International Union of Marine Insurance (IUMI) said last month that it is concerned that nontransfer and destruction of records is commonplace. Failing to hand over such important documents puts the incoming vessel managers, owners and underwriters at a serious disadvantage, it warned.

‘The current trend to remove these records has the potential to impact on the new owner’s ability to operate the vessel effectively on takeover,’ said IUMI political forum chair Helle Hammer.

‘Without continuity of information, it could be some months before the new crew and management are fully familiar with the vessel and machinery plant,’ she pointed out. ‘During this time, there is an increased risk of machinery breakdown leading to inability or impairment to navigate, fire and explosion, or personal injury from component failure. This, of course, affects the risk profile of the vessel.’

IUMI warned that insurers are being exposed to claims that could be avoided if adequate maintenance

records had been provided. Significant improvement to the vessel’s risk profile would be achieved by requiring the maintenance records, operating reports, and spares inventory to be part of the permanent service history of the ship and covered by the regulatory regime, it argued, possibly through additional clauses in the sale and purchase agreement.

It has urged the International Association of Classification Societies to make a rule change to require the maintenance of ship records as a condition of classification.

Nautilus senior national secretary Allan Graveson commented: ‘Records have been routinely destroyed so as to protect previous owners.

This is illustrates that commercial considerations override safety issues.

The call by IUMI is to be welcomed.’ z Nautilus has also backed IUMI concerns over traceability and accountability under the ‘mutual recognition’ by classification societies acting as EU Recognised Organisations (ROs) with authority to carry out statutory surveys and certifications on behalf of flag states.

‘The reasons for a change of class may be varied, as are surveyors and their assessment,’ said Mr Graveson.

‘This may result in defects not being properly identified.’

the partially buried bow section, which was completed in December 2014. The remaining mid-section was cut down and buried last month, with restoration of the seabed completed immediately thereafter.

Smart was entered in North P&I Club by owner Alpha Marine, and deputy global claims director Mike Salthouse said the success of the project was the result of an open and early dialogue between all stakeholders and the authorities responsible for managing the wreck site. He said the collaboration had served as a benchmark for the International Group of P&I Clubs, which is currently concluding memoranda of understanding with states on the protocols for proper handling of maritime incidents.

23/09/2015 18:03

14 | telegraph | nautilusint.org | October 2015

INTERNATIONAL

shortreports GREENPEACE RULING: an international court has ruled that Russia breached the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea by boarding Greenpeace’s Dutch-flagged ship Arctic Sunrise in September 2013 and detaining its 30 crew members who were protesting about Arctic oil drilling. The Permanent Court of Arbitration in The Hague said Russia’s 3nm ‘safety zone’ around the oil platform where the crew was arrested was neither valid nor enforceable and that it had no other legal basis to seize the vessel without the consent of the Netherlands.

SWEDISH SERVICE: SOL Continent Line and P&O Ferries have established a new service between Gothenburg, Tilbury and Teesport. The joint venture involves transshipment of freight at Zeebrugge, to which both companies have regular direct services. Four SOL Continent Line ships depart each week from Gothenburg bound for Zeebrugge while P&O Ferries has daily departures from Zeebrugge to the two UK ports.

TIANJIN ALARM: the US Coast Guard has expressed concern that ships visiting the Chinese port of Tianjin may have been exposed to potentially hazardous chemical residues, ash or other debris following the massive explosions in August. It has issued a safety alert urging vessels and facility agents, owners, masters, and operators to take steps to minimise the risk of possible contamination.

BOSPORUS BLOCKED: the Bosporus was closed for a day in both directions last month as Turkish authorities worked to refloat a Panama-flagged bulk carrier which ran aground in the busy waterway. The 33,476dwt El Condor Pas was en route to the port of Samsun laden with iron ore when it grounded.

Sweden to bring in tonnage tax Seafaring union welcomes long-awaited plan to end decline of the fleet

by Andrew Draper

P

Swedish seafaring unions and shipowners have welcomed their government’s long-awaited announcement of plans to introduce a tonnage tax scheme.

Ministers say the new system will come into effect next July, ending years of foot-dragging and bringing Sweden onto a par with EU maritime nations.

‘I am pleased that we will have a maritime tonnage tax system in place and I look forward to seeing more Swedish-flagged ships,’ said infrastructure minister Anna Johansson, ‘We know that this is very important in terms of jobs and it is a step along the way to achieving the lowest rate of unemployment in the European Union by 2020.’

Unions — who had been campaigning for the scheme for more than a decade, warning of the gradual disappearance of the shipping industry from Sweden — have welcomed the news, But they have pointed to difficulties surrounding the financing of the tax.

The SEKO seafarers’ union said tonnage tax would help to create jobs throughout the entire maritime sector and boost the economy. Union spokesman Thomas Abrahamson commented: ‘SEKO has long pushed the question of bringing in a tonnage tax system and is positive about the proposal.

There are still issues around the financing, but on the whole it’s positive that the proposal is coming now.’

There has been lively debate about the scheme on social

media, with many Swedish seafarers joining the conversation.

Many said it would be ‘too little too late’, while others said the tax could help turn the tide and save Swedish seafaring jobs from disappearing abroad. Many owners have flagged vessels away from Sweden in recent years, leaving the fleet a shadow of its former self.

Shipping group Stena said the change would be a step in the right direction, but would not have an immediate impact. Anders Boman, spokesman for the owners’ association, Svensk Sjöfart, said they regarded the government’s decision as a ‘long-term move that would save jobs in the entire Swedish maritime cluster ‘With the clear signals the government is now providing, we hope that our member compa-

DIEPPE BOOST: the French port of Dieppe has reported a 25% rise in traffic for the first eight months of this year, most of it in cross-Channel trade. DFDS increased passenger numbers on its two ferries on the Newhaven service by 47.7% and its freight volumes by 37.1%, the port revealed.

US plan to boost its shipping

LANGUAGE CALL: the French maritime officers’ union CFE-CGC has written to ecology minister Ségolène Royal and maritime MP Arnaud Leroy to urge the government to make the use of the French language compulsory onboard French-flagged passenger ships.

Maritime Administration A (MARAD) has defended the Jones

The head of the United States

DOCK DEATH: an Italian shipyard worker died and three others suffered serious injuries after the Italianflagged research vessel Urania suddenly heeled portside and listed 30 degrees while dry-docked in a Livorno floating dock.

ARCTIC PASSAGE: two cruiseships operated by the French firm Ponant — Le Boréal and Le Soléal — have become the first to sail through the Northwest Passage from Greenland to Siberia, just three days apart.

COSCO BUILDS: China’s largest shipping company, COSCO, has ordered 11 new 19,000TEU containerships at four domestic shipyards. The new ships are scheduled for delivery in 2018.

Far East to Europe last month is the world’s largest A pure car and truck carrier (PCTC) — the 75,717gt Höegh

Pictured above during its maiden voyage from the

Target. The Norwegian-flagged vessel is the first in a series of six post-Panamax vessels being built for Höegh Autoliners over the next 18 months. The ships each have

some 71,400 sq m of deck space and capacity for up to 8,500 car equivalent units.

Höegh says a range of energy efficiency design features mean the ships will emit around 50% less CO2 per car transported than a standard car carrier.

Picture: Eric Houri

Unions urge extra manning after ‘wrong-way’ TSS case have called for the European A Commission to take immediate action French seafaring unions

to better regulate navigation in EU waters following an incident in which a Gibraltar-flagged cargoship sailed in the wrong direction in the Channel traffic separation scheme.

They criticised safety standards after the 2,545gt Musketier was intercepted after sailing for an hour in the wrong lane of the TSS and failing to respond to calls from the

14-15_int.indd 14

nies can accommodate the future for Swedish shipping,’ he added.

‘There is a great potential that we must seize.’

Ahead of the tonnage tax announcement, the Swedish government presented a national maritime strategy plan that will focus on shipping, environment and people. Mr Boman said the proposals would set the basis for future renewed growth. Several owners have announced plans to register under the Swedish flag, including Stena and Donsötank.

However, it came too late to stop ACL deciding to put its Swedishregistered fleet onto other flags.

The new regime requires EU approval and the government therefore thinks the earliest it can start is 1 July 2016. The unions have pressed for January as the start date.

coastguard and Channel Navigation Information Service.

‘Once again, a coastal trader operating in European waters has put navigation in danger,’ said FOMM CGT officers’ union general secretary JeanPhilippe Chateil and ratings’ union leader Michel Le Cavorzin.

‘Nobody was on the bridge and the fatigue of an unskilled and a depleted non-EU crew are the main reasons for the incident that could have caused a serious accident,’ Mr Chateil added.

The unions are calling for new rules to require the carriage of three officers capable of carrying out watchkeeping duties onboard all ship undertaking commercial voyages over 12 hours.

Meanwhile, the French accident investigation body BEAmer is looking into the reasons why the Germanowned Musketier had failed to change course as it entered the Channel on a voyage from Russia to Spain. The vessel had been involved in a similar incident in 2011.

Act regulation protecting the country’s coastal trades from foreign competition and has promised ‘sweeping policy change’ to boost US shipping.

Speaking at the International Chamber of Shipping’s annual conference in London last month, Paul Jaenichen said the regulations reserving cabotage trades to US-flagged and US-crewed ships were essential.

‘Every presidential administration for the last 90 years has supported the Jones Act and there’s a reason for that,’ he told the meeting. ‘We have to have a US merchant marine, and the Jones Act is one way to maintain that, but also make sure that we continue to have an indigenous shipbuilding capacity and commercial base that supports not only commercial shipbuilding but also naval ships.’

Despite the support provided by the Jones Act, Mr Jaenichen said the US-flagged merchant fleet is continuing to decline — with a 25% reduction in ship numbers over the last three years alone.

The MARAD boss said the US government is developing a radical new maritime strategy package to combat the decline. It will aim to increase the competitiveness of the US flag with tax incentives and to recruit and train a new generation of US seafarers, with associated streamlining of the certification processes. The package will also include measures to expand the capacity of US ‘gateway’ ports.

23/09/2015 17:44

October 2015 | nautilusint.org | telegraph | 15

INTERNATIONAL

Crane ship gets overhaul in France A

The 18,330dwt crane ship Wei-Li is pictured leaving the Damen Shiprepair Dunkerque yard to sail to Rotterdam last month following 10 days of maintenance and repairs.

The Chinese-flagged vessel needed special dock bed arrangements in the yard — not least because of the 3,000 tonne crane mounted on its stern and its unconventional hull form.

A total of 225 blocks were required, along with an additional 56 steel pillars of up to 7m in length to support the stern. Wooden wedges also had to be added to the lateral blocks to take account of the unusual hull shape and to ensure complete stability in the drydock.

Work included blasting and painting the hull and the overhauling of the internal and overboard valves.

The starboard propeller blades were also rebuilt and some major repairs were made to the accommodation.

Cabotage plan would decimate national seafarer skills base, study finds

P

fewer than 183 days in Australian waters.

The Maritime Union of Australia (MUA) has described the bill as ‘a national disgrace’ and says it will destroy the country’s shipping industry. ‘It removes all preferential treatment for Australian ships, which has been at the heart of maritime and shipping policy in Australia for over a century,’ it added. ‘Removing the Australian flag from the back of Australian ships is an act of unilateral economic disarmament.’

The union points to a report

by The Australia Institute, which warned 93% of Australian seafaring jobs could be lost if the new laws are introduced. ‘The proposed (Bill) is likely to reduce

employment for relatively little economic benefit,’ the study stated. ‘What little benefit that is generated will accrue largely to foreign-owned shipping and bulk-freight using companies.’

Business groups claim the measures are needed to improve competitiveness by cutting costs for Australian manufacturers and exporters. The Business Council of Australia complained that the current rules mean that shipppers have to pay twice as much to use Australian vessels, and mean that it can be cheaper to ship goods to Asia than between Australian ports.

The government says Australian seaborne trade is set to grow by 80% over the next 15 years, but

cabotage trades will expand by only 15% without relaxation of the rules.

But opposition MPs are concerned about the threats to safety, security and employment posed by the increased presence of flag of convenience shipping in the country’s waters.

‘The changes would dismantle the level playing field created by the former Labor government, which allowed foreign vessels to work domestic routes but required them to pay Australian level wages while engaged in domestic trade,’ the MUA added.

‘It is in Australia’s economic, environmental and security interests to maintain a viable local shipping industry.’

Canadian seafarers in court challenge to government country’s government to court over the issue A of work permits to foreign seafarers working in A maritime union in Canada is taking the

the country’s coastal waters at rates as low as C$2 (€1.33) an hour.

The Seafarers International Union of Canada filed two suits against the federal government in Vancouver last month, seeking a judicial review of the use of temporary work permits for foreign crews on internationally-flagged ships in Canadian waters.

The union complains that around 4,000 temporary work permits have been handed out to foreign seafarers since 2013 — at a time when unemployment among Canadian crews is running at 25%.

14-15_int.indd 15

WRECK SUPPORT: Panama and Cyprus have become the latest countries to sign up to the 2007 Nairobi International Convention on the Removal of Wrecks. The treaty places strict liability on owners for locating, marking and removing wrecks deemed to be a hazard, and makes state certification of insurance, or other form of financial security for such liability, compulsory for ships of 300gt and above. The 25 contracting states now represent more than 58% of world merchant shipping tonnage.

COSTLY SALVAGE: the four-year salvage of the containership Rena, which ran aground on a reef off the New Zealand port of Tauranga in 2011, has cost almost NZ$500m (€283m) — making it the second most expensive shipwreck in history. The vessel’s owners, Daina Shipping, are seeking court permission to leave the rest of the ship on the Astrolabe Reef, arguing that it poses no environmental threat and removing it could be dangerous.

Australian union warns over jobs Australian government plans to open up the country’s coastal trades to foreign shipping could decimate domestic seafaring employment, unions have warned.

Ministers have tabled legislation which will effectively grant foreign-flagged ships the unrestricted ability to trade in Australian waters, claiming that the relaxation of current controls will cut red tape, reduce freight costs and provide greater access to ‘competitive international shipping services’.

The proposals would allow owners of foreign-flagged ships to pay their crews ‘international’ wages rather than Australian rates, so long as the ship spends

shortreports

SIU president Jim Given said shipping companies are abusing the system to employ foreign crews for a fraction of what Canadians would be paid. ‘The law is very simple,’ he added. ‘They’re giving work permits to foreign workers on ships in Canadian waters when the law says those jobs should go qualified Canadians first.

‘There needs to be a maritime policy and there needs to be a policy on temporary foreign workers when it comes to seafarers.’

Canadian law requires that ships carrying passengers or goods between the country’s ports may only use foreign workers if no qualified Canadian workers are available, the union argues.

Under the Coasting Trading Act, operators can

apply for an exemption from the requirement to use a Canadian vessel if none is shown to be available.

Once an exemption is gained, work permits for the foreign crew have to be sought.

Canada’s Border Services Agency issued 142 exemptions to foreign ships last year, to enable their crews to work legally in Canada, and a further 59 have been granted so far this year.

‘The government of Canada is wilfully ignoring the law and giving up on qualified, ready-to-work Canadian seafarers,’ said Mr Given.

‘We cannot sit by and watch while foreign workers are being given work permits and paid as little as $2 an hour to work in Canadian waters,’ he added.

EVERGREEN ORDER: Taiwan’s Evergreen Group has signed a deal for 10 new 2,800TEU feederships to be built by the Japanese yard Imabari. Due for delivery between 2018 and 2019, the 211m ships will be deployed on intra-Asia routes, and have a special wide hull design for operation in shallow waters, as well as an electroniccontrolled fuel injection engine, which will cut emissions by around 20% in comparison with conventional vessels.

VESSEL BOARDED: Portuguese Navy special forces boarded the Liberian-flagged cargoship Rene A off the country’s coast last month after a Turkish crewman attacked a shipmate and threatened to kill other seafarers onboard. The seafarer — who had also threatened to set the ship’s cargo on fire — was arrested by a team from the naval vessel NRP António Enes, which was sent to the scene when the ship sent a distress call.

IDLE BOXSHIPS: the number of laid-up containerships has risen to the highest point in a year, closing in on the 500,000TEU capacity mark according to the industry analysts Alphaliner. In a report published last month, it said there were 175 idle boxships at the end of August, totalling 484,000TEU capacity. Alphaliner warned that the total is set to rise further in October following the end of the peak season.

MLC BOOST: China has become the latest country to ratify the Maritime Labour Convention (MLC) 2006, although its provisions will not apply to the Hong Kong and Macau Special Administrative Regions for the time being. The convention has now been ratified by 66 flag states accounting for more than 80% of world gross tonnage.

DANISH CALL: Danish seafarer unions have urged the country’s government to make maritime skills a priority in its new ‘blue growth’ team to strengthen the country’s shipping sector.

GAS FERRIES: leading Spanish ferry operator Baleària Eurolínias Marítimas has ordered two ferries that will be the first newbuilds in Spain to run on LNG.

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23/09/2015 17:08

16 | telegraph | nautilusint.org | October 2015

YOUR LETTERS

What’s on onyour yourmind? mind?

Tell your colleagues shipping.

Keep yourTelegraph letter to ahave your name, address colleaguesin inNautilus NautilusInternational International— —and andthe thewider world of but you must let the maximum words if you canyour — though contributions will beand considered.

Use number. a pen name or wider world300 of shipping.

Keep letter tolonger a maximum membership just membership number you don’t want to be identifi in anyour accompanying —Telegraph, Nautilus 300your words if you can — thoughif longer contributions will ed — say soSend letter to thenote Editor, but you must let the Telegraph have your name, address and membership number. Send yourShrubberies, letter to the George Lane, be considered.

International, 1&2 The Editor, International, 1&2number The Shrubberies, George Lane,Woodford, South Woodford, Use aTelegraph, pen nameNautilus or just your membership if you South London E18 1BD, or use head office fax London E18to 1BD, use head ceso faxin+44 (0)20 8530 1015, or— email+44 telegraph@nautilusint.org don’t want beor identifi ed —offi say an accompanying note (0)20 8530 1015, or email telegraph@nautilusint.org

Skills are there, but what about the jobs? meetings during London P International Shipping Week and I attended numerous

Join our cycle crew and fight cancer!

Nautilus member for over eight D years and a yacht captain of over My name is Gordon Percy, a

25 years. I would like to bring to the attention of fellow Nautilus members, a marvellous group of dedicated professionals whose efforts over the past few years have inspired me to get on my bike and join them on their journey this year.

We have all been touched by cancer in one form or other, either personally, or through a family member or close friend. So I would like you please to take the time to go our web page at www.cogs4cancer.org and make a simple donation through Just Giving, if you can. You can also join us for a tribute ride in either Barcelona on the first day, or Cogolin on the last, if you happen to be in the area.

Cogs4cancer is inspired by the story of those within the yachting industry who have been touched by cancer in one way or another. In

March 2013, a group of like-minded personalities came together to form the charity with the ethos that every single penny raised goes directly to charity and all other operational costs are covered by the riders and support team themselves.

In October this year, 24 riders will cycle 850km from Barcelona to Antibes with the aim to raise as much money as possible. Cogs4cancer is the only aid organisation within yachting of its kind. This community-driven event is widely supported by yachting companies and individuals alike.

Having already raised over €500,000 since founding in 2013, Cogs4cancer is widely seen as having made a significant difference. The primary charity that we donate to is Cancer Research UK. g To get involved or to find out more, contact info@cogs4cancer.org.

GORDON PERCY mem no 197889

Have your say online Last month we asked: Do you think port state control is succeeding in raising the quality of the world merchant fleet?

have been very impressed with what has been said and presented for guests and delegates.

With the coincident release of the Maritime Growth Study report much has been made of developing the UK as the hub of the maritime world, many plans, strategies and lofty ideals for all to see.

To my mind, however, the main problem affecting our industry has not been addressed or even touched upon by any of the organisations holding debates and meetings. When I have met and spoken to recentlyqualified officers who have, despite months of effort, not yet managed to obtain employment at sea I wonder if there is actually a skills shortage. A berth shortage I would agree with, but the skills seem to be in abundance.

The UK Government wants to grow the UK Register and increase the tonnage under the British flag, but isn’t this just for appearances? Our position on the global tonnage league table seems to be all important, but shouldn’t we be concentrating on the skilled officers resident and trained in the UK who are denied employment by companies who prefer to look only at the bottom line and opt for less expensive employees from the other nations.

We have been implored to encourage youngsters to join the Merchant Navy, but to what end?

Yes 46%

16-17_lets_SR edit.indd 16

I find it concerning hearing reports of a growing shortage of UK seafarers when at the same time young newly qualified officers cannot get a job.

Nautilus senior national secretary Allan Graveson replies: Evidence suggests that 1.5% of newly- qualified officers find it difficult to obtain employment.

In addition to OOW certification companies are also looking at the accompanying academic qualifications held and the person. Nautilus offers a ‘look at your CV’ service, and the Merchant Navy Training Board offers a facility for companies and newly qualified officers to come together. Your son’s friends are advised to contact Nautilus and/ or the MNTB.

Wednesday of each month. It presently has over 120 members.

The composition of the club is seafarers, serving or retired, holding a Master’s certificate of competency or other qualification deemed appropriate; persons serving in a senior capacity ashore on Merseyside having

an appropriate involvement with the sea are also eligible.

Anyone interested should contact our secretary at pugwash54@fsmail. net or telephone +44 (0)151 724 6537 TONY GATT Master (retired) mem no 312654

Offshore employers are in for a shock when they want us back F

This month’s poll asks: Do you think the future of the shipping industry lies in the Far East? Give us your views online, at nautilusint.org

My son who has recently started a three-year cadetship with Clyde Marine Training has told me that several of his friends are unable to get a job after completing their cadetship and passing their OOW certificate.

One lad in particular passed his OOW Engineering certificate in May this year, and despite applying to over 200 shipping companies has yet to gain employment; he just needs that ‘foot in the door’ to kick start his career.

This does not seem to equate to the industry facing a skills shortage. What can young people realistically expect these days undertaking a career at sea?

Have you heard similar stories?

I would value your comments, and any advice.

ALAN MORRIS (recently retired ship’s master) mem no 163633

All welcome at annual MN service in Liverpool give some publicity in your A esteemed publication to the I hope you may be able to

Annual Merchant Navy Service of Remembrance on Merseyside. This service alternates between the two Liverpool cathedrals and this year it will take place at the Metropolitan Cathedral on Sunday 8 November at 3pm. Prominent guests will include the Lord Lieutenant of Merseyside, the Lord Mayor of Liverpool and the Royal Navy regional commanding officer.

DAVID LARGE mem no 105409

Morocco mix-up A

Regarding the July 2015 Telegraph, I have the following remark. On page 14 the article about the Comarit sale states: ‘…the Moroccan port of Algeciras has sold four ferries’. My question is: when did Spain sell this Spanish port to Morocco?

A. JANSEN Zutphen Holland

Prostate tests come Meet Merseyside’s Master Mariners in many guises...

F May I, through your pages, advise mariners living in the NW of England of the existence of the Merseyside Master Mariners’ Club?

In its present form the club dates from 1935. It is mainly a social club, meeting for lunch at the Liverpool Marina in Coburg Dock on the last

No 54%

Some companies, I agree, do their full share of training and provide employment, even if only for a short time, to their cadets who qualify. But what of the others who hold the privilege of trading under the Red Ensign but number no UK officers on their crew list? Isn’t it long overdue that shipping companies who register under the UK flag should, as a prime tenet of membership, be legally required to have a certain percentage of UK officers onboard? It was a sad day when a British ship was no longer required to have a British master, but this situation is far more desperate.

Are we in danger of doing our youngsters a disservice in promoting our industry if we do not have the commitment and backing of the shipping companies who complain of a skills shortage when we seem to have an abundance of energetic, enthusiastic and willing young officers who they will not employ? It is most confusing and distressing to listen to dedicated young people who have put their faith in their training and qualifications only to find that they are ‘on the beach’ before ever having the chance to utilise their skills properly at sea.

CHARLES WOODWARD mem no 001105

Follow us on Twitter

The downturn in the offshore industry due to low oil prices has meant the loss of many jobs and is perhaps unavoidable.

When the oil price does recover, however, I can foresee a panic among the employers as they suddenly realise that people are not welded to their offshore jobs and have found other jobs, both onshore and elsewhere.

There are people of a certain age — and I must confess I am one of these — who will use this to retire early.

As an ETO of 25 years standing, although I fully support the decision to bring in the ETO certificate of competency (not before time), the fact remains that people who have been serving as an ETO are approaching retirement and only have two or three

more years to work. They are not going to go through the subsequent retraining and the cost, for only a short period, and I think this will cause a large gap in available personnel to jobs ratio in the future.

This is foreseeable by the rest of us, but obviously not by the employers.

DAVID HOLDSWORTH mem no 155039

and letters about prostate A problems, I’m 56 and discovered the

With reference to recent articles

delights of an enlarged prostate last year.

I’ve enjoyed the pleasure of a number of catheters, blood samples and tablets. I’ve had two transurethral resection of the prostate (TURP) ops — the last one in August. Fingers crossed, I’m now cured.

The PSA blood test has a problem, with one in eight giving a false, positive result. You may have seen or read recently that they are now looking at using trained dogs to sniff one’s urine for cancer. Early results suggest a near 100% success rate.

There is an easy test to give one an early warning, which I’m surprised is not part of the ENG 1 for those over 50 — yes, it’s the finger up your ***.

M. O’NEILL mem no 160738

23/09/2015 17:10

October 2015 | nautilusint.org | telegraph | 17

YOUR LETTERS

Attitude is what counts if you want to get on D

Grahame Hicks raises some interesting issues in his letter on rating to officer progression (September Telegraph), albeit perhaps more relevant to the offshore oil sector than large foreign-going ships.

There has always been a career path open to ratings, Joseph Conrad is one example! It is the Road Less Travelled. It can be a bumpy and stony road but there are no roadblocks along the way. It’s the road I took in the late 1960s after seven years’ service as a deck rating. It isn’t easy — but it’s not meant to be. For one thing, a rating with a number of years’ service will not, unlike a cadet, have been involved in a study process continuing from school. He or she, like me, may not have achieved a very good understanding at school of the maths and physics which underpin the professional syllabus.

The studying needs to begin there, to acquire those basic tools which

allow the real work to begin. It can be a daunting prospect. Studying has to be done off-watch and on leave. Reading the syllabus for second mates, for the beginner, might as well be written in Mandarin. Whilst encouragement and some practical help might be useful later, the initial impulse has to be the result of personal ambition and a strong desire to get on in life. I’d chosen to go to sea as a rating, though my home background as the son of an RN officer was different from most of my shipmates. Striving to advance wasn’t for me an alien concept.

I didn’t pass second mate’s writtens first time. I had several attempts before finally passing the maths paper, never my strong point. But I did pass orals and signals first time and did the radar observer course. This allowed me to ship out through the pool as second mate in coastal tankers with Shell Mex BP and re-sit on leave.

Once the first hurdle is cleared and one is a certificated officer, the

telegraph

THE VIEW FROM MUIRHEAD

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playing field was then level with those who had taken the more usual route.

However, even back in 1968, when I passed Second Mate FG, the Road Less Travelled was rarely trodden.

I recently obtained a copy of the Nautical Magazine for December 1968, wherein are listed the names and previous ranks of successful candidates for officers’ certificates.

For second mates that year, of 700 successful candidates, only two of us were listed as former ratings.

One would like to think that, with

improvements in secondary education since the 1950/60s, more ratings were making the transition to officer. I’ve been retired many years now but if my experience with my final employer in the 1990s still holds good, then I’m not optimistic. My company, owned in Norway, switched from the Red Ensign to the Norwegian open register. The UK ratings were replaced by much cheaper seamen from Portugal. The owners offered the UK ratings the opportunity to attend nautical college to study for a CoC on pay in lieu of

redundancy compensation. Out of around 50 deck ratings employed, many quite young, only three took up the offer.

On my ship, when I attempted to encourage a rating who I thought quite capable, he said to me: ‘Captain, my grandad was an AB, my Dad was an AB and I’ve got a right to be an AB.’ I concluded that it was the British engrained ‘them and us’ mindset.

Very sad.

PETER ADAMS Rtd mem no 107262

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 William Gibbons.

Certification rules curtail careers we get our ticket upgrades?

P I would like to expand on a Can we please update how

nice letter in the September Telegraph, titled ‘Let’s find better career paths, not a new name’.

I have been wanting to write an article for a while now, but honestly have found it to be quite upsetting when thinking about the raw deal British deepsea officers are getting (unfortunately I cannot comment on any other parts of the industry).

Basically, since 2012 I was trying to get sponsorship from my company for my chief officer’s licence and every year since, I got the answer ‘No’ politely thrown at me. Whereas officers of a certain nationality are getting sponsorship and only being in the company for all of one trip.

Can I prove racism? I very much doubt it. You may also now be asking why are you still in the company you are in? Despite the number of CVs I have sent, I cannot get another job. I will keep on trying, but it’s looking like a hopeless case.

I eventually managed to scrape together enough money to go to college to do my chief officer’s course and the short courses that go with it, spending around £6,000 for courses and accommodation. Unfortunately, I failed my stability and structures paper by all of one or two marks.

In June 2015 my HND was considered as expired by the MCA, as it would be past its sevenyear validity. I asked the Agency why there is a seven-year validity to the HND and whether there is any way we can extend the HND

certificate without having to do the HND course again.

To which they replied: ‘Please note that the decision for HND certificates to hold a validity of seven years was made due to results of a consultation to industry. As the training for HND is application-based, the seven years ensures the candidate is trained up to the appropriate standard. There is no extension issued to HND certificates. Please refer to MGN 8 section 8.2.’

So what is the point of doing the chief officer’s course then?

Surely in the three months you are at college you can be trained up to the new industry standards?

We have short courses now to keep us up to the ‘standard’ — STCW refreshers, ECDIS training, HELM to name but a few. (Which, by the way, my company will not

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pay for — that’s out of my pocket too!)

So now I have to do a full nine-month course — which I will never be able to afford. The course fees and accommodation alone is high enough without considering I will most likely be taxed that year for going to college.

It’s so frustrating, as at work I keep on being told that I am ready for a chief officer’s role — but you need to get your ticket.

To cut a long story short — I can no longer stay at sea; my career has now come to a big brick wall called the MCA. If we want more British officers at sea with experience then the MCA needs to start changing its rules on how we get our next licence.

If anyone can help or has any advice for an experienced second officer who is depressed and down on his luck, I would be happy to hear it.

Thanks and good luck to anyone who is fighting against an outdated system. mem no 193671 I was recently due to take a vessel to Saudi Arabia. My master’s certificate is due to be revalidated in 2018, with an endorsement on it that I can’t go on a ship with ECDIS after 2017.

When I revalidated my certificate last time the ‘Manila amendments’ had not even been drawn up. If you re-certify now you have to have a valid advanced fire-fighting, sea survival, etc, all of which now are only valid for five years.

Some charterers in the oil industry are wanting to see these certificates now. As a result of this, although I was certificated to take the vessel from Dubai to Ras Tanura, I was turned down to

work in Saudi Arabia as I didn’t have these new certificates. After a lot of calls to the Maritime & Coastguard Agency (who were very helpful) I am now in the process of getting these new certificates.

As all seafarers know, we are limited on our time in the UK. Having looked through a lot of colleges to get these courses where they run consecutively, the best that I have found is IDESS in Subic Bay in the Philippines (ironically). The total cost for all courses is about US$3,000, which is also a lot cheaper than in the UK. Cost of a good hotel is about US$60 per night (about £39).

I am 57 years old and have been at sea all my life and I now have to get these certificates.

There will be a lot of people in the same situation as me. The other college that I looked at was Trinidad, but that was very expensive!

I have also been on DP vessels since 1988 and hold a DP unlimited certificate, which, It looks like I might lose — again due to the Manila amendments.

I have just arrived home on leave and last trip I dry-docked two ships and proved to ABS Class 3 DP one vessels and one DP 2 vessel, yet it looks like I could lose my DP unlimited certificate under the new rules. Again I am trying to sort things out.

My main message to all people of my age is to have a good look at your certificates. We have all been at sea a long time and some of the people coming through our ranks now are sadly lacking. In a short while our services will be needed, so keep your qualifications up to date as it will be well worth it.

TIMOTHY BARKER mem no 156558

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

23/09/2015 17:10

18 | telegraph | nautilusint.org | October 2015

MERCHANT NAVY DAY

Flying the flag K

The red ensign was hoisted all around the UK last month to mark Merchant Navy Day — the country’s annual celebration of seafaring. It is also an opportunity to honour merchant seafarers who have served in armed conflict, so numerous ceremonies of remembrance were held.

Merchant Navy Day is also celebrated in Australia, New Zealand and other Commonwealth countries, and takes place each year on 3 September, with the remembrance services often held on the nearest Sunday.

Nautilus always marks the day, and general secretary Mark Dickinson commented: ‘It is an excellent way to raise awareness of both the UK’s historic dependence on the Merchant Navy and the continuing importance of shipping to the economy for an island nation.’

Although Merchant Navy Day is formally recognised by the Scottish government as an official

flag-flying day, it does not have this status in other parts of the UK, so this year saw a major campaign to persuade the Westminster government to follow Scotland’s lead. The campaign is also calling for Merchant Navy Day to be made an official day of remembrance in the UK. To boost the campaign, organisations including Nautilus, Seafarers UK, the Merchant Navy Association and The Watch Ashore showed the government how 3 September should be marked, by hoisting their own red ensigns and urging local councils and port authorities to do the same.

The result was a wonderful display of support for British shipping, backed by HRH The Earl of Wessex, the president of Seafarers UK. In a message to the British public, Prince Edward said: ‘On this Merchant Navy Day, I very much hope you will support this campaign to remember the sacrifices, salute the courage and support the future of the often unsung personnel of our Merchant Navy.’

Dover

London

held on Sunday 6 September at the Merchant Navy Memorial on Tower C Hill in London. Messages of support from HM The Queen and prime minister The UK national commemorative service for Merchant Navy Day was

The red ensign, proudly flown in a Plymouth garden

London

David Cameron were read out at the service, which also marked the centenary of the loss of Cunard’s Lusitania in the First World War. Nautilus UK operations manager Steven Gosling (pictured above) laid the Union’s wreath at the Memorial, and the day’s events at Tower Hill included a Merchant Navy parade and a guard of honour provided by HMS President.

Adelaide

Australian Merchant F Navy Association invited The South

the 3 September service of remembrance next to the Merchant Navy War F Memorial in Dover, and the red ensign was flown from municipal buildings in

the local community to attend a march on 3 September in Port Adelaide to help support and acknowledge the contribution of seafarers.

A plaque has recently been added to the base of the MN flagpole there to commemorate the seafarers lost in wartime.

Telegraph production editor June Cattini-Walker represented Nautilus at

the town. Pictured above is Dover District Council chairman Sue Chandler with MN veteran Donald Hunter on the steps of Dover Town Hall.

general secretary Mark Dickinson (second from right) in front of the red F ensign on 3 September to show their support for the fly-the-flag campaign.

Nautilus personnel at the Union’s head office in London gathered with

Glasgow national ferry A organiser Micky Nautilus

Liverpool

Smyth (right of picture) attended the Merchant Navy Day event at Glasgow City Chambers, along with Union member Andrew Armstrong (left), formerly of the RFA and now a lecturer at City of Glasgow College.

F

After a church service of remembrance in Liverpool on 6 September, the city’s Lord Mayor led a short march to the Merchant Navy Memorial at Pier Head for a wreath-laying ceremony.

Nautilus welfare services manager Mick Howarth placed a wreath on behalf of the Union and the Nautilus Welfare Fund, accompanied by staff and residents from the nearby Nautilus Mariners’ Park retirement estate.

A local folk music group — the Shanty Kings (pictured left) — sang nautical songs after the ceremony.

Plymouth

Wallasey

joined forces to ensure that the city was emblazoned with red ensigns A for Merchant Navy Day — including at the Theatre Royal (pictured right).

In Plymouth, the Merchant Navy Association and The Watch Ashore

C

On Sunday 6 September, staff and residents at the Nautilus Mariners’ Park estate in Wallasey came together at their flagstaff on the banks of the River Mersey after a memorial service to honour Merchant Navy veterans.

18_mn day_SR edit.indd 18

A well-attended memorial service was held at the Plymouth Barbican (above), and a wreath was floated on the harbour waters to honour those lost at sea.

23/09/2015 18:03

October 2015 | nautilusint.org | telegraph | 19

LONDON INTERNATIONAL SHIPPING WEEK

That was the week that was…

International Shipping Week 2015 (LISW15) U last month — staging a seminar on shore-based Nautilus played a big role in London

Goodwill met DFDS Seaways F rating trainees Dan Lewis and Lewis Shipping minister Robert

Byford and HR & crewing vice-president Gemma Griffin at a Maritime Skills Alliance (MSA) reception held at Trinity House during London International Shipping Week.

Opening the event, MSA chairman Bill Walworth said UK maritime qualifications are world-leading, and seafaring skills are valued at sea and ashore. ‘It is encouraging to see that the human element is recognised as one of the four pillars of success in the maritime sector,’ he added.

Mr Goodwill said the government recognised the importance of maritime expertise and was committed to building the workforce. ‘Attracting the right number of people with the right skills to meet the industry’s future needs is one of the biggest issues,’ he added. ‘The need for a highly skilled workforce has never been greater and investing in maritime skills is essential.’

demand for maritime skills and taking part in many of the 120 events staged during the busy week.

Held with government backing and royal support, this was the second LISW — the first was held in 2013 — and was organised to highlight the continuing importance of the maritime cluster in the UK, with some 15,000 industry leaders attending the various meetings.

Ten government ministers cleared their diaries to participate in some of the conferences, panel discussions, and seminars that took place during the week, which opened with an international round table meeting at 10 Downing Street, hosted by transport secretary Patrick McLoughlin.

The Downing Street meeting was swiftly followed by the publication of the government’s Maritime Growth Study — containing proposals for action to improve the competitiveness of UK shipping industries and services.

LISW chairman and Baltic Exchange chief executive Jeremy Penn commented: ‘I am immensely proud that LISW15 has been such a tremendous success. It’s great to know that events like LISW15 help to put shipping at the forefront of the minds of global policy makers and legislators.’

patron Princess Anne made a stirring speech in A support of seafarers in a reception held at Lancaster London International Shipping Week 2015

House.

The Princess Royal told guests that her work with seafaring charities had made her painfully aware of the way in which seafarers have become ‘more and more invisible’ to the general public.

‘Once upon a time if you wanted to travel you travelled by sea. Everybody understood the importance of the sea to commerce, but when people travel now they will probably fly, and this leads to quite astonishing levels of ignorance about the importance of the maritime industry to all areas of our lives,’ she added. ‘This is quite a worrying concept and means that a high profile event like London International Shipping Week really can make a difference.’

Jess Tyson opened the London An introduction to shipping F International Shipping Week event run seminar drew a diverse and C by women in shipping organisation influential maritime audience Nautilus Council member Captain

WISTA with a talk on women in command.

Capt Tyson told the audience that the sea had always been in her life — her father was in the Royal Navy for almost 50 years and was a keen yachtsman. She said she had toyed with the idea of following her father in the RN, but was determined to pursue her goal of being in command.

She told the WISTA members that self-belief and good friends and colleagues are vital and everyone needs to set their own goals, and accept that command might not be the best thing for them — ‘Not everyone is as bossy as me!’

Capt Tyson, who is chair of the Union’s Women’s Forum as well as a Council member, said she felt lucky not to have had to break the mould, as many good female seafarers had gone before her, but she hoped to be able to inspire those coming after her.

during London International Shipping Week 2015.

The 17 participants included five maritime lawyers and policy staff from the Department for Transport, who agreed the seminar had filled in some ‘useful gaps’ in their knowledge.’

The course was aimed both at those embarking on a career in shipping and at those already working in the industry who simply wanted to brush up their merchant knowledge. Even a former Royal Navy Commodore popped in — Bob Sanguinetti, who was last year appointed as the new chief executive and captain of the Port of Gibraltar.

Ship types and trades, shipping economics, classification and regulation were among subjects covered by presenters including exShell engineer officer Nigel Draffin.

Goodwill is pictured being F presented with a Fit for Life DVD by Shipping minister Robert

Chris Adams of the Steamship Mutual P&I Club during London International Shipping Week.

Fit for Life is aimed at seafarers undergoing a Pre-Employment Medical Examination (PEME) and focusses on the importance of staying fit and healthy at sea. It highlights the most common illnesses that seafarers are at risk of (such as heart disease and high blood pressure) and suggests ways of managing these within the confines

19_LISW overview.indd Sec1:19

of a ship. g Steamship Mutual is making the DVD available to all seafarers and shipping companies via its website: www.steamshipmutual.com.

International Shipping Week F were invited to let off some steam on Participants in London

the last day with a charity challenge on the Thames.

The OSCAR Dragon Boat Race saw 20 teams of rowers from across the industry heading to the London Regatta Centre on 11 September for a thrilling 250 metre race in colourful Chinese dragon boats.

The winners, for the second year running, were the Scorpio Stingers from the Scorpio Group — usually

known for tankers and bulk carriers, but here proving fast and nimble in a smaller craft.

Sponsored by Lloyd’s Register and the Liberian Registry, the event also raised money from competitors and spectators, who danced into the evening to tunes by DJ Daryl Easlea.

The total donated by all the contributors was £140,000, which will fund pioneering research into childhood cancers and immune diseases by Great Ormond St Hospital.

part in the launch of a new A maritime professional development Nautilus members took

programme at London International Shipping Week, designed to support the careers of engine, deck, logistics and supply officers with the Royal Fleet Auxiliary (RFA).

Under an agreement between the RFA and the Institute of Marine Engineering, Science & Technology (IMarEST), the institute accredits the RFA’s internal training scheme and maps it with IMarEST’s levels of professional membership. This can offer the opportunity for professional qualifications such as Chartered status.

The latest programme, which is endorsed by the UK Merchant Navy Training Board, follows on from the launch of a similar one for engineers earlier in the year. Under the scheme, the RFA pays for IMarEST membership and the officers’ progress is monitored and supported by the programme throughout their careers.

Deck officer trainee Charlotte Beeby said the programme was a welcome boost for morale as well as giving a better framework to build competency and skills, and engineer

officer Katie Thompson agreed the programme would make the RFA’s training more recognisable in the industry.

RFA Commodore Rob Dorey

said that the programme aimed to make it as easy as possible for the organisation’s seagoing professionals to achieve qualifications which employers wanted to see.

23/09/2015 18:04

20 | telegraph | nautilusint.org | October 2015

LONDON INTERNATIONAL SHIPPING WEEK

Minimum manning regulators must heed the latest evidence on seafarer fatigue, LISW conference hears...

I

Global rules on seafarersâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; work and rest hours are nothing to do with science and everything to do with economics, Nautilus told a conference of shipowners and managers during London International Shipping Week.

Senior national secretary Allan Graveson was part of an expert panel addressing the International Shipowning and Shipmanagement Summit during a session on â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;combatting the unworkable dilemma of minimum manningâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;.

He warned delegates that the international regulations enable seafarers to work as much as 98 hours a week, despite the wealth of evidence showing how fatigue is a major cause of accidents at sea and is linked to conditions such as heart disease, cancer and diabetes.

The STCW 2010 Manila amendments had undermined the work done to curb seafarersâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; hours through the Maritime Labour Convention, Mr Graveson argued, and there is now confusion over the differing regulatory requirements.

Former seafarer Professor Mike Barnett, now head of maritime research at Warsash Maritime Academy, told the meeting of the mounting scientiďŹ c studies showing that long and irregular working hours cause severe health problems.

Left to right: Claire Pekcan, associate professor at Warsash; Professor Mike Barnett; Allan Graveson, Nautilus senior national secretary

He explained how the trail-blazing research into seafarer fatigue undertaken by the EU-funded Project Horizon team is now being further developed in the Martha initiative to evaluate the effectiveness of fatigue risk management systems.

Noting study ďŹ ndings showing â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;jet lagâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; effects upon seafarers serving on fast containerships operating on transpaciďŹ c services, Prof Barnett said there is scope to make much better use of technology and data to monitor when seafarers are tired, and to predict fatigue hazards within work schedules.

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The following dates still have spaces, book now to save disappointment: Working at Heights with Rescue starting Friday 16th October Working at Heights with Rescue starting Friday 23rd October Working at Heights with Rescue starting Friday 30th October

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20_fatigue_SR edit.indd Sec2:20

â&#x20AC;&#x153;

The US Coast Guard has shown alternative watch patterns can work

â&#x20AC;?

However, he cautioned, there is also a challenge to address the â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;macho cultureâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; among seafarers and to persuade them to embrace the principles of fatigue risk management.

Claire Pekcan, associate professor at Warsash, pointed out that the performance of seafarers can be affected by both physiological and psychological factors. â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;Simply adding more people is not going to solve the problem, because of the different factors that affect performance,â&#x20AC;&#x2122; she suggested.

â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;There is a need to manage the workforce on the basis of evidence and not myth,â&#x20AC;&#x2122; Prof Pekcan added. â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;With greater autonomy and good employment relationships, there is a much higher capacity and motivation to perform. A high degree of motivation can help you perform well in extreme conditions.â&#x20AC;&#x2122; InterManager secretary-general Captain Kuba Szymanski said seafarers need to be part of the solution to the fatigue problem, and he told the meeting of his experiences operating an alternative watchkeeping pattern developed by the US Coast Guard. â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;This had people working longer in the day than in the night, and people really liked it,â&#x20AC;&#x2122; he recalled. â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;When they went to bed, they did it on the biological clock.â&#x20AC;&#x2122; Capt Szymanski said owners and managers need to be proactive on the issues and should take heed of the results of research into seafarer fatigue. â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;We should not wait for the regulators to come and tell us what to do,â&#x20AC;&#x2122; he warned. â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;If the industry knows better, letâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s do it.â&#x20AC;&#x2122;

â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;Seafarers are drowning in pointless paperworkâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; shipowners and managers debated the drive to cut I red tape from the industry at the second International Is the paper-free ship a realistic concept? Leading

Shipowning and Shipmanagement Summit (ISSS) held during London International Shipping Week.

Captain Kuba Szymanski, secretary-general of the International Ship Managersâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; Association, told delegates that mountains of paper are generated by operational practices â&#x20AC;&#x201D; much of it composed of different certificates.

He told how the European Union had developed the â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;single windowâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; project to simplify reporting procedures and harmonise data, but complained that the system does not work. â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;There is still a strong perception that paper is the way to maintain records,â&#x20AC;&#x2122; he added.

Bjorn Jebsen, managing director of the Jebsen Group, said Intermanager had developed a â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;paperless shipâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; project with the aim of cutting the administrative burden on seafarers. It includes guidelines on reducing the volume of form-filling they face. â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;Getting rid of red tape and bureaucracy is something we would all like to achieve,â&#x20AC;&#x2122; said Bibby Ship Management chief operating officer Chris Stone. â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;Reducing paperwork will reduce the cost of operations and improve safety, giving people more time to focus on the key issues. It will also add to the wellbeing of crew and assist with their recruitment and retention.â&#x20AC;&#x2122; Mr Stone said Bibby had appointed an IT director to look at ways to improve vessel reporting by avoiding duplication. â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;It is incredible how many times crew have to key in the same information, and it creates a big problem ashore and at sea,â&#x20AC;&#x2122; he added.

Brent Brunn, from KVH Industries, said most robust equipment, faster speeds and techniques such as multicast systems enable the efficient transfer of information. â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;The technology is there,â&#x20AC;&#x2122; he argued. â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;Modern communications

Captain Kuba Szymanski, InterManager secretary-general

can provide vast amounts of data â&#x20AC;&#x201D; all of it paperless â&#x20AC;&#x201D; including ECDIS and meteorological information.â&#x20AC;&#x2122; But V.Ships marine operations director Alastair Evitt commented: â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;Electronic systems are in place to show you have an accurate record of what has been done, but a lot of the shipping industry does not have the hardware or the software to sustain it.â&#x20AC;&#x2122; And several speakers told the conference of their concerns about â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;cyber-securityâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; threats arising from the move to electronic records within the shipping industry.

Paper, it seems, may be around for some time to comeâ&#x20AC;Ś

23/09/2015 17:11

October 2015 | nautilusint.org | telegraph | 21

LONDON INTERNATIONAL SHIPPING WEEK

Much to be proud of, but much more to do L

‘This far-reaching and in-depth study sets out a plan of action to drive forward growth in the sector.

It shows that there are strengths upon which we must build, there are challenges we must face and there are opportunities which we must seize’ — Maritime UK chairman-elect David Dingle ‘We welcome the launch of this report and look forward to working with government to create tangible outcomes based on the recommendations. Numerous shipowners around the world have told me that they will join the UK Ship Register and invest in the UK if reforms are delivered. It shows there is demand and goodwill, and with the right political will we can make the most of the opportunity’ — Chamber of Shipping CEO Guy Platten

Transport secretary Patrick McLoughlin chaired a shipping industry summit at Downing Street

maritime business. This body should set clear targets and monitor progress, the study says.

On skills, the report notes the need to avert a growing gap between supply and demand, and it sets out nine recommendations to tackle the problems. It says more work should be done to better understand the sector’s skill requirements, to assess current and future needs and to develop a ‘skills strategy with focused objectives for addressing these concerns’.

It proposes a fresh review of the Support for Maritime Training (SMarT) scheme to ‘ensure that it is fit for purpose’ and also calls for the creation of a

“

Where we need to take action, we will UK shipping minister Robert Goodwill

MGS author Lord Mountevans and shipping minister Robert Goodwill

”

Maritime Skills Investment Fund to serve as a ‘shop front’ for the various schemes that provide assistance to seafarer training, and recommends seeking contributions from companies that are currently not offering training or apprenticeships.

The study also outlines plans for a new industry-wide ‘ship to shore’ mentoring scheme to improve seafarer career paths into the wider maritime cluster and for action to raise awareness of the sector among young people.

On marketing, the report urges the UK to adopt a ‘more ambitious and coordinated approach’ to promote the country’s maritime cluster abroad — warning that countries such as Singapore and Denmark are ‘more coherent, targeted and effective than the UK’s efforts’.

L

21_growth study_SR edit.indd 21

‘This is a very welcome and muchneeded report which provides a clear message about the critical importance of the UK maritime sector and the worrying scale of the challenge it faces. Nautilus stands ready to work with ministers and other industry partners to translate the report’s recommendations into the positive actions and proactive policies that the sector needs’ — Nautilus general secretary Mark Dickinson ‘RMT welcome proposals to increase the rate of training and employment of UK seafarers in the domestic and international shipping industry.

Reviewing government support for seafarer training and growing the maritime skills base year on year are sensible, non-controversial ambitions for an island nation, although how the proposed Maritime Skills Investment Fund will sit within this is not clear’ — RMT general secretary Mick Cash

It’s been 15 years since the last such report, so the LISW launch of the Maritime Growth Study was eagerly anticipated…

UK government ministers have promised to ‘pull out all the stops’ to implement the recommendations of a report on ways to ensure that Britain remains a major maritime nation.

Described as a ‘once in a lifetime opportunity to enhance the contribution of the UK maritime cluster’, the 134-page Maritime Growth Study was published on the opening day of London International Shipping Week.

The product of an extensive sixmonth consultation with all sides of the industry, the report underlines the scale of the UK maritime sector, its huge economic contribution and the potential for growth.

But it also warns that continued success cannot be taken for granted. ‘In the face of increasing competition from fast-growing maritime centres in other countries, the UK maritime sector must be willing to adapt, improve and change to successfully exploit these opportunities.’

The study’s author, Lord Mountevans, described it as ‘a call to arms’ to industry and government. The report points to three key areas where coordinated action is needed — leadership, skills and marketing.

On leadership, the study calls for ‘a more commercial and responsive UK maritime administration within government’ — with changes to the focus and culture of the Maritime & Coastguard Agency (MCA) and the UK Ship Register (UKSR).

It also proposes the creation of a single, industry-wide promotional body to work with government to raise the profile of the diverse sector and more effectively market the UK abroad as a place for

The Maritime Growth Study received a warm response from key figures in the shipping industry:

Transport secretary Patrick McLoughlin said the government is determined that the UK will retain its global lead in shippingrelated services. ‘Our maritime history is something Britain can be proud of, but the sector is taking us into the future,’ he added. ‘We are determined to grow our share of the global maritime sector,

helping talented people find careers in its industries and attracting companies to do business in the UK.’ Shipping minister Robert Goodwill said the study had correctly identified that one of the biggest challenges is attracting the right number of people, with the right skills to meet the industry’s future needs.

‘With sea trade expected to grow significantly in the next 20 years, the need for a highly skilled workforce has never been greater,’ he added. ‘Investing in the next generation of maritime professionals is essential if the UK is to remain the world’s premier maritime centre, a position it holds in part because of its highly trained workforce.’

He said the world had changed significantly in the 15 years since a government last produced such a report, but the UK maritime sector remains of vital importance. ‘The government will consider these recommendations carefully,’ he promised. ‘Where we need to take action, we will.’

A ministerial working group for maritime growth has been set up to drive forward the response to the proposals. The government has also agreed to create a new high-level director role at the MCA to lead the work to encourage more owners to join the UK Ship Register.

Mr Goodwill said the moves to make the MCA and the UKSR more ‘businessfriendly’ would not be made at the cost of undermining the red ensign’s reputation. ‘I want to assure everyone that we will maintain the quality of our services whilst growing the flag,’ he added. ‘These factors are not mutually exclusive — we can and we will have both.’

‘We are delighted to see Lord Mountevans giving such high profile to attracting and training the next generation of seafarers, and to helping people to prepare for their next steps when they come ashore’ — Maritime Skills Alliance chairman Bill Walworth ‘In a year when the MNTB has been carrying out its own review of seafarer education and training, the study’s nine recommendations relating to skills and education are well received.

The fact that a number of them reflect several of our own recommendations is very timely’ — Merchant Navy Training Board chairman Kevin Slade ‘We now have the opportunity to progress significant further development of the wider industry efforts to support the promotion of the UK marine and maritime capability that will be needed in order to achieve the recommendations outlined in the study’ — British Marine chief executive Howard Pridding ‘The UK has a vast wealth of maritime experience on offer, no more so than in Glasgow with such strong shipbuilding heritage. The College’s Industry Academy model is already showing great results in collaboration with industry partners — our enrolments testify to that with over 5,149 students signing up this year alone. We support the Growth Study findings and the opportunity to work together to close the skills gap and attract increased international business to our shores’ — City of Glasgow College principal Paul Little

23/09/2015 17:11

22 | telegraph | nautilusint.org | October 2015

LONDON INTERNATIONAL SHIPPING WEEK

If a country wants a successful maritime cluster, then it needs to encourage — a shore-based jobs in the industry. This challenge was faced head-on at the Naut

P

Professor Heather McLaughlin, director of Canterbury Christ Church University Business School

Phil Parry, Spinnaker Global chairman

Susan Thomson, master mariner, marine and projects superintendent with BP

Nautilus International made sure that the issue of maritime skills was high on the agenda during London International Shipping Week — hosting a seminar on the opening day to focus on shore-based demand for experienced seafarers.

Opening the meeting, general secretary Mark Dickinson warned: ‘It is people who make our shipping and maritime services the success that they are. And without a steady supply of skilled and experienced seafarers there can be no doubt that the sustainability of this vital sector faces a grim future.’

The drastic decline in UK seafarer numbers — from more than 90,000 just a few decades ago to fewer than 30,000 today — will continue as a consequence of the downturn in recruitment which set in during the 1980s, he pointed out.

Recruitment into the shipping industry has failed for more than 25 years to reach the levels needed to ensure an adequate supply of seafarers to fill vital posts in maritime industries and services ashore, he added.

Research in the 1990s had suggested that between 1,350 and 1,500 new cadets are needed each year — but this figure has not been reached for more than 30 years, Mr Dickinson said, and even the tonnage tax training link has failed to get the total much beyond two-thirds of the target.

Professor Heather McLaughlin, former special advisor to the House of Commons transport committee and now Director of Canterbury Christ Church University Business School, told the meeting that the UK maritime industry employs 132,000 people in shore-based jobs — and seafaring skills and experience are deemed essential for almost 10,000 of these posts, including marine surveyors, ship managers, maritime colleges, classification societies, ports and salvage.

The fall in UK seafarer numbers has serious implications for the maritime cluster, she pointed out.

The number of serving UK officers has dropped from more than 14,300 in 1997 to less than 11,000 today, and there are forecasts that it will fall to fewer than 8,000 by the end of this decade.

There have been plenty of studies over the past 20 years to highlight the scale of the problem, Prof McLaughlin explained, and these have also demonstrated the global nature of the shortage — meaning that it is hard for employers to bring in former seafarers from abroad to fill shore-based posts in the UK. One study suggests that the gap between supply and demand for former seafarers will rise to almost 4,000 by 2021, she said. While it forecasts that just over 2,000 of these posts could be filled by non-UK and EU nationals, there will still be a ‘significant shortfall’, she warned.

Against this backdrop, there is evidence that some companies are downgrading their requirements for seagoing experience, Prof McLaughlin noted, and others have been looking at other ways to fill the posts.

However, she warned, companies will face increased training costs to cover for the gaps in maritime expertise, and they will also face a growing risk of having personnel ‘poached’ by competitors. In turn, there could be a loss of quality, a greater threat of companies relocating overseas and of reduced UK competitiveness in maritime services.

Prof McLaughlin said there is scope for the maritime sector to address these challenges by doing more to encourage seafarers to stay within the ‘cluster’ when they leave the sea. Companies should do more to market the sector, with a strong employment brand and work to safeguard skills through communities of practice.

She also called for more work to be done to examine who the modern seafarer is and what makes them move into related shore-based employment.

F Arjen Uytendaal, managing director of Nederland Maritiem Land

22-23_LISW_spread_SRedit.indd 22

Two-thirds of former seafarers working ashore believe that seagoing experience is essential for their job, according to a survey carried out by Nautilus and the maritime recruitment firm Spinnaker Global.

Almost 400 ex-seafarers took part in the

Would you recomm a career in the maritime sector?

14% 16%

70%

Yes No Unsure

Is seagoing exper necessary for you job?

26% 64%

A necessity for my job

10%

Not necessary for my Preferred for my job

questionnaire, and Spinnaker chairman Phil Parry told the Nautilus seminar that the findings were highly significant — and, in some areas, quite surprising.

A total of 43 different nationalities responded and the participants were currently, or most recently, employed in 51 different countries. Aged between 25 and 75, they had come ashore between 1969 and 2015.

One-fifth of those taking part were aged over 60, and 26% were aged between 50 and 60, Mr Parry explained.

Just over one in 10 had come ashore aged between 18 and 25, while 18% had swallowed the anchor between the ages of 26 and 30. A further 45% had left the sea in their 30s and 24% between the age of 41 and 55.

One in 10 had come ashore with less than six years of seagoing experience and a similar proportion had more than 30 years of seatime, Mr Parry added.

Family connections were the most common reason why survey participants had gone to sea — cited by 43%. Almost 30% said they had first heard about seafaring through school or college careers advisors, and 9% said they had come across seafaring through internet research.

Some 70% of those taking part said they would recommend seafaring as a career choice, with only 16% saying they would advise against it and 14% being unsure. ‘This was very pleasing to see, as we get so used to doom and gloom,’ Mr Parry said. ‘It’s a good news story and, in fact, this figure may get even better as maritime training offers the opportunity to get a degree without getting into debt.’

The survey showed that only 22% of companies identify, train and develop seafarers ahead of bringing them ashore. ‘Generally speaking, they are reactive — but, to be fair to employers, many of them are now doing something about it,’ Mr Parry said.

However, he added, only 23% of participants thought that the industry generally succeeds in recruiting into shore-based management roles those people who have the best management aptitude.

Mr Parry said there was evidence that some companies are not using their former seafarers in an efficient way and have been using them to do work where maritime skills are not required. ‘Some employers are redefining roles so that seafarers are

being used in cells of expertise, wit the job being moved to lower-cost ad added.

The quality of an organisation critical in such areas, Mr Parry expla make a huge difference to morale and In addition, he said, many compan about their recruitment needs and advice for seafarers is ‘well-meanin There is a pressing need for young pe better guidance at the start of their in particular about the prospects for after the sea.

BP is looki its future nee and offers thr sea-to-shore routes for sta

“ F

Master mariner Susan Thomson as marine and projects superinte a shining example of the way in whic and experience can be applied to essen She told the Nautilus seminar ho is working to develop a new genera maritime professionals — employi seafarers and looking ahead to its nee five to 10 years, with a recognition th success is linked to its staff.

‘BP is different from many organisations as we are the shippin company and we are required to de maritime expertise to support conti well as for our shipping operations,’ sh Ms Thomson said BP offered th

23/09/2015 18:38

October 2015 | nautilusint.org | telegraph | 23

LONDON INTERNATIONAL SHIPPING WEEK

— and train — its seafarers to take up autilus seminar ‘Shore Enough’... mmend r?

erience our

y job my job ob

routes for staff — an accelerated development programme (ADP), direct hire and secondment.

The ADP — which currently has 13 students — is intended to provide a structured and long-term path for seafarers seeking a shore-based position.

Candidates are selected following a four-day assessment programme and the scheme is designed to get engineer officers to chartered status and to get deck officers a degree in leadership and management, with a two-year rotational role at the start of the shorebased career.

‘The programme has been going for five years, so it is still in its early days, but it certainly helps with audits and SIRE inspections,’ Ms Thomson added.

In terms of direct hire from the fleet over the past 18 months, BP has filled such posts as LNG assurance superintendent, assistant marine superintendent, assistant engineer superintendent, electrical superintendent and ship operator. Those selected are put through an 18-month development programme to help fill the gaps in making the transition to work ashore, she said.

BP is also working on a strategy to support women seafarers, Ms Thomson added. ‘It can be difficult getting back to sea, especially after having children, and the company wants to look at ways to help women to keep working ashore,’ she explained.

‘The key for us is that seafarers need to know what they want to do,’ she said. ‘At sea, it is reasonably straightforward as you work your way up the ranks to master or chief engineer and everybody knows where they stand. But to organise your career ashore is much more complicated and you have to plan for the future.’

F

, with other parts of st administrators,’ he ation’s leadership is explained, and it can e and motivation. mpanies are not clear and a lot of careers eaning but bunkum’. ng people to be given their training — and ts for working ashore

king at eeds, three re taff

”

mson, who now works erintendent with BP, is which seagoing skills essential roles ashore. ar how her company eneration of talented ploying some 1,200 s needs over the next on that its continued any other shipping ipping arm of an oil to develop a pool of continued growth as ns,’ she explained. d three sea-to-shore

Arjen Uytendaal, managing director of the Dutch maritime cluster organisation Nederland Maritiem Land (NML), is another former seafarer who has made waves ashore.

He told the Nautilus seminar how the Netherlands has pioneered the maritime cluster concept and developed policies to protect and enhance its position as a global ‘centre of excellence’.

The Dutch maritime cluster provides direct and indirect employment for more than 440,000 people, Mr Uytendaal said, and the country’s 12,000 maritime businesses contribute around €21bn a year to the national economy.

NML was established in 1997 as an umbrella organisation for the Dutch maritime cluster — promoting the sector and helping to encourage young people to consider careers at sea and ashore.

Mr Uytendaal said the Dutch maritime strategy for 2015 to 2025 is based upon a recognition that the country can compete on quality and innovation rather than cost. The Netherlands can offer a ‘one-stop shop’ for maritime services, within a small geographical area, he pointed out.

The Dutch maritime sector has performed better than other parts of the economy in recent years, continuing a pattern of employment growth in the face of the downturn and offering plenty of opportunities for former seafarers.

Mr Uytendaal said the number of ships under the Dutch flag has risen from 748 in 2006 to 1,082 in 2013 — with a matching increase in the number of seafaring jobs. ‘Demand is increasing and we need more seafarers,’ he added.

Dutch owners promise jobs for all cadets qualifying at the end of their seafarer studies, said Mr Uytendaal — and they had maintained this policy despite the economic slump. The programme has been so successful that cadet numbers have grown by an annual average of 8% — and by 16% last year.

‘The challenge now is finding enough cadet berths,’ he said. ‘We have been building new maritime academies in recent years, but berths onboard is a big challenge. We are going to the minister and discussing with Nautilus on ways to increase the possibilities of getting certification.

‘The large diversity of the maritime sector means there are always job opportunities for ex-seafarers,’ Mr Uytendaal concluded. ‘They have a very good technical education and are an excellent fit.’

22-23_LISW_spread_SRedit.indd 23

Richard Clayton of Fairplay chaired the discussion

Employers need to play their part in the sea-to-shore transition tell young people about the opportunities A ashore after seagoing careers, the Nautilus The shipping industry should do more to

International seminar heard.

General secretary Mark Dickinson said seafarer qualifications could lead to a lifetime of work in the wider maritime sector. ‘We may not be able to sell it on the basis of seeing the world, but we can certainly sell the lifestyle and the extensive leave periods,’ he added.

‘When young people go to sea, they do understand that there is potentially a further career ashore — but that is the limit of their understanding,’ said Spinnaker Global chairman Phil Parry.

He warned that shore-based maritime companies will face an increasing challenge to find suitable staff. ‘How do we maintain our business of expertise given that it is getting so hard to fill each job?’ he asked.

However, Mr Parry said there is a lot of inertia within some companies — with a lot of former seafarers insisting that they are replaced with

‘carbon copies’ of themselves and an ‘overobsession’ on the need to fill posts with masters and chief engineers.

‘A second officer or third engineer in their mid20s with seven years’ sea experience including their cadetship and a degree is extremely attractive and affordable for an employer,’ he added.

Nigel Palmer, former chairman of the Merchant Navy Training Board, said seafarers needed more help to make the transition to work ashore. ‘Running a ship is very different from running an office and management skills are especially important,’ he stressed.

However, he added, the industry has done a lot of work to improve careers advice following a generation that had been ‘scarred’ by the industry’s experiences in the 1980s.

Dieter Jaenicke, from Viking Recruitment, argued that there is no shortage of interest in seagoing careers. ‘There are a lot of young people out there with good quality qualifications who want to go to sea, but the problem is that the

berths are not there.’

BP marine and projects superintendent Susan Thomson said her company is addressing this by putting an extra accommodation deck on its newbuilds. And, she added, mentoring is an excellent way of providing advice to younger officers.

But shore-based employers need to tackle the ‘elephant in the room’ of pay and leave, she warned. With some shipmasters able to earn as much as £100,000 a year tax-free, companies will find it difficult to attract people. ‘You really need to look at when people want to move ashore, who you want, why you want them and at the wages on offer.’

Dick Welch, from the Isle of Man marine administration, said there is lots that can be done to help seafarers prepare for shore-based work — and there is scope to upskill them while working at sea. However, he cautioned, some seafarers who have moved ashore are returning to the sea ‘because working on land is not what it was cracked up to be.’

How to recruit the right people former seafarers need to up their D game if they are to continue recruiting Shore-based employers of

and retaining the levels of experience they require, research by a Nautilus member has concluded.

Phil Mogridge, a VTS officer serving on the river Tees, conducted the work as part of his studies for a degree in leadership in management, and set out to examine the increasingly severe recruitment challenges facing the shore-based maritime cluster and to find examples of best practice.

His thesis sets out the scale of the national and international shortages of experienced seafarers and warns of the damaging impact this may have on a wide range of companies which have traditionally relied upon maritime expertise.

To support his research, Mr Mogridge conducted a series of surveys and interviews with key personnel — including harbour masters, assistant harbour masters, and vessel traffic services officers — around the UK. He found that just over 93%

VTS officer and researcher Phil Mogridge

of these individuals were former seafarers and that just over threequarters of them did not have to relocate to accept their current role.

The findings suggest that location may be a barrier for some companies, Mr Mogridge says, as those in traditional maritime areas will find it easier to recruit ex-seafarers than those who need to encourage staff to move to take up the job.

Some 56% of those taking part in the survey said family influences had

been a key factor in their decision to leave the sea and work ashore, while just under one-quarter said they had made the move because they no longer enjoyed working at sea. Noting that 80% of PD Ports employees live within a 15 mile radius of Teesport, Mr Mogridge says the desire for a good home life also presents implications for companies seeking to recruit people from outside the area.

Half of the maritime professionals taking part in the survey had moved to

their current job directly after serving at sea, while 43% had been serving in another shore-based post.

Two-thirds had heard about their current job via the company website or through friends and family, while 18% had applied after spotting an advertisement in a nautical newspaper such as the Telegraph.

Faced with a growing shortage of former merchant seafarers, Mr Mogridge says companies may be missing an opportunity to widen their recruitment pool by failing to target former Royal Navy seafarers. While many ex-RN personnel have the right skillsets for shore-based posts, only 20% of those in the survey were ex-RN, he notes, and there is scope for more work with Armed Forces resettlement offices.

Other employers should also follow PD Ports by actively promoting and training people from within the company, he adds. Good links with local schools and colleges are vital, so that young people can be made aware of the opportunities to train for longterm careers in the sector.

23/09/2015 18:38

24 | telegraph | nautilusint.org | October 2015

LONDON INTERNATIONAL SHIPPING WEEK

Welfare: your work your ship your life Nautilus took part in one of the best-attended events of London Shipping week — a special debate on seafarers’ welfare. It kicked off with a powerful call to action, reports DEBBIE CAVALDORO…

K

Would seafarers be better served if their interests were represented at the International Maritime Organisation rather than the International Labour Organisation?

This was the question posed

by International Registries managing partner Clay Maitland in his opening speech to the maritime welfare ‘big debate’, held on the second day of London International Shipping Week (LISW).

International Registries managing partner Clay Maitland , praising the Telegraph’s coverage of seafarers’ welfare issues Picture: LISW

He argued that the International Maritime Organisation (IMO) is unable to serve the industry to the fullest while it lacks a seafarers’ committee.

Maritime labour issues are presently covered by another UN

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24-25_welfare_SR edit.indd 24

agency, the International Labour Organisation (ILO) — which is where the Maritime Labour Convention (MLC) came from, he explained.

‘As a flag state representative, I question whether the MLC is actually working as it should — advancing the rights and wellbeing of seafarers,’ Mr Maitland added. ‘I would argue that, for all its virtues, it is a convention drafted 15 to 20 years ago and reflects the mind-set of governments, trade unions and the maritime industry of the time.’

Seafarers are often not represented ‘at the table’ when maritime legislation is devised because of the lack of a formal seafarers’ committee within the IMO, he suggested. Too many committees at the IMO exist simply because they always have, not because they are necessary, he added.

Moving seafarers from the ILO to the IMO would ensure that welfare needs are at the forefront of decision-making, and conventions like the MLC could be turned around in a shorter time, with issues like adequate connectivity onboard, proper shore leave and the health of seafarers becoming a primary driver in regulation.

‘This is the age of instant access, of satellite phones and high speed internet,’ Mr Maitland added. ‘However, the Marshall Islands, for example, has a high percentage of newbuild ships on its register and yet most of them do not have the ability to offer good connectivity to their seafarers, especially not for ratings. This needs to be addressed, and cannot be when conventions take 10 years to introduce.’

Mr Maitland said there was a problem with fragmentation in the industry, where the difference between good flag states and bad flag states is extreme.

This allows too many to look the other way when it comes to seafarers’ rights, he claimed.

During his speech, he made a number of references to Nautilus and the Telegraph, naming

Nautilus as the ‘famous seafarers’ trade union’ and saying that the Telegraph was an ‘essential read’ for the maritime industry as it ‘highlights a great number of the problems that seafarers face’.

K

He pointed to a recent headline stating ‘UK maritime cluster faces skills threat’ and said that he absolutely agreed with this. He acknowledged that seafarers around the world were fairly plentiful, but stressed that it was highly trained, skilled seafarers who were lacking.

Mr Maitland said that the need for a global measurement

out there about seafarers, and many organisations that look after crew welfare, he stressed that there is no single place where the data could be collected, analysed and used by flag states and others to represent seafarers’ needs at the highest level and to lend weight to the ‘political pressure needed to bring about change’.

For example, Mr Maitland said, it is widely acknowledged that many seafarers have poor diets and there are a great many health risks associated with this.

A database allowing seafarers and welfare organisations to give examples of onboard meals, and to also list the dietary-related

Seafarers need to be represented at the heart of decision-making about their welfare

“

”

Clay Maitland, International Registries of maritime skills increased the case for seafarers to have a committee at the IMO, as it would enable flag states to review training and ensure this is comparable across the world.

The committee would allow organisations like Nautilus to give seafarers much better representation at the highest levels — which in turn would allow welfare issues such as connectivity to be implemented in a better and quicker way.

Mr Maitland also called for the IMO to develop a database where all information regarding seafarers’ rights, needs and experiences could be held in one place. ‘As a flag state it would be useful to have one central resource that we can tap into to be able to represent seafarers’ needs at the IMO and ILO,’ he pointed out.

Whilst acknowledging that there is plenty of information

illnesses that seafarers experience and how much this costs the industry, would make the case for better food onboard much easier to make, he claimed.

Suicide rates would be useful to have, to support the arguments for better communications onboard or access to shore leave to alleviate loneliness, which may be one of the causes of suicides.

‘There is a great need for a government to come forward and really advocate for seafarers’ welfare to be at the heart of legislation,’ Mr Maitland concluded.

‘A flag of convenience country cannot do this — it would instantly vanish without a trace.

‘The UK government has the power to do this and, as the host nation, can make that approach.

If a seafarers’ committee was established in the future, this shipping week could go down in history.’

23/09/2015 18:31

October 2015 | nautilusint.org | telegraph | 25

LONDON INTERNATIONAL SHIPPING WEEK The LISW welfare debate continued with a series of panel discussions, and a hot topic was the Maritime Labour Convention. Is it really helping to improve seafarers’ working lives, and do enough people even know what it’s all about?

M

Concerns about the effectiveness of the Maritime Labour Convention were raised during the maritime welfare big debate at London International Shipping Week — with a UK port chaplain warning of large scale ignorance of the ‘bill of rights’ amongst seafarers.

The four main seafarers’ charities in the UK — the Sailors Society, Seafarers UK, the Apostleship of the Sea and the Mission to Seafarers — hosted a series of panel discussions on different aspects of welfare.

The first panel attempted to answer whether the industry was going far enough to ensure the physical and psychological health of seafarers. This was chaired by Commodore Barry Bryant, director general of Seafarers UK, who said that in his 13 years as head of the charity he had noticed that the Merchant Navy does not value its seafarers and their welfare needs as highly as the Royal Navy, where he had spent the previous 35 years.

‘The Royal Navy has learnt that if it does not look after its people, they will not fight for you.

I know it is not quite the same for the Merchant Navy, but seafarers are vital and must be valued and looked after,’ he said.

Panellist Grahaeme Henderson, vice president for shipping and maritime at Shell, said he wanted to see much greater collaboration between companies and seafarers’ welfare charities.

‘Shipping companies must support these charities and the vital work they do,’ he said. We must never forget that seafarers are people like us, with families and lives outside of their jobs, just like us. They rely on us to give them the right level of care and support and we must ensure that we live up to that responsibility.’

The second panel examined whether fair treatment of seafarers was any nearer to being a reality, especially in light of the Maritime Labour Convention (MLC).

The panel was chaired by the Reverend Canon Ken Peters, justice and welfare secretary at the Mission to Seafarers, and included Charles Boyle, director of legal services at Nautilus International, and Nautical Institute

M

Reverend Roger Stone, chaplain in the port of Southampton meeting a seafarer Picture: Apostleship of the Sea

CEO Philip Wake.

Mr Boyle said that fair treatment of seafarers is often lacking when seafarers are involved in marine casualties in port states that are not flag states. ‘This leaves seafarers at the mercy of the port state and some are good and some are bad,’ he pointed out.

‘There are too many incidents where seafarers are held for a long time, in a foreign country, awaiting the outcome of a criminal investigation following a maritime accident,’ Mr Boyle added. ‘I would estimate that I am dealing with a new inquiry every month following a maritime incident where a member needs legal advice or representation.’

Mr Wake said that while masters are happy with being ultimately responsible for eve-

rything that happens onboard, there is a need to ensure that all accidents are properly investigated and all causes identified to stop the master being criminalised.

‘The investigation shouldn’t just stop with the immediate causes on the ship,’ he said. ‘All the influencing factors behind the decisions taken onboard need to be considered. It is too convenient to find seafarers negligent, and the ISM Code needs to be reviewed in light of this.’

M

The following panel, chaired by Martin Foley of the Apostleship of the Sea, went a little further into the provisions of the MLC, asking whether the promised improvements to seafarers’ welfare had

Nautilus director of legal services Charles Boyle speaks at t he welfare debate Picture: Debbie Cavaldoro

24-25_welfare_SR edit.indd 25

lish law firm Salvus Law, said he wasn’t much more positive about MLC — but he partly attributed this to the convention being a collection of regulations that already existed rather than being ‘new’.

The fact that lawyers are still dealing with arrested ships shows that seafarers are still suffering, he pointed out. ‘Ships are still being abandoned and seafarers are still not getting paid, so it is certainly true that the MLC isn’t the end of the problem.’

become a reality.

Reverend Roger Stone, chaplain in the port of Southampton, told the audience that he meets around 20,000 seafarers each year and in advance of the conference had been asking them about the MLC. ‘I began by simply asking: “If I said MLC to you, what comes into your mind”,’ he explained. ‘At least 80% of seafarers had to stop and think for some time and then some managed to come up with “labour convention”. None of them had read it and more than a few believed it to be for officers only. I told them that a copy of the MLC should be on every ship, but when one Filipino went to look for it he failed.

‘Some of the officers I spoke to said that the MLC was an additional burden on them because they had to attend training during their vacations which they had to pay for themselves,’ he continued. ‘One added that officers onboard his ship preferred to “close their ears” to the existence of MLC. ‘When I went on to ask what the MLC covered, many had no idea.

Those that had an answer mainly said it was about rest hours and hours of work and a few knew it covered repatriation, accommodation and food,’ he added.

‘Hardly anyone I spoke to knew it had anything to do with welfare, access to support or shore leave.’

Rev Stone said that there was a clear distinction between good companies — with quality ships that offered recreational facilities, good and plentiful food, and internet connection — and bad companies. He added that the percentage of the companies in the ‘bad’ category was sadly high.

Bruce Hailey, from the Eng-

The final panel of the event took a slightly different approach, and chair Stuart River, of the Sailors’ Society, said that the issue was not simply that the shipping industry was changing, but technology meant that the whole world had changed.

‘People have demands now that they never had before, but there are also opportunities that were never there before,’ he explained. ‘Maritime welfare today is about people being treated in a way that we would want to be treated ourselves and having access to the services that everyone else takes for granted.’

Mr Rivers said that welfare organisations need to consider the way they provide support to seafarers in the future. ‘Whilst some port facilities mean that there is still a need for a traditional seafarers’ centre, this is not the case everywhere,’ he argued.

He gave an example where one seafarers’ centre had become a postal collection point enabling seafarers to order items online whilst at sea and collect them from the centre when in port. He called on all charities providing welfare services in port to consider ‘disruptive technology’ to deliver different ways of providing welfare services to seafarers in the future.

Gregor Ross, from Globecomm Maritime, a former seafarer who studied IT after coming ashore, said that maritime welfare organisations need to be much more aware that getting good connectivity onboard is expensive, difficult, and timeconsuming to install.

‘During the 1980s and 90s, the technology onboard ships

moved forward in leaps and bounds, especially when Inmarsat launched their first satellites,’ he explained. ‘However, that is no longer the case. It is predicted that the maritime industry is now between five and 10 years behind shore-based services in terms of technology and there are question marks over whether it can ever catch up.’

Mr Ross said that the technology that most people had in their mobile phones to connect them to the internet wherever they are costs around $50, but that same piece of technology onboard a ship could be $50,000.

‘The costs have fallen,’ he added. ‘We are seeing a lot more companies installing good connectivity and the reasons all my customers have given is that this is purely for crew welfare purposes.’

‘However,’ he cautioned, ‘it will always be expensive to get the sort of IT connection onboard a ship that people have on shore and we have a lot of problems managing seafarers’ expectations in that respect. Once they hear they are getting internet onboard they think it will be like it is at home. To get good, fast broadband at home costs $20 a month; to have that on a ship would be thousands of dollars a month. The signal always has to pass via a satellite, so it is always going to be significantly more expensive than land-based.’

However, maritime internet service providers challenged Mr Ross on some of these claims.

Marcus Square, from Setel PowerLine, said it was time for the myth of the expense of ship broadband to be debunked.

‘My company has recently received a SeaTrade award for innovation, which includes being able to go onboard and install good connections at a reasonable price in just a few hours,’ he pointed out. ‘However, we constantly encounter hurdles and barriers from the industry where there is an institutionalised lethargy with regards to improving crew welfare.’

Sue Henney from KVH Media Group agreed and said both the demand and the technology was there — it is simply a matter of matching the two.

Lairdside Maritime Centre

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23/09/2015 18:31

26 | telegraph | nautilusint.org | October 2015

LONDON INTERNATIONAL SHIPPING WEEK

Shipping must step up O

The way in which shipping responds to the environmental challenges arising from measures to grapple with global warming was a recurring theme during London International Shipping Week.

The industry can ill afford to dither over this issue, warned Dr Tristan Smith at the Britain and the Sea 4 conference.

As director of the Shipping in Changing Climates (SCC) project, Dr Smith pointed out that shipping currently churns out some 2.2% of total greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, but projected growth in global trade means that this figure could rise to as high as 15% if no checks are put in place.

He stressed that the SCC project, based at University College London’s Energy Institute, had a stark message for shipping — with a ‘mismatch between where the industry’s current policy will lead and where the rest of the globe needs to go’.

Somewhat ironically, the Marshall Islands — the world’s third largest ship register — could be unfit for human habitation within 20 years if current trends are not reversed.

To reach the CO2 emission reduction targets required to prevent catastrophic global warming would mean a reduction of something in the region of 85% in the volume of carbon dioxide output from shipping per tonne nautical mile.

Such reductions cannot be secured with current technology, Dr Smith continued. ‘It’s not a fossil fuel future for the shipping industry — it’s a future that might get us there, perhaps, with LNG and a lot of operational measures and then onwards with an alternative fuel of some sort.’

His message was reinforced at an Institute of Chartered Shipbrokers seminar, where Mark Williams, from Affinity Research, raised the possibility that shipping will face further green requirements following a UN climate change conference later this year With fresh curbs on CO2 emissions likely to emerge, Mr Williams said shipping will increasingly shift to the use of LNG, dual-fuel propulsion systems and alternatives such as methanol. ‘The way we run the shipping industry is going to change enormously,’ he added.

His predictions were echoed at the International

London’s shipping week heard repeated warnings of the need for the industry to clean up its environmental record. MIKE GERBER and ANDREW LININGTON report on the key debates…

shift from sea to road as a consequence of the European SECAs. The extra fuel bills mean that it now costs as much to move freight between the north and south of Europe as it does from Japan to Rotterdam, he claimed.

Stena has been looking at a range of measures to clean up its performance, Mr Hagman explained.

Scrubbers work in some areas, he said, and electric hybrids ‘are in the mix’. LNG is interesting for newbuilds, but costly to retrofit and is also a fossil fuel, he pointed out.

Trials using methanol as a fuel onboard the Baltic ferry Stena Germanica are proving positive, Mr Hagman told the meeting. It is easier to handle than LNG and can be used in existing engines with minor modification, while cutting CO2 emissions by 100%, SOx and particulate matter by 90% and NOx by 60%.

It is embarrassing that we have to be pushed to do this

“

Shell Shipping vice-president Grahaeme Henderson addresses the LISW conference

Chamber of Shipping (ICS) conference, where delegates were warned against complacency over the timetable for the introduction of a global 0.5% sulphur cap on vessel emissions.

ICS vice-chairman Esben Poulsson said the implementation of the 0.1% sulphur control areas

(SECAs) in northern Europe had gone better than expected — largely thanks to the oil price slump — and there was evidence of widespread compliance with the rules.

But Stena Shipping chief executive Carl-Johann Hagman warned that there has been a significant

”

Shell International Trading and Shipping vicepresident Grahaeme Henderson told the LISW conference that his company has cut the fuel consumption of its fleet by 5% and slashed annual CO2 emissions by 1m tonnes under an efficiency programme launched two years ago.

Further savings of up to 10% could be made by analysing performance data and introducing new technologies, Mr Henderson forecast. ‘Shipping needs to have the climate change debate at the forefront of its thinking and be proactive in reducing its own greenhouse gas footprint,’ he stressed.

Mr Hagman also urged the industry to be more proactive in addressing the environmental challenge. ‘It is somewhat embarrassing that we have had to be pushed as an industry to do this,’ he added.

‘Shipping has to step up and be part of the conversation. Only with a level playing field can we develop quality operations.’

Ethane addition gives triple-fuel tanker the environmental edge registered gas tanker JS Ineos N Insight — the first in a series of eight Pictured left is the Danish-

27,500 cu m vessels which can operate on ethane, LNG or conventional diesel power.

Originally designed with dual-fuel LNG/diesel power, the ships were given the capability to also burn ethane using cargo gas while carrying ethane from the US to Ineos refineries in the UK.

Owned by the Danish firm Evergas, the Danish-registered JS Ineos Insight is classed by Bureau Veritas and business development manager Martial Claudepierre commented: ‘The ability to burn ethane as well as LNG to power these unique vessels is a major step forward in the use of clean fuels.

‘Using ethane required extra engineroom ventilation and additional

gas detection, plus modifications to the main engines including a lower compression ratio, different turbocharger nozzles and de-rating of the engine to cope with the lower knocking resistance of ethane,’ he added. ‘But the gains in not carrying an additional fuel and in environmental performance from being able to burn clean fuel throughout the voyage are significant.’

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For a full listing of 2015 and 2016 dates, please visit the Maritime Skills Academy website or give us a call.

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26_bmf_SR edit.indd Sec2:26

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23/09/2015 17:44

October 2015 | nautilusint.org | telegraph | 27

LONDON INTERNATIONAL SHIPPING WEEK

Why do people go to sea today, and what’s it really like? Trainees and other serving seafarers revealed all to industry leaders at LISW...

L

Nicola Coates

Serving and trainee UK seafarers took part in a special London International Shipping Week event to showcase the country’s maritime skills base.

Organised by the Merchant Navy Training Board, the meeting included a ‘speed dating’ format to enable more than 100 guests from across the industry to talk to ratings apprentices, officer cadets, serving seafarers and ex-seafarers now working ashore.

MNTB chairman Kevin Slade said UK maritime training and education is regarded as the ‘gold standard’ internationally, and much of the Maritime Growth Study had focused on the need to develop a new generation of seafaring expertise.

Participants included Royal Fleet Auxiliary engineer cadet Katie Thomson and Maritime Educational Foundation (MEF) deck cadet Adam Skevington-Roberts. Both had been attracted to a seafaring career as a result of brothers working in the sector.

Sacha Duchars and Declan Fyans

Adam had been working as an electrician ashore until he got his cadetship, and said he had particularly enjoyed the variety of ships he had served on under the MEF programme.

“

No two days are ever the same

”

Bibby Ship Management engineer cadet Declan Fyans had also worked ashore before starting his MN training. ‘I had been working in production management, but I wanted to do something more professional,’ he said.

‘Finding out about the incredible future career prospects really sold the deal for me.’

Sacha Duchars, an ETO cadet with the MEF, had been working as a software engineer after graduating from university. ‘I had been in the Sea Cadets and had originally

wanted to join the Royal Navy, but I started looking at the Merchant Navy as a different opportunity and I am really pleased with my choice,’ she explained. ‘Being at sea is amazing and no two days are ever the same.’

Grant Anderson Rolland, a chief engineer with Stena Line, said he had also started off working ashore and served on oil rigs before he spotted an advertisement for a tanker company. ‘I’ve never looked back since,’ he told guests at the event. ‘It’s a great job and my 10-year-old son is already booked in for a cadetship!’

The event was also addressed by Miriam González Durántez, founder of the Inspiring Women campaign, who told of the need to provide a wide range of female role models to young women. She welcomed the support given by the MNTB and said she hoped seafarers would pledge one hour a year to go to local schools and talk to girls about their jobs and career experiences.

Natasha Cooke and Charlotte Beeby

WERE YOU AWARE that following the successul outcome of a judicial review in respect of two Seatax clients, (brought before the Courts by Nautilus in collaboration with Seatax Ltd as expert advisors on the Seafarers Earnings Deduction), it was deemed that the two Seatax clients did have a legitimate expectation in applying the only published Revenue Practice with regard to the application of a day of absence in relation to a vessel sailing between UK ports. HMRC did not want to accept this practice (although referred to in their very own publications) but have now accepted that expectations of a claim based on such practice would be valid until the published practice is withdrawn.

Following on from this, HMRC have now confirmed that this Practice is withdrawn as of the 14 February 2014. Seatax was the only Advisory Service that challenged HMRC on this point.

WHY TAKE CHANCES WITH YOUR TAX AFFAIRS? Katie Thomson and Adam Skevington-Roberts

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or ite, e now r W on re ph r mo : fo tails de Elgin House, 83 Thorne Road, Doncaster DN1 2ES. Tel: (01302) 364673 - Fax No: (01302) 738526 - E-mail: info@seatax.ltd.uk www.seatax.ltd.uk Grant Anderson Rolland

27_mntb cadets_SR edit.indd 27

23/09/2015 18:32

28 | telegraph | nautilusint.org | October 2015

MARITIME SAFETY

Carelessness costs lives Accidents in enclosed spaces onboard ships continue to blight the industry, with an unacceptably large number resulting in the death or injury of seafarers and shore personnel. UK P&I Club risk assessor DAVID NICHOL believes that a paradigm shift is required in the approach to safe management to end the tragic litany…

J

Fifteen years ago, while working as an independent surveyor, I was carrying out a condition survey onboard a bulk carrier. The scope of the survey included testing the emergency fire pump, located within a 3m deep recessed well in the steering flat and accessed by an inclined ladder. Accompanied by the superintendent and the chief engineer, we had no sooner reached the bottom of the space when the chief engineer urgently ordered us all out. By the time we had exited the space, within seconds, we were all in a state of dizziness and confusion, compounded by our inability to comprehend what had just occurred.

Investigation revealed that freon gas had leaked from refrigeration machinery in the steering flat and, being heavier than air, had migrated into the emergency fire pump space, displacing breathable air.

It was a lucky escape. Victims of asphyxiation in enclosed spaces deficient in oxygen will normally receive no such warning that anything is wrong or have the ability to quickly escape.

Should we have been aware that this emergency fire pump space, not being enclosed in the usually perceived sense of the word, was potentially dangerous for entry? Absolutely.

The International Maritime Organisation (IMO) currently defines an enclosed space as having any of the following characteristics: z limited openings for entry and exit z inadequate ventilation z not designed for continuous worker occupancy, and includes, but not limited to, cargo spaces, double bottoms, fuel tanks, ballast tanks, cargo pump-rooms, cargo compressor rooms, cofferdams, chain lockers, void spaces, duct keels, inter-barrier spaces, boilers, engine crankcases, engine scavenge air receivers, sewage tanks, and adjacent connected spaces. This list is not exhaustive and a list should be produced on a ship-by-ship basis to identify enclosed spaces.

It has been reported that more than half of enclosed space casualties are people who have attempted an ill-prepared rescue

“

”

Most could be forgiven for not considering our fire pump space to fall within this definition, although it was clearly proven to present a danger in a particular circumstance.

Another very common example of confusion over what actually constitutes an ‘enclosed space’ is the inconsistent perception of the dangers presented by CO2 fixed fire extinguishing system cylinder storage rooms. There are a number of reported cases of ship and shore personnel losing their lives by uncontrolled entry into CO2 rooms. A leak in the system may accumulate in the space and displace breathable air if not thoroughly ventilated.

CO2 rooms are frequently not identified as enclosed spaces onboard and not provided with appropriate warning signs at the space access. Crew members may easily fail to appreciate that a CO2 room should properly be included within the aforementioned definition of an enclosed space.

The IMO list of enclosed spaces is not exhaustive. It is therefore important that ship managers and crew apply a wide

CO2 room access ‒ without a proper atmosphere hazard warning notice

28_enclosed spaces_SR edit.indd Sec2:28

interpretation as to what spaces onboard each vessel could potentially be deficient in oxygen, and/or contain flammable and/or toxic gases or vapours, therefore requiring safety precautions before entry.

The dangers associated with enclosed spaces are well known, yet the death toll continues at an alarming level. Reliable statistics are difficult to obtain – but it is commonly stated that more deaths occur onboard ships in relation to entry into enclosed spaces than any other shipboard working activity.

Part of the issue may lie in the misconceptions as to what spaces are, or may become dangerous, and how they are identified. It may assist if the industry introduced a uniform approach to physical labelling of all enclosed spaces that have been identified in the Safety Management System.

At present, there is no industry standard for the design and siting of warning notices and symbols that may be universally understood by ship and shore personnel. Indeed, on many ships, no attempt is made to provide any such labelling at points of access.

However, warning notices alone will not overcome the alarming complacency that appears to affect otherwise professional and well-trained seafarers when entering enclosed spaces as is often revealed in accident reports. In May last year, three crew members onboard a cargo ship lost their lives after entering a hold loaded with sawn timber — a cargo known to cause oxygen depletion.

Another part of the solution must also lie in improved levels of education and training of both ship and shore personnel. Reference is made to IMO Resolution A.1050(27) ‘Revised Recommendations For Entering Enclosed Spaces Aboard Ships’ adopted in 2011. These recommendations require shipowners to adopt a comprehensive safety strategy to prevent accidents on entry to enclosed spaces, and that procedures for enclosed space entry are included among the key shipboard operations concerning safety of personnel and the ship. Competent and responsible persons should be trained in enclosed space hazard recognition, evaluation, measurement, control and elimination, and crew members trained in enclosed space safety.

There is a requirement to ensure that a risk assessment is conducted to identify all enclosed spaces onboard and that a competent person makes an assessment of any potential hazards in the space to be entered. The recommendations also provide that no person should open or enter an enclosed space unless authorised by the master or the nominated responsible person, and unless the appropriate safety precautions laid down for the particular ship have been followed. Entry into enclosed spaces should be planned and the use of an entry permit system, which may include a checklist, is recommended.

Despite the training requirements included in the revised recommendations, the IMO recognised that more needed to be done to respond to the continuing loss of life in enclosed spaces.

This has taken the form of amendments to SOLAS regulation III/19 ‘Emergency

Cargo hold access ‒ without proper warning notices as seen below

training and drills’, which entered into force on 1 January 2015, and requires that enclosed space entry and rescue drills to be conducted at two-monthly intervals.

J

In addition to these welcome changes, the IMO has recently seen fit to rectify the anomaly that, until now, no industry-wide requirements have been in place requiring all vessels to carry atmosphere-testing instruments. Amendments to SOLAS in the form of new regulation XI-1/7 make it mandatory for all vessels to carry portable gas detectors. As a minimum, portable gas detecting instruments will need to be capable of measuring and displaying concentrations of oxygen, flammable gases or vapours, carbon monoxide and hydrogen sulphide. Although the amendments enter into force on 1 July 2016, the IMO has invited SOLAS-contracting states to implement the new regulation as soon as practical.

For all this to be effective, it is necessary that ship staff, with the support of shore management, perform mandatory drills, training and actual entry procedures with a dedication and seriousness that reflects the grave dangers that attend enclosed space entry.

The performance of risk assessments and Permits to Work should not be approached as a generic paper exercise and must be able to respond to the particular circumstances of the task — such as the hazards presented by the particu-

lar cargo within a hold space. A Permit to Work must be fully completed and signed off at the site of the task so that it is contemporary and reflects the actual hazard and safety needs of the operation.

On every occasion before carrying out a job, pre-work meetings or ‘toolbox talks’ need to be arranged to identify who does what, the tools needed to identify the risks involved and what to do if something goes wrong.

Drills and training should be properly planned and be used as an opportunity to assess the challenges of rescue from the variously identified enclosed spaces onboard. Training should also emphasise to crew the importance of raising the alarm when persons are found to be in difficulty within an enclosed space, and that any rescue is properly coordinated in accordance with practiced procedures.

The natural instinct to rush in to help a shipmate is understandable but extremely dangerous. It has been reported that more than half of enclosed space casualties are people who have attempted an ill-prepared rescue.

Comprehensive record-keeping and interactive post-drill de-briefs will assist in identifying any weaknesses in procedures and promote crew ownership of the training programme.

Last but not least, a zero-tolerance culture to unplanned and unprepared entry into any enclosed space needs to be rigorously enforced and ingrained into all personnel, onboard and ashore.

23/09/2015 17:11

October 2015 | nautilusint.org | telegraph | 29

MARITIME TECHNOLOGY

Tomorrow’s technoships Maritime academics have been looking into their crystal balls, and predict a future of remotely operated vessels, 4D printers and ‘delegation to the machine’…

K

Technological advances are set to radically transform shipping and seafaring over the next 15 years, according to the results of research published during London International Shipping Week.

Lloyds Register, QinetiQ, and the University of Southampton have collaborated in identifying the innovations that will usher in a ‘significant evolution’ in ship design and operation, outlined in their report, Global Marine Technology Trends 2030.

They predict that the industry ‘will need to reconsider its business model in terms of the way ships are designed, built and operated’ — and stress that this will mean major changes to the way in which seafarers and ship managers are trained.

‘Ship operations will be conducted partially or entirely onshore, and will be remotely manned by personnel with university degrees and maybe even with doctorate degrees, as ships will have become so smart and complex,’ the report forecasts.

Experts examined 56 cutting-edge technologies, from which they picked out 18 they feel could credibly be developed and implemented by 2030 across three maritime sectors — commercial shipping, naval, and ocean space. From the 18 technologies, eight were then chosen for each sector, with some cross-over between the sectors.

For commercial shipping, the report suggests that competition within the industry will drive advances in such areas as shipbuilding, propulsion and power, and the concept of the ‘smart ship’.

External developments will lead to increased use of advanced materials, sensors, robotics, more sophisticated communications and ‘big data’ analytics — the process of analysing the ceaseless tsunami of information using ‘smart machine’ technologies and computing systems to uncover hidden patterns, correlations, ambiguities, trends and other useful intelligence.

The report suggests different ship types will make different use of these technologies, but it points to the development of ‘TechnoMax’ vessels over the next 15 years — promising that these ‘will be smarter, data-driven, greener, with flexible powering options, fully connected wirelessly onboard, and digitally connected through global satellites’.

29_LR_SR edit.indd 29

Communications are key, said LR’s marine marketing director Luis Benito. ‘Satellite communications will have to develop into ways that allow the ship operator to extract all the necessary data and make sure that it can also be used ashore,’ he stressed. ‘Communications will make possible that the ship will be run by a crew ashore as much as by a crew at sea, and maybe be a combination of both.’

The TechnoMax ships will be so smart that they could feasibly run by themselves, LR suggests. While the global shortage of highly qualified seafarers is clearly an incentive for owners to consider progressively substituting technology for crewed ships, the 2030 report notes: ‘Smart shipping is not necessarily about removing people from ships, but about better connecting ships and their crews with specialised onshore resources.’

K

The report contends that technology may be a liberating force for seafarers, with machines carrying out many tasks that are considered dull, dirty or dangerous to achieve a higher level of safety and efficiency.

‘The complexity of modern ship systems has taxed crews’ ability to manage them, making full automation increasingly attractive,’ it argues.

‘The sophisticated analysis of the deluge of data from intelligent, wireless sensors and extensive communication and satellite systems has the potential to further reduce operating costs, increase safety and enhance environmental protection.’

The report also highlights the potential to use 3D and 4D printing to produce equipment and components. And it proposes the development of human-robot ‘interactions’ to undertake a range of tasks. ‘The role of marine engineers will evolve and a demand for new skills will be created: gas, fuel cell and advanced electrical specialisations will be added to the role,’ it adds.

The study also points to the way in which the traditional authority of the ship master will be challenged by new systems. ‘With faster technological advances, there will be a move towards delegating authority from the human operator to the machine,’ it notes.

LR also forecasts much greater transparency within the world of shipping. Port states, flag states,

Lloyds Register’s marketing director Luis Benito Picture: Lloyds Register

owners, managers, operators and cargo owners will have access to a wealth of data on the state of a ship, its performance, its cargoes and schedules, its safety records and its personnel.

‘Many new issues such as cybersecurity, port operations and societal concerns regarding jobs and safety will arise and will need to be addressed,’ the report cautions. ‘Investments in technology and capacity-building will be required.’

But, it concludes: ‘With an ageing population, rising wages and the availability of affordable, mature, enabled technologies, TechnoMax ships will slowly and surely become part of the routine shipping scene.’

‘We need to address the shift to robots’ K

The International Transport Workers’ Federation (ITF) Seafarers’ Trust held an event last month to discuss the ways in which artificial intelligence and robotics could affect the future of seafaring and the maritime industry.

Two speakers from BioCentre, a scientific evaluation company, explained how new technologies are already impacting on our lives — and the ethical and social implications of these developments.

Director Matt James explained that Japan was leading the way in the development of robotics to enhance daily lives, with the government pledging to give a robot to every elderly person in the country who requires care. ‘They believe that by 2020 the personal assistant robot will be as ubiquitous as the personal computer,’ he added.

However, he stressed, the full implications of this remain to be seen, with questions about whether an increased dependence on robots accentuates loneliness as people stop interacting with each other.

BioCentre chairman Nigel Cameron said that in terms of the workplace, most of the conversion of warehousinglevel jobs to robotics has already taken place, and almost half of the jobs now going to machines include research and executive jobs.

‘There is a significant risk of a tidal wave of job losses in the near future,’ he warned. ‘And the problem is no one is having an open and honest conversation about it.

‘Unions and other groups which represent people need to lead that conversation so that social responsibility is high up on the agenda. If these groups shy away from the issue then economics will take over and make the decisions, which will not result in a good deal for a lot of people.’

Mr Cameron said that the debate did not have to be a negative one, with people simply objecting to any change. Instead, it could be a positive look at how today’s young people can be educated and upskilled for more technologically advanced positions, and also explore the new jobs that might evolve in the next 50 years.

23/09/2015 18:33

30 | telegraph | nautilusint.org | October 2015

OFFWATCH ships of the past

by Trevor Boult merchant ships sailed from F the island of Texel for ‘the East’.

In 1595 several Dutch

It was the first of such sailing expeditions to Asia. Although revenues from the two-year venture were modest, it was deemed successful in having opened a trade route to the East.

In 1602 the Dutch East India Company (VOC) was formed and acquired the Dutch monopoly on all trade in Asian waters from the Cape of Good Hope onwards.

It soon became a power to be feared — able to sign treaties in the name of the Republic, to wage war and administer conquered territories.

A conquest in 1619 saw Batavia being founded. Located at the north-western end of Java as the headquarters of VOC, it was predicted to become ‘the most important place in all the Indies’. Today it is the city of Jakarta.

In 1628, the Company directors — the ‘Gentlemen Seventeen’ — commissioned the building of the flagship East Indiaman Batavia, one of the largest trading ships of her time. On her maiden voyage she was commanded by the supercargo Francisco Pelsaert.

Her cargo included silver coin, two antiquities belonging to the artist Rubens for sale to an Indian Mogul ruler, but also pre-fabricated sandstone blocks for a portico to be erected as a gatehouse in Batavia itself.

The vessel struck a reef near Beacon Island off the central west coast of Australia, where over 40 of those aboard immediately perished in the surf. The remaining 300 swam to safety on a nearby island which proved to have neither food nor water.

Pelsaert decided to get help from the town of Batavia. Together with some of his officers he set sail in a

Dutch ship helped build Australia longboat. During his absence, mutiny broke out, led by under-merchant Jeronimus Cornelisz. Not all those who were shipwrecked could be accommodated on the island and the mutineers murdered over 100 people. A small band of soldiers, led by Wiebe Hayes, opposed the killing and escaped to a neighbouring island.

Pelsaert returned in the yacht Sardam. He succeeded in crushing the mutiny with the support of Hayes’s group and brought the mutineers to trial. Most were hanged. Of the ringleader Cornelisz, Plesaert’s journal records his fate: ‘[He] was taken to a place to exercise Justice, and there firstly to cut off both his hands and after shall

be punished on the Gallows with the Cord till Death shall follow, with confiscation of all his money, gold, silver, monthly wages, and all claims which here in India he may have against the profits of the Gen. East India Company, our Lord Masters’.

A huge number of significant artefacts and timbers have been salvaged from the wreck and conserved by the Western Australian Museum. They include many of the sandstone blocks for the portico.

In the mid-1980s, Willem Vos, a Dutch master shipwright, began to realise plans to build a full-size replica of a 17th century East Indiaman. He decided on Batavia, the ship with the legendary name. The enterprise

Telegraph prize crossword The winner of this month’s cryptic crossword competition will win a copy of the book SS Nieuw Amsterdam by Andrew Britton (reviewed on the facing page).

To enter, simply complete the form right and send it, along with your completed crossword, to: Nautilus International, Telegraph Crossword Competition, 1&2 The Shrubberies, George Lane,

South Woodford, London E18 1BD, or fax +44 (0)20 8530 1015.

You can also enter by email, by sending your list of answers and your contact details to: telegraph@nautilusint.org.

50 YEARS AGO The carriage of various radioactive materials has increased considerably in recent years, and is likely to go on increasing. The Merchant Navy & Airline Officers’ Association has been very much concerned with the safety aspects of carrying them as cargo and also with the question of liability for damage and injury to health in the event of an accident. As a consequence, the Board of Trade’s standing advisory committee on the carriage of dangerous goods and explosives will be publishing in a completely new ‘Blue Book’ to take account of the packing and stowage recommendations being prepared by the Intergovernmental Maritime Consultative Organisation, and the Association has emphasised that the specified requirements must ensure the health and safety of seafarers under normal conditions MN Journal, October 1965

25 YEARS AGO Recommendations intended to encourage investment in the British flag have been set out in a 70-page government-industry working party report.

Published last month after a 14-week discussion and consultation process, the report argues that action is needed to overcome ‘obstacles to the use of the British flag’ — including the cost of British officers, speeding up and simplifying technical procedures for registration and setting recruitment and training targets for UK seafarers. NUMAST general secretary John Newman said there was nothing in the report that would tackle the fundamental problems facing the UK fleet, and while the Union welcomed the high-level recognition by five government departments that the Merchant Navy is ‘a vital national asset’, the working group’s avoidance of fiscal issues means the report fails to address the real causes of the fleet’s decline The Telegraph, October 1990

10 YEARS AGO NUMAST is urging the Maritime & Coastguard Agency to address ‘serious quality control issues’ for the UK flag revealed by an investigation into a collision between two containerships last year. The Union has written to chief executive Stephen Bligh seeking answers to a number of concerns over crewing arrangements onboard one of the vessels — the British-registered Hyundai Dominion. The ship was operating with a crew composed of South Korean, Turkish, Ukrainian, Bulgarian, Yugoslavian and Romanian seafarers, and the investigation report highlights such factors as communication problems between the seafarers, breaches of the working time rules and deck officers unable to use the engine controls on the bridge. NUMAST says the case raises fundamental questions about the regulation of the UK register and the use of certificates of equivalent competency October 2005

THEQUIZ 1

What proportion of the world merchant fleet is aged over 25 years?

2

What is the approximate capacity of the world’s containership fleet?

3

How many 200,000gt-plus cruiseships are there in operation?

4

What percentage of the world merchant fleet is controlled in China?

5

Roughly how many vessels are there in the world’s vehicle carrier fleet?

6

What was the name of the German ship that captured the Blue Riband of the Atlantic in 1929?

J Quiz answers are on page 42.

Name: Address:

Telephone:

Membership No.:

Closing date is Friday 16 October 2015.

QUICK CLUES

30_offwatch_SR edit.indd 30

took a decade to complete, throughout which it involved much historical research, revitalised craftsmanship, and experimentation.

The Batavia shipyard was formed at Lelystad in the Netherlands. The completed ship was transported overland to Amsterdam on a pontoon which was then sunk in a dock.

Batavia was then towed back to Lelystad. She was officially named by Queen Beatrix, and baptised with water from the Indian Ocean which had been tapped at the point where the original Batavia had been wrecked.

The replica Batavia was not primarily intended to be a museum ship, but a building and sailing experiment. It was not until after the Millennium that this finally took place.

Batavia was transported by specialist ship to Sydney, Australia, venue of the 2000 Olympic Games, where her presence in Darling Harbour proved an extra dimension to the city, and emphasised the historic link between the Netherlands and Australia.

After a lengthy period of intense preparation, the authorities issued a certificate of seaworthiness. In October 2000, Batavia made her first independent sailing trip, having first been towed beyond the ‘Heads’ to the open sea. More trips were to follow, with passengers aboard, and they were privileged to witness a unique vessel which sailed well under varying weather conditions; vindication of the dedicated efforts of the previous fifteen years. In similar fashion to her outward journey, in the following year, Batavia was returned home to Lelystad.

It is recorded that the oldest human habitation ever built

by Europeans on Australian territory was by survivors of the Batavia shipwreck.

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Across Ceremony (6) Sheath (8) Hold back (9) Remove fastening (5) Dessert (7) Half a decade (7) Boundaries (5) Weapon (8) Male clothing (8) Appreciation (5) Tidy (5,2) Grip (7) Of kidneys (5) Less than expected (9) Muffler (8) Royal song (6)

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Down Condiment (4,4) Outburst (7) Correctives (9) Group (14) Music (5) Pain relief (7) Generator (6)

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Sticky stuff (9,5) Insect worn (4-5) Plumb (8) For ever (7) Guts (7) Sporting numbers (6) Stocking (5)

CRYPTIC CLUES 1.

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Across Softly and not heavy, that is the problem (6) Average kebab for Canterbury Tale teller … (8) … scene of a murder played out (9) Part of body instrumental in wind sounds (5) It illuminates split in showy rock movement with dandy about (3,4) Ghost’s details before cutting short the family lineage (7) In having been removed from amended version of energyproducing motor (5)

15. Coil rest around covered walk (8) 18. Father joined flying fighters to the end in France, providing fuel (8) 20. Change later (5) 23. Fashionable supporter, little thanks to young royal (7) 25. “Or when along thy breast serenely float / Evening’s --clouds” (Wordsworth) (7) 26. Introductory appearance in some jade buttons (5) 27. Compel Tories to practice skills (9) 28. With Bush in London his followers flock to him (8) 29. Makes secretive enquiries before sixth letter from Corinthians for preacher (6)

Down One upturned item of headwear over clenched hand denotes a peacemaker (8) 2. A number in green it transpired (7) 1.

3. Half a laugh at me turning up with a doubter, a clot all told (9) 5. Book of maps with a range of features (5,9) 6. The monotonous sound of a pilotless craft (5) 7. Sleeping attire not far off neckwear (7) 8. Send suspect abroad to put stuff over the wall (6) 9. Global line in much researched disease (6,2,6) 16. Sam’s first response to joke was wholesale killing (9) 17. Area around 10 across, perhaps turned over to shopping (8) 19. A loud story of Aesop’s, but friendly (7) 21. Cash register for so many years associated with land prepared for crops (7) 22. Religious followers put female deer before we the people (6) 24. Nick edged for the record (5) J Crossword answers, page 42.

23/09/2015 18:05

October 2015 | nautilusint.org | telegraph | 31

MARITIME BOOKS

PoW stories only now being told Captive Memories

By Meg Parkes and Geoff Gill Palatine Books, £12.99 ISBN: 978 19108 37009 account of the experiences of prisoners of war (PoWs) K in the Far East.

The Merchant Navy looms large in this remarkable

Drawn from an oral history research project undertaken at the Liverpool School of Tropical Medicines (LSTM), the book gives an important release to the decades of often repressed memories of a particular group of PoWs who attended the centre for related health problems .

The 66 veterans in the LSTM study were among the 37,500 survivors released from captivity several months after the war in Europe had already ended. Japan’s military success led to the capture of 132,000 PoWs between December 1941 and April 1942 — including 50,000 members of the British forces.

While European concentration camp experiences have been well documented in films and books, many still know

little of the British men who went to fight in the Far East, or who served on support vessels, and were captured and then subjected to years of neglect, beatings, disease, nearstarvation and slave labour.

Many camps could not be found by Allied command immediately after the war ended, so a mix of soldiers, airmen, and seafarers from Merchant and Royal Navies continued to languish for up to five months throughout Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand, Burma and Colombo.

The interviewees give an intimate insight to a world which they had often kept hidden from their families. They reveal how they survived their time in captivity, and being shipped in ‘hellships’ around SE Asia and the Far East, through intense bonds, selfless sacrifices, and ingenuity.

Engineers — co-opted by senior allied officers often left to run the camps by the Japanese — turned out hand-crafted medical gadgetry from anything they could find, including local plants such as bamboo.

The minutiae of misery in the camps, the unimaginable pall of dysentery, and other diseases such as cholera, malaria and beriberi, and the makeshift medical huts and

Chronicle of little-known repatriation missions Lifeline Across the Sea

By David L Williams History Press, £16.99 ISBN: 978 07509 61356 fwww.thehistorypress.co.uk vast and complex that there K always seem to be fresh aspects

The Second World War was so

Back to basics manual for tanker tyros Oil Tankers — A Pocket Safety Guide Witherby Seamanship, £30 ISBN: 978 18560 94443 guide to work onboard oil K tankers is aimed at seafarers who have This new edition of a handy

little or no experience of the sector — offering an introduction to tanker practice and providing a clear and consistent message about the need to stay safe.

Produced to the high editorial and design standards set by Witherby Seamanship, the 118-page publication has plenty of pictures and graphics, as well as simple and concise text, that takes the reader from basic terminology and ship types through the full gamut of safety challenges.

Although the book is described as a ‘back to basics’ guide and is limited to ships carrying crude and petroleum products, it covers a wide range of issues — many of which are relevant to other ship types.

Hammering home the message of personal responsibility, the guide explains how seafarers can avoid the most common hazards onboard — with sections addressing topics such as induction, familiarisation, personal protective equipment, fire, gases and vapours, static electricity and confined spaces.

31_books_SR edit.indd 31

to learn about. Many of the lesserknown stories involve merchant seafarers, whose contribution was poorly understood at the time of the war, and who spent many years afterwards campaigning for official recognition.

So it is always welcome to find a book exploring the role of the

merchant marine in the war, and Lifeline Across the Sea has some unusual tales to tell. It covers the ‘mercy missions’ — some 50 voyages arranged by both sides to repatriate civilians and exchange wounded or gravely ill prisoners of war.

Often conducted under the supervision of the International Red Cross, the voyages were carried out on specially-marked merchant vessels. The work was very dangerous, because the ships were undefended and relied on nearby armed units receiving and observing the ‘safe passage’ command.

It is estimated that around 150,000 people were liberated and removed to safety by the mercy missions chronicled by author David L Williams — who notes that, as well as crewing the vessels, merchant seafarers were among those repatriated.

Lifeline Across the Sea describes each mission and lists all the ships involved, usually with a picture of each vessel in its ‘protected’

equipment were often bravely detailed by the more artistic — in covert drawings or scribbled notes under pain of death if discovered by their captors.

But the PoWs’ lives after their return home were often blighted by an almost ‘corporate sense of shame and guilt’, say the book’s authors, Meg Parkes and Geoff Gill. Not least because they were put on long slow sea journeys home to ‘recover’, and then ordered by the UK government not to speak publically about their ordeals — not even to close family — until after they had provided the government with a written statement. This created a lasting impression among many veterans that the country ‘did not want to know’.

As well as quoting former seafarers such as Harry Hesp, the book looks at the role of hospital ships — often converted Merchant Navy vessels — that were sent by the British government to pick up survivors on their release.

These included the Cunard Queens, Mary and Elizabeth, and a number of Dutch merchant vessels.

Six decades after their liberation, 70 years after VJ Day, this fascinating book offers a timely reminder of the fall-out of war.

UK pioneer whose fate exemplified a country’s indifference Coast Lines

By Ian Collard Amberley, £19.99 ISBN: 978 14456 21388 shipping is one of the saddest K aspects of the changes in the Merchant The decline in British coastal

markings. Sometimes the text of the book can be a little heavy-going, but there’s no faulting the value of the information, and a good bibliography is included at the end for those interested in finding out more about the subject.

Navy in recent decades — contrasting poorly with the way in which many other countries recognise the economic and social value of using waterborne transport to carry cargoes in their waters.

This book celebrates a company which — in its heyday — operated

Dutch icon remembered with pride for peacetime performance and war work SS Nieuw Amsterdam

By Andrew Britton The History Press, £19.99 ISBN: 978 07509 61028 flagship Nieuw Amsterdam rapidly became K one of the most popular liners on the Atlantic Launched in 1937, Holland America Line’s

and earned a reputation as one of the most comfortable and classy ships on the service.

Andrew Britton’s affectionate history explains how the vessel was designed and developed as a morale-boosting national project in the Netherlands as it emerged from economic slump.

Thousands of people witnessed the ship’s launch and its christening by Queen Wilhelmina.

But Nieuw Amsterdam’s commercial service was cut short by the outbreak of the second world war, and the ship was seized by the Dutch government in exile in September 1940 and transferred to the British Ministry of Transport.

Placed under Cunard management, Nieuw Amsterdam continued sailing under the Dutch flag and with a Dutch crew — serving as a troopship

and running as far afield as New Zealand, Australia, and South Africa, as well as playing a major role in carrying thousands of US troops across the Atlantic and Pacific. Her war service saw no fewer than 378,361 troops and passengers transported over a total of 530,452nm.

Returned to Holland America Line service in October 1945, Nieuw Amsterdam went back to

transatlantic operations and was the last ship to retain the company’s green, yellow and white funnels. Following boiler problems which caused the cancellation of cruises in 1967, she was refitted with US Navy-surplus boilers — in an operation described as the maritime equivalent of a heart transplant.

Despite the increasing competition from airlines, Nieuw Amsterdam managed to maintain transatlantic services until 1971 when Holland America took decision to switch the ship to Caribbean cruise operations and to re-register under the Antilles flag.

A victim of the oil price crisis of 1973, Nieuw Amsterdam was withdrawn from service in 1974 and there is a final section of the book dealing with the ‘funeral voyage’ to the breakers — including a feast cooked in one of the ship’s boilers…

Nicely written, the book serves as an excellent example of how to produce a ship history, and is boosted by a marvellous selection of colour and black-and-white photographs that capture many aspects of life onboard.

the world’s largest coastal fleet and pioneered the concept of multimodalism with the coordination of coastal sea and road transport.

Although founded in 1913, Coast Lines had a much longer pedigree — its component companies dated back to the early 1800s.

With the help of some fine old photographs and other illustrations, the book trots through the history of these firms and explains how they came together under the Coast Lines banner just before the outbreak of the First World War. At its peak in the mid-1950s, the company was running more than 110 passenger and cargo vessels, and the scope of its activities extended as far as aviation, gravel, trawling and bulk oil storage.

However, the author traces the way in which it contracted in the face of growing competition – both from other shipping companies and landbased transport. When Coast Lines was eventually taken over by P&O in 1971, the fleet had shrunk to just 25 ships.

The well-written account of the company’s rise and fall is followed by an exhaustive fleet list with technical, operational and service details of more than 400 ships.

BOOK SAVINGS Nautilus members can buy the books reviewed on these pages at a whopping 25% discount on the publisher’s price through the Marine Society’s online shop. g To qualify for this offer, readers need to make their purchase at www.marinesocietyshop.org.

Click on the ‘Books of the month’ button with the Nautilus logo to see the books featured in the Telegraph.

23/09/2015 17:12

32 | telegraph | nautilusint.org | October 2015

NL NEWS

Varenden hebben ook vrienden in Brussel A De schatkamer van Radio Holland

Overname Imtech Marine, spannend moment voor Nautilus leden Pon Holdings en Parcom F Capital hebben kort voor het in

De Nederlandse bedrijven

faillissement raken van onderdelen van het grote Imtech concern het goed lopende deel Imtech Marine overgenomen. Goed nieuws voor de werknemers van Imtech Marine, of niet?

Binnenkort zullen de bonden kennismaken met de nieuwe eigenaren van Imtech Marine.

Voor Nautilus International ligt het belang met name bij de werknemers van oud Radio Holland en Koninklijke Dirkzwager. Beide groepen maken onderdeel uit van Imtech Marine.

genomen door Imtech maar opereerde tot 2013 onder de eigen naam. De merknaam Radio Holland werd in september 2014 nieuw leven ingeblazen: Radio Holland is back! Wereldwijd is de bekende serviceverlening voortgezet onder de oude naam en zelfs kort na de verkoop van Imtech Marine is nog een 4-jarig service contract in Singapore afgesloten.

Of de verkoop ook betekent dat binnenkort de twee opgeslagen letters aangevuld met de overige letters weer op het dak geplaatst worden, was bij het schrijven van dit artikel nog niet bekend.

Koninklijke Dirkzwager

Radio Holland

In 1916 opgericht onder de naam Nederlandsche Telegraaf-Maatschappij Radio-Holland zijn de oorspronkelijke werkzaamheden in de loop van de jaren sterk veranderd.

Als een wereldwijd georiënteerd servicebedrijf ging het de 21e eeuw in.

In 2006 werd het bedrijf over-

Ook Koninklijke Dirkzwager krijgt door de verkoop van Imtech Marine te maken met een nieuwe aandeelhouder daar Imtech Marine 54% van de aandelen Koninklijke Dirkzwager bezat. Voor alsnog gaat Nautilus ervan uit dat de eerdere afspraken over een nieuwe cao voor 2015 voor het personeel in dienst van Dirkzwager Financial Services gerespecteerd zullen worden.

Geef uw mening

Onder de titel ‘Gelijke monniken, gelijke kappen’ maakten wij in de december 2014 Telegraph melding van het feit dat dankzij flinke inspanningen van de Europese sociale partners een begin van het einde was gemaakt aan de uitsluiting van zeevarenden van een vijftal Europese richtlijnen. Een begin omdat dit initiatief natuurlijk nog wel bekrachtigd moest worden door de politiek. Dit laatste is nu mede door de inzet van oud vakbondsvrouw Agnes Jongerius een feit.

Traject

In het Europese recht is het initiatief om tot wetgeving te komen niet alleen weggelegd voor de Europese Commissie die de Sociale Partners raadpleegt.

Ook Sociale Partners kunnen op grond van artikel 155 van het Verdrag betreffende de werking

van de Europese Unie, op het niveau van de Unie tot contractuele betrekkingen komen en het initiatief van de Commissie overnemen. In dit geval heeft de Commissie voorstellen gedaan tot wijziging van de Richtlijnen. Naar aanleiding hiervan hebben de Europese Sociale partners (de European Community Shipowners’ Associations (ECSA) en de European Transport Workers’ Federation (ETF) vervolgens compromisvoorstellen gedaan. En vervolgens was het de beurt aan de Raad en het Europese parlement (EP).

Stemden zij in met de voorstellen dan zou de wetgeving in de lidstaten hierop moeten worden aangepast; het verschil in behandeling tussen werknemers in de zeevaart en overige werknemers zou op het gebied van collectief ontslag, overgang van onderneming, Europese

ondernemingsraden alsmede informatieverstrekking minder worden en in sommige gevallen zelfs geheel weggenomen worden.

Besluitvorming

Begin juli kwam dan uiteindelijk na de Raad ook de zegen van het EP en dat was, naar later bleek, zeker geen gelopen race omdat met name de rechtse fracties uit het EP alsnog concessies trachten te verkrijgen waardoor de mogelijke overwinning zou kunnen verwateren. EP-lid Agnes Jongerius speelde een niet onbelangrijke rol bij het ‘gladstrijken van de plooien’ en bewees daarmee wederom haar betrokkenheid met de werknemers op het water, iets wat tientallen jaren geleden begon met haar vakbondswerk voor de sector binnenvaart. Als geen ander wist zij hoe belangrijk de verandering was voor

zeevarenden en hoeveel energie vanuit werknemerszijde in dit dossier was gestopt.

Vervolg

Dit betekent overigens niet dat de strijd nu volledig gestreden is. Telkens weer dienen zich nieuwe gevaren aan. Via haar netwerk stelde Nautilus Agnes Jongerius op de hoogte van gelekte stukken inzake het TiSA verdrag (liberalisering van diensten) en dan met name de hoofdstukken over het maritieme transport. In de gelekte documenten wordt uitgegaan van een bescherming voor werknemers op het bodemniveau van ILO/IMO als uitgangspunten in plaats van de veel ruimere Europese beschermingsniveaus. Agnes Jongerius heeft hierover inmiddels schriftelijke vragen ingediend bij de Europese Commissie.

Huidige nieuwsvoorziening voorziet in behoefte zeevarende leden op om te reageren op een F enquête van het Opleidings- en Ontwikkelingsfonds In de april 2015 Telegraph riepen wij onze

Zeescheepvaart (O&O-fonds) over de vraag hoe u de huidige wijze van nieuwsvoorziening aan boord ervaart. De uitslag is nu bekend.

Al gedurende een reeks van jaren verzorgt het Opleidings- en Ontwikkelingsfonds Zeescheepvaart een vorm van nieuwsvoorziening voor de Nederlandstalige bemanning aan boord van zeeschepen die varen onder Nederlandse vlag.

Deze nieuwsvoorziening bestaat uit het aanleveren

van het Weekblad Schuttevaer en de internationale editie van NRC Handelsblad, NRC De Week.

Wekelijks worden deze bladen bezorgd op het walkantoor van de werkgever die voor verspreiding over het schip/de schepen zorgt.

Het O&O fonds Zeescheepvaart wilde graag van de zeevarenden weten hoe zij de huidige wijze van nieuwsvoorziening waarderen. Daartoe is een enquête gehouden waarvan de resultaten inmiddels bekend zijn.

Uit de enquêteresultaten blijkt dat 100% van de respondenten het belangrijk vindt dat zij aan boord

van nieuws worden voorzien.

Voorts vindt 97,8% van de respondenten de gedrukte media Schuttevaer en NRC De Week nog steeds geschikt als nieuwsvoorziening voor zeevarenden en is 84,8% er geen voorstander van om de huidige nieuwsvoorziening in de vorm van gedrukte media te vervangen door een vorm van digitale nieuwsvoorziening.

Deze resultaten zijn voor het bestuur van het O&O fonds aanleiding geweest om te besluiten de huidige gedrukte nieuwsvoorziening vooralsnog ongewijzigd voort te zetten.

Leden Vroon Offshore Services BV niet akkoord met eindbod gekelderde olieprijs heeft inmiddels ook A invloed op een rederij als Vroon Offshore Services Een slechte markt als gevolg van een

Vorige maand vroegen wij: Denkt u dat havenstaatcontrole erin slaagt om de kwaliteit van de wereldhandelsvloot te verbeteren?

Nee 56%

BV (VOS). De leden in dienst van VOS hebben begrip voor de situatie maar dat de werkgever helemaal niets te bieden heeft voor een nieuwe cao, gaat hen toch echt te ver.

Wat ging eraan vooraf? In februari 2015 werden tijdens een ledenvergadering de voorstellen geformuleerd voor een nieuwe cao per 1 mei 2015.

Eind mei vond een eerste gesprek plaats tussen onderhandelingspartners, waar Nautilus haar voorstellen toelichtte en de werkgever de sombere situatie bij VOS uiteenzette. Na een tweede gesprek medio juni kwam de werkgever met een eindbod.

Loyaliteit

Ja 44%

De poll van deze maand is: Denkt u dat de toekomst van de scheepvaartsector in het Verre Oosten ligt? Geef ons uw mening online, op www.nautilusint.org/nl

32-34_nl.indd 32

Het eindbod behelst in feite niet meer dan verlenging van de cao met 1 jaar zónder enige verbetering. Zo wordt niets gedaan aan de gewenste transitievergoeding en ook wordt nog altijd afgeweken van het vaar-/verlofschema (al wordt dat teniet gedaan door de statistieken van de werkgever). Met het loongebouw is het niet beter gesteld. Werknemers die nog in aanmerking komen voor een anciënniteit, zullen deze krijgen. De vraag van de leden om aanpassing van het loongebouw is echter naar de toekomst geplaatst; degenen die aan het eind van hun loonschaal zitten, zien hun loon dan ook niet stijgen. En vooral deze groep vindt dat er wel enige loyaliteit van werkgeverszijde mag zijn.

Over de brug

De leden hadden tot 16 augustus de tijd hun stem uit te brengen, waarna voorgenoemd eindbod op 19

augustus jl. in de ledenvergadering werd besproken.

De uitkomst was helder: de leden hebben begrip voor de situatie waarin VOS verkeert, maar willen toch echt dat de werkgever met een beter voorstel over de brug komt. Ze zijn dan ook niet akkoord

met het eindbod. De werkgever is door Nautilus inmiddels op de hoogte gebracht van de uitkomst van de stemming en de volgende zet is nu aan VOS. We houden u natuurlijk op de hoogte van de voortgang.

23/09/2015 18:34

October 2015 | nautilusint.org | telegraph | 33

NL NEWS

Wijziging keuringsreglement voor de zeevaart A

Rust lijkt teruggekeerd bij Svitzer Amsterdam rusttijden werd bij Svitzer C Amsterdam een almaar lastiger

Flexibel omgaan met vaar- en

thema. Na een aanvankelijk nog verder oplopen van de tegenstellingen lijkt de rust op dit thema nu eindelijk teruggekeerd.

Het eerder uit een rustblok opgeroepen worden kwam wel eens voor maar leidde in de praktijk eigenlijk nooit tot echte problemen. Wellicht om die reden was het ook geen thema tijdens de besprekingen die uiteindelijk leidde tot het overeenkomen van een vijfjarige cao. Een cao met als hoofddoel de waarborging van werkgelegenheid in de Amsterdamse haven en het creëren van werk in een drietal nieuwe havens. Groot was derhalve de verbazing onder werknemers dat kort na de afsluiting van de CAO de werkgever liet weten behoefte te hebben aan meer flexibiliteit bij de

werkroosters.

De incidenteel noodzakelijke flexibiliteit werd door Svitzer vertaald naar een structurele flexibiliteit. Ondanks dat de sociale partners er regelmatig over overlegden was een oplossing lange tijd ver te zoeken. Uiteindelijk leek de beloning voor het inkorten van rustblokken de oplossing voor het probleem, tot het moment waarop bleek dat de flexibiliteitsgedachte van de werkgever veel meer inhield dan eerder verondersteld. Hierop besloten de leden van de betrokken bonden nagenoeg unaniem dat de afgesproken vaar — en rusttijden bij het aangaan van de cao voldoende mogelijkheden boden voor flexibiliteit en daarmee zou niet langer worden getornd aan de bestaande afspraken. Bij het ter perse gaan van dit blad was het werkgeversstandpunt helaas nog niet bekend.

Zeevarenden die wereldwijd varen zijn sinds jaren gewend om, voor de medische keuring, naar de GGD of een ziekenhuis in de buurt te gaan om een thorax foto te laten maken i.v.m. onderzoek op tuberculose. Deze werkwijze wijzigt per 1 oktober 2015. Vanaf deze datum is het niet meer nodig om de thorax foto standaard uit te laten voeren.

Lang niet iedereen zal zich dit bewust zijn. Het is dus te verwachten dat een deel van de zeevarenden routinematig eerst de thorax foto zal laten maken om er later achter te komen dat dit niet nodig was. Om extra tijd, extra kosten en extra stralingsbelasting te voorkomen brengen wij deze wijziging onder uw aandacht en verzoeken wij u om dit bericht aan uw collega zeevarenden door te geven.

De belangrijkste gevolgen van de wijziging van het keuringsreglement per 1 oktober 2015 voor de zeevarenden zijn:

Afschaffen standaard onderzoek op tuberculose

Onderzoek naar tuberculose wordt alleen uitgevoerd als de zeevarende afkomstig is uit, of woont in een door de Wereldgezondheidsorganisatie aangewezen risicoland of verschijnselen heeft die duiden op een mogelijke besmetting met tuberculose.

De röntgenfoto van de borst, de zogeheten thoraxfoto, zal niet meer standaard uitgevoerd worden.

Nieuwe geneeskundige verklaring zeevaart

Het model van de geneeskundige verklaring wijzigt. De informatie over het tuberculose onderzoek vervalt en er wordt ruimte vrijgehouden voor het beschrijven van eventuele beperkingen.

Drie in plaats van twee mogelijke uitslagen

Het nieuwe keuringsreglement biedt de keuringsarts meer ruimte om maatwerk te leveren.

Na maanden onderzoek is per

salvage en wreck removal: ARDENT Het wereldwijd opererend bergingsbedrijf Svitzer Salvage B.V., onderdeel van Svitzer A/S, met hoofdkantoor in IJmuiden is een fusie aangegaan met Titan Maritime LLC, onderdeel van Crowley Maritime Corporation, met hoofdkantoor in Houston, V.S. Vanuit hun verschillende marktposities als bergingsbedrijf en wrakken opruimingsbedrijf hebben deze bedrijven elkaar gevonden.

Svitzer Salvage is met voorgangers als Wijsmuller Salvage al sinds 1833 betrokken bij Emergency Response, het assisteren bij scheepsongevallen,

32-34_nl.indd 33

branden en natuurlijk ook de bergingen. Ook wrakopruiming kwam regelmatig voor.

Titan is ontstaan in 1981, een relatief jong bedrijf dus. Als onderdeel van Crowley is veel werk gedaan in bergingen en het opruimen van wrakken. Het laatste grote project was de berging van de Costa Concordia, het cruiseschip gezonken voor de kust van Italië.

De verplichting de bloedgroep, als deze niet bekend is, te bepalen vervalt. Bloedtransfusie met bloed van andere zeevarenden aan boord van schepen onder Nederlandse vlag vindt in de praktijk niet plaats. Als het al noodzakelijk is extra vocht met behulp van een infuus aan te bieden wordt gekozen een bloedvervangend middel dat deel uitmaakt van de standaard

Betere aansluiting bij ons omringende landen

De nieuwe medische eisen zijn overgenomen uit de ILO/IMO guidelines on the medical examination of seafarers en sluiten beter aan bij de ons omringende landen. g Deze informatie is ook te lezen

op de website van de Inspectie Leefomgeving en Transport via de link: www.ilent.nl/ onderwerpen/transport/ koopvaardij/bemanning/medische_ keuringen/medische_keuring_ zeevaart/

John T. Essberger zet in op vrijwillig vertrek Europese gezellen

Volg ons ook!

Bezoek www.nautilusint.org

Essberger al langere tijd te lijden onder de slechte F marktomstandigheden. Er is sprake van overcapaciteit en

Volg ons op Twitter

Net als bij andere tankrederijen, heeft ook John T.

dit zet de vrachttarieven onder druk. De rederij zoekt dan ook naar kostenbesparende maatregelen. De rederij vindt de Europese gezellen te duur en wil deze nu vervangen door goedkopere Filipijnse gezellen. Het zijn voornamelijk Iberianen die John T. Essberger middels een regeling voor ‘vrijwillig’ vertrek wil zien vertrekken.

‘Vrijwilligheid’

1 september 2015 een nieuwe D speler ontstaan in de wereld van

Afschaffen standaard bepaling van de bloedgroep

medische uitrusting aan boord van schepen.

Wij hebben Facebook.

Essberger heeft de betrokken Portugese en Spaanse gezellen laten weten dat de vertrekregeling (met kantonrechtersformule factor 1) alleen geldt als zij hier vóór 15 september mee instemmen. Mocht dit het geval zijn dan wil Essberger de Dutch Faith, het schip waarop de Iberianen de laatste tijd vaak dienst hebben gedaan omvlaggen

ARDENT, de fusie tussen Svitzer Salvage B.V. en Titan Maritime LLC

Er worden drie categorieën onderscheiden: geschikt, geschikt onder beperkingen en ongeschikt. Bij geschiktheid onder beperkingen kan de geldigheidstermijn, het vaargebied en/of het takenpakket beperkt zijn. Tevens kan het mogelijk zijn dat een specifiek hulpmiddel of een specifieke voorziening vereist is. De huidige medische eisen voor de zeevaart kent twee categorieën, geschikt en ongeschikt.

naar de Madeira-vlag en zal de gehele bemanning van de Dutch Faith moeten afvloeien. In dat geval wordt ontslag aangevraagd bij het UWV. Na verkregen toestemming zouden de dienstverbanden worden opgezegd onder toekenning van een transitievergoeding. Deze vergoeding is een stuk lager dan de kantonrechtersformule. Het is echter maar de vraag of het UWV specifiek voor deze groep werknemers toestemming voor ontslag zal verlenen. De Iberianen hebben namelijk niet een dienstverband met het schip maar met Essberger en daarom zal er voor het aanvragen van ontslag naar andere beginselen dienen te worden gekeken.

Individuele basis

De vrijwillige vertrekregeling wordt aangeboden op individuele basis en Nautilus staat haar leden die hier mee worden geconfronteerd bij.

WILT U EEN BREDER PUBLIEK BEREIKEN? PLAATS DAN EEN ADVERTENTIE IN DE TELEGRAPH. NEEM CONTACT OP MET: Jude Rosset at Redactive Media Sales

T: +44 (0)20 7880 6217 F: +44 (0)20 7880 7691

E: jude.rosset@ redactive.co.uk

g Met de fusie verwacht men een groter marktaandeel te verwerven en hoopt men ook kosten te kunnen verminderen.

Of de fusie ook leidt tot personele consequenties aan Nederlandse zijde is nog onbekend. Nautilus blijft de ontwikkelingen op de voet volgen.

23/09/2015 18:35

34 | telegraph | nautilusint.org | October 2015

NL NEWS

Wij hebben Facebook.

Volg ons ook!

Bezoek www.nautilusint.org

Volg ons op Twitter

HAL: leden en kaderleden bepalen de route & inzet maatschappijen, krijgen A ook medewerkers in dienst Net als bij vele andere

van HAL Beheer B.V. de kans om mee te praten aan de onderhandelingstafel over de loonen arbeidsvoorwaarden. Samen met Nautilus kunnen zij zorgen voor het behalen van een mooi resultaat.

Om invloed uit te kunnen oefenen, dient u natuurlijk wel als eerste lid te zijn van de vakbond. Immers de leden bepalen de route & inzet: zo is tijdens de ledenvergadering van 11 augustus besloten wat de voorstellen zouden worden voor de nieuwe cao. Deze voorstellen dienden als uitgangspunt tijdens het eerste cao-overleg dat op 18 augustus in Rotterdam plaatsvond.

Naar aanleiding van dit eerste overleg heeft de werkgever op 10 september haar voorstellenbrief

naar de vakbond toegestuurd. Deze brief is uitvoerig besproken met de leden tijdens de extra ingelaste ledenvergadering op 28 september jl. De reacties van de leden worden uiteraard meegenomen tijdens de tweede cao-ronde die op 12 en 13 oktober in Boston plaatsvindt.

De adviseurs van de bond

Kaderleden fungeren tijdens de onderhandelingen als spreekbuis van de achterban en staan de bond ter plaatse met raad en daad bij. Inmiddels zijn er 15 kaderleden die werkzaam zijn op 9 HAL schepen. Er is ruimte voor nog enkele kaderleden. Mocht u werkzaam zijn op de Eurodam, Oosterdam, Rotterdam, Rijndam, Westerdam of Zaandam en wilt u ook het beste uit uw loon- en arbeidsvoorwaarden halen? Meld u dan aan als kaderlid en laat uw mening tellen!

De KNRM redt mensen in nood op zee loos. Vrijwilligers zijn 24 uur A per dag inzetbaar. Vrijwillige redders

Nederlandse Redding Maatschappij (KNRM) kunt u kosteloos om hulp vragen, wanneer u aan boord van een schip hulp nodig heeft voor een zieke of gewonde.

De artsen zijn voor spoedgevallen 24 uur per dag oproepbaar via de Nederlandse Kustwacht.

De artsen doen dit werk naast hun normale artsenpraktijk. Per jaar wordt ruim 750 keer Radio Medisch Advies gegeven. Adviezen aan Nederlandse schepen kunnen zowel in de Nederlandse als in de Engelse taal worden afgehandeld.

Snel, professioneel en koste-

redden al 190 jaar mensen. De KNRM wordt in stand gehouden door vrijwillige bijdragen. Voor meer informatie ga naar http://190jaar. knrm.nl Onlangs is bij de KNRM een gewijzigde herdruk verschenen van de procedurefolders en stickers voor Radio Medische adviezen. Een digitaal voorbeeld vindt u op de website: www.knrm.nl/wat-wijdoen/radio-medische-dienst/ U kunt gedrukte procedurefolders ten behoeve van uw schepen aanvragen bij de KNRM via info@knrm.nl. De folders zijn kosteloos, maar graag wijzen wij u er op dat de KNRM bestaat van

vrijwillige bijdragen, haar diensten kosteloos aanbiedt en geen subsidies ontvangt. Elke gift is dus

welkom.

De artsen van de Radio Medische Dienst (RMD) van de Koninklijke

g Voor vragen betreffende de Radio Medische Dienst (RMD) kunt u zich wenden tot het secretariaat: Telefoon 0255 548454 of e-mail info@knrm.nl.

Uit de Dienstgang A

Een van onze leden, een matroos werkzaam in de Binnenvaart aan boord van een riviercruiseschip, kreeg van zijn werkgever te horen dat zijn contract binnenkort zou eindigen en niet verlengd zou worden. Voor ons lid kwam dit als donderslag bij heldere hemel omdat hij veronderstelde in vaste dienst te zijn. Wat was er aan de hand?

De matroos in kwestie heeft diverse arbeidsovereenkomsten gehad met verschillende werkgevers, of beter gezegd rechtspersonen (bv`s of nv`s). Hij was altijd hetzelfde werk blijven verrichten aan boord van een niet varend schip: een stationair accommodatieschip. De rechtspersonen waren allemaal gevestigd op hetzelfde adres in Limburg.

De situatie is als volgt: z Betrokkene heeft een arbeidsovereenkomst met werkgever A van 1 november 2012 tot en met 27 november 2012.

z Bij werkgever B van 28 november 2012 tot en met 20 juni 2012. z Bij werkgever C van 21 juni 2012 tot en met 3 november 2013. z Bij werkgever D van 4 november 2013 tot en met 31 mei 2014. z Bij werkgever E van 1 juni 2014 tot en met 30 november 2014.

Nautilus heeft op verzoek van de werknemer in een brief de nietigheid ingeroepen van het ontslag en zich beroepen op deze ketenregeling. De laatste werkgever ging uiteindelijk morrend akkoord met het vast dienstverband van ons lid.

Van tijdelijk naar vast dienstverband

Gelukkig is het voor ons lid goed afgelopen. Mocht u ook in een dergelijke situatie zitten, let dan op, want sinds 1 juli 2015 hebben werknemers met een contract voor onbepaalde tijd zelfs nog sneller recht op een vast dienstverband. Met de Wet Werk en Zekerheid (Wwz) is de positie van werknemers met een tijdelijk dienstverband namelijk versterkt. Een vast dienstverband ontstaat niet eerst na contracten voor bepaalde tijd gedurende drie jaar, maar al na twee jaar!

Op 1 juli 2015 is de ketenbepaling voor tijdelijke werknemers veranderd. Zo

Ons lid dacht terecht dat hij in vaste dienst was. Hij had namelijk vijf contracten voor bepaalde tijd.

Omdat hier sprake is van op elkaar opvolgende arbeidsovereenkomsten tussen een werknemer en verschillende werkgevers, die ten aanzien van de verrichte arbeid redelijkerwijze geacht worden elkaars opvolger te zijn — het betrof immers steeds hetzelfde werk —, leverde het vierde contract voor bepaalde tijd een arbeidsovereenkomst op voor onbepaalde tijd. Dit is de zogeheten ketenbepaling uit het Burgerlijk Wetboek artikel 7:688.

Positie werknemers versterkt

ontstaat een vast contract als werkgever en werknemer: z meer dan drie elkaar opvolgende tijdelijke contracten afsluiten, of z langer dan twee jaar gebruik maken van elkaar opvolgende tijdelijke contracten.

Er is sprake van opvolgende tijdelijke contracten als deze elkaar met een tussenperiode van zes maanden (was drie maanden) of minder opvolgen.

Bij de berekening van de periode van twee jaar, tellen periodes van zes maanden of korter tussen de tijdelijke contracten dus mee.

Bij twijfel, bel Nautilus

Ons lid was uiteraard blij met het behoud van zijn baan en duidelijkheid over zijn rechtspositie.

Twijfelt u over het wel of niet in vaste dienst zijn of wil uw werkgever u geen nieuw contract aanbieden en vraagt u zich af of dit wel correct is? Neemt u dan contact op met Nautilus.

Wij helpen u graag verder.

Nieuwe driejarige CAO bij P&O North Sea Ferries een feit NSF leek slechts een stip aan F de horizon. Maar na een actietraject Een fatsoenlijke cao bij P&O

(waarbij er zelfs een officieel voorultimatum aan te pas moest komen), hebben Nautilus en P&O NSF nu dan toch de handtekeningen kunnen zetten onder een nieuwe driejarige cao.

De medewerkers zijn tevreden met het behaalde resultaat. Zoals u in de vorige editie van de Telegraph kon lezen, waren met name de extra verlofdagen een heikel punt.

De vele inspanningen van de kaderleden, actiecoördinatoren en vakbondsbestuurders hebben er uiteindelijk toe geleid dat de werkgever in Dover alsnog overstag ging. Dit betekent dat de cao,

32-34_nl.indd 34

lopend van 1 januari 2014 t/m 31 december 2016, een feit is. Naast de tien verlofdagen, die een waarde van 2,5% vertegenwoordigen, worden de lonen gedurende de looptijd jaarlijks verhoogd met de afgeleide prijscompensatie (APC). Verder is afgesproken dat de kantonrechtersformule, in geval van overcompleetheid, van toepassing is.

Bundeling van krachten

Het moet gezegd worden, dit resultaat is behaald dankzij de inzet en standvastigheid van de 26 kaderleden en 9 actiecoördinatoren.

Dit bewijst maar eens temeer dat bundeling van krachten tot goede resultaten kan leiden!

Op 2 september jl. zijn, als dank voor hun bewezen diensten, de actie-coördinatoren van de Pride of Rotterdam door de vakbond in het zonnetje gezet

23/09/2015 18:35

October 2015 | nautilusint.org | telegraph | 35

MARITIME COMMUNITY

Superlative swim supports seafarers K

Almost 140 years to the day after a Merchant Navy master became the first person to swim the English Channel unassisted, a maritime trade unionist has followed in his wake — raising thousands of dollars for a seafarers’ charity in the process.

Dean Summers is the International Transport Workers’ Federation (ITF) national coordinator for Australia. A passionate advocate for seafarers’ rights, he took on the world’s most famous swimming challenge this summer to raise money for the development of mental health services for mariners. He now has over A$26,000 to give the maritime welfare organisation Hunterlink Recovery Services (equivalent to around £12,000).

The training was gruelling, but when Dean arrived in the UK in August, he knew he was ready. ‘I estimate that I’ve swum 2,300km over the past two years in all kinds of conditions,’ he said, ‘and this, along with the encouragement of my coach Vlad Mrvac, filled me with confidence.’

His determination did not waver as he waited in Dover for the right conditions to embark on his swim — even when planned start times had to be called off at the last minute due to a change in the weather. The big moment finally came on 21 August, and he had to keep his wits about him to follow the stringent rules that govern Channel-swimming.

‘When we set out,’ he explained, ‘the pilot boat Louise Jane dropped me 100m from the Dover shore, where I had to swim to the beach and let the observer see me clear of the water before we officially started just after 0300hrs.’

From there he was in the hands of his pilot Andy King, who determined the course and would have been responsible for pulling Dean out if he thought the swimmer was in danger or exhausted.

Meanwhile, the official observer was still watching closely to

This summer, Australian ITF official Dean Summers joined the select band of English Channel swimmers.

It was tough, but all in a good cause, he tells SARAH ROBINSON...

method of communications between feeds) over the side, and watching the sun rise. More high points were seeing land for the first time, the coach telling me this was the last feed before landing, and seeing the ITF Belgian coordinator Christian Roos waiting for me on the beach with beer. Then there was standing on the sunny sandy beach in Wissant with startled French beachgoers and getting back on the boat to the cheers of my crew.’

Low points were nil, he reports happily: ‘Despite expecting a “wall” I enjoyed every minute of the swim.’

Knowing that his efforts were supporting a good cause was an important motivating factor, he added. ‘As well as raising more than A$26,000, we raised awareness of the enormous need to provide all seafarers with a mental health service and the plight of seafarers in general.’

The track of Dean’s crossing, demonstrating how he had to battle through perilous tides to reach the other side

K Success! The official record of Dean Summers’ swim can be found at: www.channelswimmingassociation.com

make sure no regulations were breached. ‘Swimmers can only wear Speedo bathers — budgie smugglers! — a pair of goggles and a swim cap,’ noted Dean. ‘A swimmer must at no time touch the boat, another swimmer or any flotation device or they will be disqualified.’

Coach Vlad was in the support boat crew, giving his athlete direction and encouraging him to sprint at a few difficult stages.

And Dean’s partner Kylie and daughter Michelle were in charge of feeding and monitoring: ‘They mixed the special food and took turns watching me to ensure my stroke rate didn’t fall below 64 strokes per minute. The food is in powder form and is 45g of Malto-

dextrin (carbohydrates) mixed in 320ml of water taken every 45 minutes. Feeds should not take any longer than 45 seconds to avoid drifting backwards.’

It took Dean a respectable 13 hours 19 minutes to reach the French coast — some way off the England-to-France record set by Trent Grimsey in 2012 (6 hours 55 minutes), but close to the average time for the crossing and a great improvement on Captain Matthew Webb’s original 1875 time of 21 hours 45 minutes.

Looking back at the experience, Dean had no trouble listing his high points: ‘It was seeing my partner and daughter enjoying themselves, my daughter dropping the white board (the only

Asked whether he would encourage others to attempt a Channel swim, Dean was characteristically thoughtful. ‘I would recommend anyone try to push their own limits in every possible way. I do know that for people with mental health problems, just trying to get up in the mornings and meet everyday simple challenges can be as daunting as swimming the English Channel. This was tough but it’s over and done with in a day, but mental health disorders go unrecognised, untreated and underestimated.’

Finally, Dean wanted to thank all those who sponsored his swim or gave practical support — a large group encompassing family, friends, colleagues and trade unions including Nautilus.

‘It’s expensive, time-consuming and hard work. But if our collective effort helps to expose the problems our people experience and financially supports a coordinated and progressive programme, then we have all done a good day’s work.’

Dean shows a containership how it’s done...

Master mariner who was first across for his Channel swim, as this summer saw the F release of a film about his Victorian predecessor

Dean Summers picked an opportune moment

Captain Webb in training, as played by Warren Brown Picture: Alexandra Leary

35_swim_SR edit.indd 35

Captain Matthew Webb, the first person ever to swim the Channel unaided.

Although Webb achieved celebrity in the late 19th century, this ‘largely forgotten British hero’ deserves to be more widely recognised today, according to production company Marathon Films.

While serving as second mate on the Cunard Line ship Russia, Webb had attempted to rescue a man overboard by diving into the sea in the mid-Atlantic. The man was never found, but Webb’s daring won him an award of £100 and the Stanhope Medal.

In 1873, Capt Webb was serving as master of the steamship Emerald when he read an account of the failed attempt by JB Johnson to swim the English

Channel. He became inspired to try himself, and left his job to begin training.

His first attempt at the Channel crossing, on 12 August 1875, had to be abandoned because of strong winds and poor sea conditions. But on 24 August, he set off again, diving in from the Admiralty Pier at Dover. This time, backed by three escort boats and smeared in porpoise oil, he made it to the other side after nearly 22 hours. The Channel would not be swum again for 36 years, and to this day more people have climbed Everest (over 4,000) than have successfully swum solo across this notorious stretch of water (around 1,330).

Capt Webb’s achievement is all the more remarkable, say the film-makers, given that it came before sport was a fully recognised industry; before the expertise and precautions found today had even been thought of. There was no sports equipment,

psychologists or isotonic drinks. Purpose-built swimming pools were rare, and front crawl was only imported to the UK as a stroke in 1873.

Beginning with Capt Webb diving into the water in Dover and concluding as he reaches the French coast, the film uses flashbacks to explore his motives and the character traits that drove him on as he braved high seas and furious winds.

Director Justin Hardy said: ‘Captain Webb attempted to swim the English Channel when the very idea was seen as beyond impossible, equipped only with his moustache, doses of brandy and a wire wool swimsuit. We wanted to tell the story of a classic underdog who fought against all odds to make it to the other side.’ g The film Captain Webb was released in the UK on 14 August 2015. Worldwide distribution is with Miramax.

23/09/2015 17:12

36 | telegraph | nautilusint.org | October 2015

APPOINTMENTS

Assistant Harbour Master/Pilot £41 - £46k

Newhaven Port & Properties Ltd are the Statutory and Competent Harbour Authority for the Port of Newhaven in East Sussex.

The port has a mix of commercial, fishing and recreational, with the core business being the cross channel ferry service to Dieppe. Vessels handled are presently up to 145m, but with planning permission in place for a new 300m berth and the imminent commencement of construction of the Rampion Offshore Windfarm, the potential for larger vessels to be using the port in the future is possible.

We require all applicants to hold a Masters unlimited CoC. Duties will include assisting the Harbour Master in the day to day running of the port in addition to training to be a fully authorised Pilot. Pilotage training is expected to take approximately one year. The starting salary is £41k, rising to £46k on successful completion of pilotage training and authorisation.

Duties include shiftwork; on-call; working nights; weekends; bank holidays.

Closing date is 31st October 2015 with interviews for short listed applicants during November/December.

Fleetwood - a top UK Nautical College with a long established reputation for being a leading provider of training to the Maritime industry.

OFFSHORE BOSIET (3 days) - Every Mon W/C 21 Sep | MIST (2 days) - Every Thurs from W/C 21 Sep | FOET (1 day) - Every Tues from W/C 21 Sep | EURO (3 days) - Every other Mon starting W/C 14 Sep | EURO REFRESHER (1 day) W/C 21 Sep, 19 Oct | TEMPSC COXSWAIN (3.5 days) - Every other Mon from W/C 14 Sep | TEMPSC COXSWAIN REFRESHER (1.5 days) every other Thurs from W/C 14 Sep | GWO BASIC SAFETY PACKAGE (7 days) - W/C 21 Sep, 5, 19 Oct | RUK/GWO Working at Height (2 days) - 17 Sep, 1, 15, 29 Oct, 12, 26 Nov | RUK/GWO Working at Height (1 day refresher) 28 Sept, 12, 26 Oct, 9, 23 Nov | NEBOSH General - W/C 6 Jul Additional | STCW Updating date added for 2015 9 Nov | STCW Updating 11 Jan (2016), 1, 29 Feb (2016), 14 Mar (2016), 4, 25 Apr (2016), 9 May (2016) For more information E offshore@blackpool.ac.uk T 01253 779 123 W blackpool.ac.uk/offshore Facebook /FleetwoodNauticalCampusOffshoreOperations

MARITIME HELM O 15 Oct, 3 Dec, 11 Feb (2016), 23 Mar (2016), 2 Jun (2016) 13 Jul (2016) | HELM M 19 Oct, 30 Nov, 7, 14 Dec, 8 Feb (2016), 28 Mar (2016), 4, 18 Apr (2016), 30 May (2016), 18, 25 Jul (2016), 1 Aug (2016) | NAEST O 31 Aug , 4 Jan (2016), 25 Apr (2016) | NAEST M 12 Oct , 7, 14 Dec , 15 Feb (2016), 4, 11 Apr, 6 Jun (2016), 25 Jul (2016), 1 Aug 2016 | VTS NAUTICAL KNOWLEDGE (IALA V103/1 MODULE 3 AND 4) | Blended Learning (Flexible Start and 1 week in Simulator) VTS OPERATORS 12 Oct , 16 Nov , 4 Jan (2016), 8 Feb (2016), 6 Jun (2016), 4 Jul (2016) | VTS REFRESHER 6 Oct , 1 Dec , 22 Mar (2016), 28 Jun (2016), 19 Jul (2016) For flexible enrolment and more information E blearning@blackpool.ac.uk T 01253 779 123 W blackpool.ac.uk/nautical If you are interested in working at Fleetwood Nautical Campus, call 01253 50(4760) to register your interest or for information on current vacancies.

WWW. BLACKPOOL. AC.UK

Please send full CV including present position, salary and notice period to newhavenharbourmaster@gmail.com

Me Merchant ha Navy M cha ha N O ffice ce TTraining ffic Tr Officer Shields Marine School is a world-renowned h SSouth o centre of excellence for marine education and training.

Our specialist facilities offer a realistic training environment, which are

Rating to Engineer OOW 4 Jan 2016 18 Apr 2016

Chief and Second Engineer Academics 4 Jan 2016 11 Apr 2016

Chief Engineer Rating to OOW EK only 7 Dec 2015 Six week course 18 Apr 2016 Start anytime within 12 Sep 2016 date range below: 28 Nov 2016 4 Jan - 8 Feb 2016 11 Apr - 23 May 2016

Second Engineer IAMI Engineering EK only Revision 5 Oct 2015 Six week course Start anytime within 8 Feb 2016 date range below: 14 Mar 2016 4 Jan - 15 Feb 2016 16 May 2016 11 Apr - 23 May 2016 11 Jul 2016

SQA Revision 18 Jan 2016 29 Feb 2016 3 May 2016 20 Jun 2016

OOW Oral Prep 23 Nov 2015 15 Jan 2016 15 Feb 2016 25 Apr 2016 20 Jun 2016 18 Jul 2016

Post HND to Chief Mate 4 Jan 2016 4 Apr 2016

Post FD to Chief Mate 4 Jan 2016 4 Apr 2016

among the best in the world.

Call us on: 0191 427 3772 or Email: nautical.studies@stc.ac.uk mmeng@stc.ac.uk

/SouthShieldsMarineSchool

www.stc.ac.uk

36-41_rec.indd 36

Masters Orals 9 Nov 2015 18 Jan 2016 18 Apr 2016 6 Jun 2016

Chief Mate 4 Jan 2016 4 Apr 2016

@ssmarineschool

22/09/2015 11:26

October 2015 | nautilusint.org | telegraph | 37

APPOINTMENTS Leading Marine Recruitment Specialists We are seeking all ranks of seafarers, offshore and shore based personnel and in particular:

Your first port of call Address: First Floor Unit 7, Hythe Marine Park, Shore Road, Southampton, SO45 6HE UK Telephone: +44(0)23 8084 0374 Email: recruitment@seamariner.com

Senior Deck and Engineering Of½cers - All vessels All Of½cers and Crew - ERRV Tug/Multicat Crew - All ranks Various shore based personnel All Crew for temporary assignments

Maestro Shipmanagement Limited is part of the Maestro Group, with activity in the Bulk, Reefer, RoRo and Shipmanagement segments.

Due to continued opportunities we are currently recruiting Senior Engineers on board our Ro-Ro Àeet and are inviting applications to join the on-board management team.

If you would like further information in registering with Seamariner or you would like to discuss your crewing requirements, please contact one of our experienced consultants.

The following positions are available.

Chief Engineer 1st Assistant Engineer

www.seamariner.com

ISO9001:2008 accredited and KvK and MLC compliant Reg Co number: 2745210

The terms and conditions offered are competitive & commensurate with the vessel type, voyage lengths & trade.

Relevant medium speed experience is required.

NOTICE TO READERS Nautilus International advises members that some crewing agencies may not be advertising specific positions, but instead may be seeking to develop their databases of job hunters.

12

Potential candidates to apply to recruitment@maestroshipman.com www.maestroshipping.com

months from Sea to Superintendent

Your future, our future.

Superintendent Training Scheme

At Northern Marine we value people above all else. That’s why we go to great lengths to create an environment where bonds and connections are paramount.

The career path to Senior Management of the future If you are a Second or Third Engineer and are looking to start a career ashore, we could offer you a structured career path that can take you from sea to a Superintendent role in just 12 months. Plot a new future and apply today.

We are looking for ambitious Engineers to join us as Assistant Superintendents in our Glasgow offices. Use your experience at sea to build a rewarding career ashore in ship management.

Call: +44 (0)2380 208840. Email: NMM@faststream.com

Recruitment Partner

Pritchard-Gordon Tankers (Guernsey) Ltd

Pritchard-Gordon Tankers Ltd, a family owned and managed company, operating British and Isle of Man registered oil tankers of between 5,000 and 12,000 dwt, are seeking experienced and suitably quali½ed, high calibre:

Senior Deck and Engineering Of½cers

We lay great importance on teamwork and continuity, with a number of senior of½cers having been with the company over 20 years. Our company ethos is to offer a superior service and level of professionalism to our Major and National Oil Company customers in challenging operational conditions.

Voyage lengths are of 10 to 13 weeks duration followed by an equal period of leave. Terms and conditions are competitive and commensurate with rank and experience.

Applications in the ½rst instance to Head of Personnel, Pritchard-Gordon Tankers Ltd, 6 Coronation Street, South Shields, Tyne & Wear, NE33 1AZ Tel 0191 427 0303 Email personnel@pgtankers.com Website www.pgtankers.com

36-41_rec.indd 37

14 October 2015 is the closing date for November 2015.

You can still advertise online at any time.

D&P

Maritime Recruitment

Looking for all Ranks and Ratings for all types of vessels www.dpmaritimerecruitment.com Email: info@dpmaritimerecruitment.com Tel: +44 (0)1224 600 028

RYAN OFFSHORE LTD RYAN SHIP MANAGEMENT LTD S SHIPPING

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MARITIME RECRUITMENT FOR - 4-PT MOORING DSV / AHTS/ PSV/ MRV/ ERRV REQUIRE MASTERs, CHOFFs, 2ND OFFs, CHENGs, 2ND ENGs, 3RD ENGs, DP ENGs, ETOs FOR - DP3 / DP2- DSV / DP2- AHTS / DP2- PSV / DP3 PIPELAYER / DP2 CLV REQUIRE MASTER-DPOs, CHOFF-SDPOs, 1ST OFF-DPOs, 2ND OFF-DPOs, CHENGs, 2ND ENGs, 3RD ENGs, ETOs, CRANE OPTRs D EN NGs, ET ETOs Os,, CR Os CRAN ANEE OP AN OPTR TRss - ST TR STG G2/3 FOR - SHORE BASED BA OFFSHORE FLEET REQUIRE TECH MANAGER, TECH SUPT, DIVE SUPT (OFFICE BASED), ENGINEERING SUPT, ELECTRICAL SUPT, PORT CAPTAIN, PORT ENG, QHSE

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EMAIL: office@ryan-shipmanagement.co.uk, office@ryanoffshore.net, office@shipping-connections.com WEBSITE: www.ryan-shipmanagement.co.uk , www.shipping-connections.com, www.ryanoffshore.net RYANSHIP, P.O.BOX–1282, SUNDERLAND, SR5 9HX, UNITED KINGDOM

22/09/2015 11:26

38 | telegraph | nautilusint.org | October 2015

APPOINTMENTS Clyde Marine Recruitment is a leading provider of marine recruitment and bespoke crew management VHUYLFHV :LWK RIÂźFHV ORFDWHG LQ 8. /DWYLD 3RODQG DQG Singapore it allows us to provide our clients with easy access to a multi-national pool of candidates from a single point of contact. *SV WIE KSMRK NSFW ETTP] EX www.clyderecruit.com CONTAINER

TANKER

Chief and 2nd Engineer required for Container vessel. Operating worldwide. 3 month trips.

Permanent position. Container experience preferred but not essential.

&KLHI 2IŸFHU JSV 3MP ERH +EW 8EROIVW 'LMIJ 3J½GIV YRPMQMXIH 'S' SV EFSZI [MXL 3MP SV +EW DCE. Candidates must have previous large oil XEROIV 04+ SV 02+ I\TIVMIRGI EW 'LMIJ 3J½GIV 8VMTW EVI QSRXLW [MXL HE]W PIEZI TIV QSRXL WIVZIH &IRI½XW TEGOEKI MRGPYHIH 8LIWI EVI permanent positions.

CRUISE QG 2IŸFHU LSPHMRK E 'LMIJ 3J½GIV YRPMQMXIH CoC required for Cruise Ship. Permanent position. Successful candidates will have previous Ropax and/or Cruise Ship experience. Trips are QSRXLW ½VWX XVMT [MPP LEZI ER I\XVE [IIO for familiarisation.

2nd Engineer required for Cruise Ship.

4IVQERIRX TSWMXMSR [IIOW SR [IIOW SJJ Operating worldwide. Own cabin, travel paid to and from vessel on completion of contract.

WXVMTI SJ½GIV WXEXYW HIGO TVMZMPIKIW JEQMP] travel and great promotion prospects long-term.

Chief Engineers, 2nd Engineers, 3rd Engineers and ETOs VIUYMVIH JSV FSXL 3MP 8EROIVW ERH +EW 8EROIVW 3TIVEXMRK [SVPH[MHI :EVMSYW 'PMIRXW recruiting with trip lengths and salaries varied.

See website for full details.

OTHER Towage Master for a position based in 7SYXLEQTXSR 4IVQERIRX TSWMXMSR [SVOMRK [IIOW 1EWXIV 'S' 9/ ')' 1YWX LEZI experience with ASD and Voith.

OFFSHORE 0DVWHU &KLHI 2IÂźFHU &KLHI (QJLQHHU QG Engineer and ETO required for new build PSV, DSV and MPSV for SE Asia blue chip operator.

SV [IIO VSXEXMSRW 4IVQERIRX TSWMXMSR Previous offshore experience essential.

For all shore-based jobs, please visit:

www.redtheconsultancy.com

*SV 7IE KSMRK .SFW ZMWMX 'P]HI 1EVMRI 6IGVYMXQIRX

www.clyderecruit.com Glasgow +44 (0) 141 427 6886 Singapore +65 6299 4992

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Gdynia +4858 665 3860 Riga +371 6733 1357

22/09/2015 11:26

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APPOINTMENTS

Port Control Officer/Duty Officer circa £25 - £30k

Newhaven Port & Properties Ltd are the Statutory and Competent Harbour Authority for the Port of Newhaven in East Sussex. The Port Control is a 24 hour operation, being the hub of the port and operating at the highest levels of an LPS (Local Port Service).

The port has a mix of commercial, fishing and recreational, with the core business being the cross channel ferry service to Dieppe. Vessels handled are presently up to 145m, but with planning permission in place for a new 300m berth and the imminent commencement of construction of the Rampion Offshore Windfarm, there is potential for more frequent traffic and larger vessels to be using the port.

The successful applicant will be required to work shifts covering both as Port Control Officer and as Duty Officer, overseeing the day to day port operations and covering on the Pilot Boat as required. Shifts include working nights, weekends and bank holidays, both on-site and on-call. Living within 5 miles of the port is essential.

The starting salary is £25k, rising to £30k on successful completion of a minimum of 9 months training.

The successful applicant will ideally hold one or more of the following:STCW Masters 200/500/3000, STCW Chief Mates Unlimited, Master of Yachts (power - commercially endorsed), RYA Yachtmaster (commercially endorsed), IALA V103/1 or an LPS Course certificate.

Closing date is 31st October 2015 with interviews for short listed applicants during November/December.

Please send full CV including present position, salary and notice period to newhavenharbourmaster@gmail.com

www.windstarcruises.com

EMBARK ON A CAREER MOST WILL ONLY EVER DREAM OF With our three newest stars having now joined the fleet, Windstar is the No. 1 choice for career opportunities.

Now consisting of 6 prestigious yachts, our fleet will travel worldwide taking our passengers to some of the most unique and exotic ports there are to be found.

Benefits package includes: · Competitive wages paid in GBP and USD

Windstar Cruises are currently looking for suitable candidates for the following positions:

· Retirement Savings Plan / Pensions (subject to eligibility)

· One for One Rotation for Staff Officers · Contributory Medical / Dental Insurance

· Annual & Return Bonuses (dependent on rank)

· Captains and other Deck Officers

· Company Sponsored Study Leave Programme

· Engineering Officers of all ranks

· Officer Cadet Training

· Electricians, ETO’s & IT Officers

· Excellent Spouse Policy

· Hotel Officers · Guest & Destination Service Professionals

Prospective candidates need to complete our online candidate database via our website or email us at applicants@vikingrecruitment.com quoting reference VRL 09/15

Viking House, Beechwood Business Park, Menzies Road, Dover, Kent, CT16 2FG T: +44 (0) 300 303 8191 vikingrecruitment.com

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ISO 9001

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APPOINTMENTS

LOOKING FOR A REWARDING NEW CHALLENGE?

Why not channel your passion into educating others?

Whilst working for international companies, we built up a wealth of expertise and skills which we were keen to pass on to the next generation, but thought the move into teaching would be out of our reach.

It wasn’t out of their reach. At B&FC, their experience, qualifications and passion for their subjects were enough to open the door to an exciting new career for these maritime professionals. They were then able to simultaneously work towards completing the required teaching qualification - the Diploma in Education and Training - which we funded.

This is an exciting time to join Blackpool and The Fylde College, recently named as England’s best performing college (based on Skills Funding Agency national success rate tables 2013/2014). We are also recognised as one of the largest and most successful HE in FE providers as indicated in our QAA report. At B&FC you can enjoy an excellent annual salary plus superb benefits such as generous holiday allowance, pension scheme, continuous professional development, relocation package along with scarcity uplift allowance, all of which are potentially available for successful candidates.

VACANCY 1: Lecturer 1 in Marine Engineering REF: 14315 VACANCY 2: Lecturer 2 Programme Leader - Maritime REF: 14171 VACANCY 3: HE Senior Tutor REF: 14400 CLOSING DATE: 19 Oct 2015 INTERVIEW DATE: 30 Oct 2015

To find out more visit

blackpool.ac.uk/jobs E jobs@blackpool.ac.uk T 01253 504 173

/calmacferries

@calmacferries

@calmac_updates

@calmacferries

Exciting opportunities exist within CalMac Ferries Limited for various positions including: SHORE BASED • Marine, Technical and HSEQ Management positions • Project Management SEA GOING • All deck, engine and retail positions • Permanent, seasonal and temporary positions CalMac Ferries Limited is a multi-award winning business serving some of the most beautiful parts of Scotland with over 30 ferries providing lifeline services to the islands and peninsulas on Scotland’s west coast.

Our excellent benefits package includes a competitive salary plus generous annual leave entitlement programme. You could also take advantage of free CalMac staff travel for you and your family.

We provide extensive structured training programmes for both marine and shore staff, encouraging all employees to continuously update their skills and knowledge.

To view all details of our current vacancies and for further information, please visit our website at www.calmac.co.uk or email to: recruitment@davidmacbrayneHR.co.uk.

www.calmac.co.uk

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APPOINTMENTS SCARBOROUGH BOROUGH COUNCIL

DEPUTY HARBOUR MASTER Salary: £31,048 - £33,458 per annum The Council manages and operates the ports of Whitby and Scarborough and the Filey Coble Landing on the beautiful North Yorkshire coast.

The successful applicant of this varied and rewarding post will have the relevant qualities, commitment and enthusiasm to meet the challenges of managing daily port operations and the developing potential for offshore renewable opportunities. While primarily deputising for the Borough Harbour Master, following training will be able to act as relief master on the Council’s dredging system and pilot for the ports. Applicants should be appropriately qualified and hold valid STCW qualifications. Previous command, pilotage experience or port management skills are advantageous but not essential.

CV Professionals Maritime & oσshore specialists www.cvprofessionals.co.uk

Join the Viking crew Bringing together the best industry talent, since 1988.

Advertise with

The position is predominantly 37 hrs Monday to Friday with generous leave and flexible working, including membership of the local Government pension scheme. Assistance with relocation costs will be available.

For an informal discussion with the Borough Harbour Master please call Whitby Harbour Office on 01947 602354.

Please apply online via www.scarborough.gov.uk or telephone Customer Services on 01723 232323 for an application pack.

Closing Date: Noon, Tuesday 20 October 2015

Contact Paul Wade on +44 (0)20 7880 6212 or email paul.wade@ redactive.co.uk to find out how.

Where’s my Telegraph?

DEEP SEA & COASTAL PILOTS LIMITED We currently have several vacancies for Deep Sea Pilots, both full and part Ɵme, and are looking to recruit Masters with 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 CerƟĮcaƟon by the UK Trinity House. A knowledge of the English Channel/North European water will be of requirement to your applicaƟon.

All applicants will be required to aƩain a valid license issued

by Trinity House (London, Newcastle or Hull).

All applicants must have exisƟng EU working enƟtlement and be able to demonstrate a legal right to take up residence in the UK. ApplicaƟons to be sent to seapilots@dscp.net for the aƩenƟon of Chris Brooks or by post to Deep Sea & Coastal Pilots Limited, PO Box 201, Gravesend, Kent, DA12 3WB. For background on our company proĮle please refer to www.deepseapilots.com

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

To let us know your new address, go to www. nautilusint.org and log in as a member, or contact our membership department on +44 (0)151 639 8454 or membership@nautilusint.org The membership team can also cancel your print copy if you prefer to read the paper on the Telegraph app.

We have excellent career opportunities with some of the most prestigious names in the cruise and superyacht market.

Positions include: • Captain

• Chief Engineers

• Chief Electrician

• Chief Officers

• 2nd Engineers

• ETO’s

• 2nd Officers

• Y1 -Y4 Engineers

• Hotel & Guest Services Professionals

For a full list of career opportunities, visit us at vikingrecruitment.com or give us a call.

www.vikingrecruitment.com +44 (0)300 303 8191 info@vikingrecruitment.com

Maersk Line Container Fleet are recruiting Chief Engineers & Second Engineers for immediate vacancies Maersk Line, the global containerized division of the A.P. Moller – Maersk Group, is dedicated to delivering the highest level of customer-focused and reliable ocean transportation services.

Our vision, built from a strong heritage of uprightness, constant care, and innovation, remains the cornerstone of our business operations. The Maersk Line fleet comprises more than 260 owned vessels manned by 7,600 Seafarers.

Due to continued fleet expansion Maersk Line are recruiting Senior Engineers to fill immediate vacancies.

As the right candidate you will benefit from a competitive salary, voyage lengths of 90 days plus or minus 30 days, back to back working rotations, second-to-none training facilities and the opportunity to develop your career within an industryleading container shipping company.

Apply online at www.seacareers.co.uk or contact 0191 269 3152 to discuss these vacancies

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SHIP TO SHORE

M-Notices M-Notices, Marine Information Notes and Marine Guidance Notes issued by the Maritime & Coastguard Agency recently include: MSN 1837 (M) Amendment 1 — Categorisation of waters This notice sets out the categorisations of waters in the United Kingdom. These categorisations determine the waters not regarded as ‘sea’ for the purposes of merchant shipping legislation (excepting marine pollution).

The notice replaces and augments MSN 1776(M) and MSN 1827(M) with new amendments. The changes in categorisation relate to Bridlington and Walton Backwaters in the east of England, and Preston and Southport in the west. The full current list of categorisations for the whole country is given in the annex to MSN 1837.

MGN 538 (M) — Pleasure vessels: guidance and applicable UK regulations This note provides an overview of the merchant shipping legislation that applies to pleasure vessels, including rules relating to certification and manning requirements. The regulations apply to UK pleasure vessels wherever they may be, and some also apply to non-UK pleasure vessels in UK waters.

The note defines a pleasure vessel and reminds readers that a vessel carrying more than 12 passengers does not fall into this category; it is a ‘passenger ship’ under UK merchant shipping regulations and must be appropriately surveyed and certificated.

Pleasure vessels are generally small craft used by the family and friends of the owner, and best practice guidelines have been issued to help these amateur sailors operate the vessel safely: Get trained — It is sensible to undertake some form of training suitable to the intended voyage(s) of your vessel; if you do get trained you will be far less likely to be involved in a maritime incident. If you get into difficulty you will also know how to get the right help quickly, reducing the impact of your problem.

Check the weather and tides — Always check the weather and tidal conditions before you set out so that you can prepare accordingly. At sea, changes in tidal streams could make conditions worse, particularly if the wind and tide are against each other.

Tidal heights may also hide underwater hazards.

Wear a lifejacket — A lifejacket that is properly serviced and maintained in accordance with the manufacturer’s recommendations will significantly increase your survival chances if you fall overboard.

It should be fitted with a light, whistle, crotch straps to stop the

lifejacket riding up over your head and if possible a spray hood.

Avoid alcohol — If you have been drinking alcohol, your judgement will be impaired and you will be more likely to make mistakes, which at sea could be life-threatening. Think of operating a vessel in the same way as you would think about driving a car — where the perils of drink driving are well understood.

Keep in touch — Tell someone responsible ashore where you are going and what time you expect to return so they are able to let the Coastguard know if you are missing.

Wear the kill cord — If your boat is fitted with a kill cord, ensure the driver wears it at all times. If the driver falls overboard, it may help save their life and the lives of others who may also be in the water.

MGN 538 sets out the regulations covering life-saving and fire-fighting appliances, and other safety equipment. Some of the regulations only apply to vessels over a certain size, but owners and skippers of all pleasure vessels are reminded of their obligations under health and safety legislation.

The note also covers the need for ‘common sense’ voyage planning (with guidance on how to do this), and the requirement under SOLAS for small craft to make themselves visible to larger vessels by using radar reflectors. Other points include the requirements to know the recognised life saving signals, to follow the COLREGs, to prevent pollution and to help nearby vessels in difficulty.

MIN 506 (M) Corrigendum — Maritime Labour Convention, 2006: non-coded vessels of less than 500 gross tonnes operating internationally This brief note provides a correction to MIN 506, pointing out that in paragraph 1.1 the regulation quoted should be numbered SI 2013/1785, and not SI 2013/4785 as stated.

MIN 511 (M) — The alternative route for qualified engineers and engineering graduates to obtain an Engineer Officer of the Watch (EOOW) Unlimited certificate of competency This note details the ‘alternative route’, which allows engineering graduates, engineering Higher National Diploma (HND)/Higher National Certificate (HNC) holders or those with a suitable engineering apprenticeship (NVQ level 3 or above) to have their qualifications assessed by an MCA-approved nautical college for entry onto the UK Engineering Officer of the Watch training programme.

MIN 511 covers everything applicants for this route need to know, including eligibility, evidence of previous training and study, exemptions, sea service require-

Member meetings and seminars ments, ancillary and safety course requirements, application procedures and the MCA oral examination. g Further information can be obtained by visiting www.gov.uk/ mca and searching for Engineer CoC. MIN 512 (M+F) — Code of Safe Working Practices for Merchant Seafarers: new edition This note provides information about the new Code of Safe Working Practices for Merchant Seafarers.

The Code provides best practice guidance for health and safety onboard ship. It details the regulatory framework for health and safety onboard ship, and identifies statutory duties underlying the advice in the Code. It also includes the areas that should be covered when introducing a new recruit to the safety procedures onboard. The new Code was published in September 2015.

MIN 512 points out that numerous changes have been made from the 2011 edition, including: z a new title which reflects the terminology used in the Code z increased emphasis on practical guidance rather than legislation z improved guidance on risk assessment z simplified advice on permits to work z dangerous (enclosed) space chapter updated z new content on good safety culture, fatigue and ergonomics z revised chapter on vessels serving offshore oil and gas z streamlined format — sections removed and now A4 There are plans to revoke the prescriptive requirement for the number of copies of the Code to be carried on UK ships and replace this with a duty to ensure that the Code is easily accessible and readily available to all seafarers onboard. This change is expected to come into force in October 2015.

The new Code is available for £40 as an A4 loose leaf publication from The Stationery Office: www.tsoshop. co.uk. An electronic copy will also be made available shortly from the same supplier, but vessels are required to carry at least one print copy.

z M-Notices are available as

electronic documents or as a set of bound volumes. z A consolidated set of M-Notices is published by The Stationery Office. This contains all M-Notices current on 31 July 2013 (ISBN 978 01155 32948) and costs £210 — www.tsoshop.co.uk z Individual copies can be electronically subscribed to by emailing a request to mnotices@ecgroup.co.uk or downloaded from the MCA website.

Go to www.gov.uk/mca and click on Find marine (M) notices.

Nautilus International organises regular meetings, forums and seminars for members to discuss pensions, technical matters, maritime policies and legal issues. Coming up in the next few months are: g Young Maritime Professionals Forum Monday 5 October 2015 1200hrs to 1400hrs at the Titanic Hotel, Stanley Dock, Regent Road, Liverpool L3 0AN, UK. The Forum provides guidance to Nautilus Council on the challenges facing young people in the shipping industry and on the issues that matter to them. Open to all young members (UK, NL & CH).

Contact Paul Schroder: +44 (0)20 8989 6677 ymp@nautilusint.org

Contact Nautilus International Nautilus International welcomes contact from members at any time. Please send a message to one of our department email addresses (see page 17) or get in touch with us at one of our offices around the world.

For urgent matters, we can also arrange to visit your ship in a UK port.

Please give us your vessel’s ETA and as much information as possible about the issue that needs addressing.

SINGAPORE Nautilus International 10a Braddell Hill #05-03 Singapore, 579720 Tel: +65 (0)625 61933 Mobile: +65 (0)973 10154 singapore@nautilusint.org

Northern office Nautilus International Nautilus House, Mariners’ Park Wallasey CH45 7PH Tel: +44 (0)151 639 8454 Fax: +44 (0)151 346 8801 enquiries@nautilusint.org Offshore sector contact point Members working for companies based in the east of Scotland or UK offshore oil and gas sector can call: +44 (0)1224 638882 THE NETHERLANDS Postal Address Nautilus International Postbus 8575 3009 An Rotterdam Physical Address Nautilus International Schorpioenstraat 266 3067 KW Rotterdam Tel: +31 (0)10 477 1188 Fax: +31 (0)10 477 3846 infonl@nautilusint.org

FRANCE Yacht sector office in partnership with D&B Services 3 Bd. d’Aguillon 06600 Antibes, France Tel: +33 (0)962 616 140 nautilus@dandbservices.com www.dandbservices.com SPAIN Yacht sector office in partnership with dovaston C/Joan de Saridakis 2, Edificion Goya Local 1A, Marivent 07015 Palma de Mallorca, Spain Tel: +34 971 677 375 recruitment@nautilusint.org www.dovaston.com

College contacts Induction visits See www.nautilusint.org event section for dates of upcoming college visits by the Nautilus recruitment team.

For further information, email recruitment@nautilusint.org or call Lee Moon on +44 (0)151 639 8454.

Industrial support for cadets An industrial official is appointed to each of the main nautical colleges.

In addition the industrial department is responsible for representing trainee officers in line with all

members that we represent; please contact the Union on +44 (0)20 8989 6677. Your enquiry will then be directed to the relevant industrial organiser for your employer/sponsoring company.

The union also facilitates a Young Maritime Professionals’ Forum to provide an opportunity for young members to engage in discussions on the specific challenges facing young workers in the maritime profession.

For further information members should contact Paul Schroder at ymp@nautilusint.org.

g Professional & Technical Forum Tuesday 1 December 2015 at 1300hrs for 1330hrs at the Jurys Inn, 80 Jamaica Street, Glasgow G1 4QG, UK. The Forum deals with a wide range of technical, safety, welfare and other professional topics of relevance to all members, including training and certification.

The meeting is open to all members (UK, NL & CH) Contact Sue Willis: +44 (0)20 8989 6677 protech@nautilusint.org

Quiz and crossword answersACDB Quiz answers 1. Almost one-third of the world fleet (32.5%) is over 25 years old.

2. The world containership fleet of 5,115 vessels has a total capacity of some 18.2m TEU. 3. In June this year there were two 200,000gt-plus containerships in operation. Two more are on order.

4. Around 14% of the world merchant fleet in controlled in China, in terms of numbers, and 16% in terms of tonnage.

5. In June this year there were 756 vessels in the world vehicle carrier fleet.

6. It was the Norddeutscher Lloyd vessel Bremen that captured the Blue Riband in 1929.

Crossword answers Quick Answers Across: 1. Ritual; 4. Scabbard; 10. Constrain; 11. Unpin; 12. Strudel; 13. Lustrum; 14. Limit; 15. Armament; 18. Menswear; 20 Taste; 23. Clean up; 25. Toehold; 26. Renal; 27. Shortfall; 28. Silencer; 29. Anthem.

Down: 1. Rock salt; 2. Tantrum; 3. Antidotes; 5. Conglomeration; 6. Blues; 7. Aspirin; 8. Dynamo; 9. Wallpaper paste; 16. Moth-eaten; 17. Pendulum; 19. Eternal; 21. Stomach; 22. Scores; 24. Nylon.

This month’s cryptic crossword is a prize competition, and the answers will appear in next month’s Telegraph.

Congratulations to Nautilus member Tony Tibbott, who won the prize draw for the September cryptic crossword.

Cryptic answers from September Across: 1. Isle of Wight; 7. Tea; 9. Bone china; 10. Round; 11. Bleeped; 12. Dashpot; 13. Defensible; 16. Star; 18. Tees; 19. Transverse; 22. Engorge; 23. Worship; 25. Bathe; 26. Italicise; 27. Ear; 28. Theodolites; Down: 1. Imbibed; 2. Lunge; 3. Occupant; 4. Weird; 5. Grand slam; 6. Thrush; 7. Trumpeter; 8. Auditor; 14. Freighter; 15. Israelite; 17. Overkill; 18. Tremble; 20. Express; 21. Orient; 23. Weald; 24. Hoist.

To suggest an organisation which could appear here, email telegraph@nautilusint.org

Maritime & Coastguard Agency +44 (0)23 8032 9100 www.gov.uk/mca Implements the UK government’s maritime safety policy and works to prevent the loss of life on the coast and at sea.

International Transport Workers’ Federation +44 (0)20 7403 2733 www.itfglobal.org A federation of over 700 unions representing over 4.5 million transport workers from 150 countries.

Merchant Navy Welfare Board www.mnwb.org Umbrella body for the UK maritime charity sector, promoting cooperation between organisations that provide welfare services to merchant seafarers and their dependants within the UK.

Inspectie Leefomgeving en Transport + 31 88 489 00 00 www.ilent.nl Dutch maritime authority (separate from Dutch coastguard).

Merchant Navy Training Board www.mntb.org.uk UK organisation promoting maritime education and training, and providing careers guidance.

Administers the Careers at Sea Ambassadors scheme, under which serving seafarers can volunteer to give careers talks in UK schools.

Seafarers UK (formerly the King George’s Fund for Sailors) +44 (0)20 7932 0000 www.seafarers.uk Supports and promotes UK charities helping seafarers from the Merchant Navy, Royal Navy and fishing fleets.

Often organises places for maritime fundraisers to enter marathons and other charity challenges.

42_infosprd.indd 42

SWITZERLAND Gewerkschaftshaus, Rebgasse 1 4005 Basel, Switzerland Tel: +41 (0)61 262 24 24 Fax: +41 (0)61 262 24 25 infoch@nautilusint.org

UK Head office Nautilus International 1&2 The Shrubberies, George Lane South Woodford, London E18 1BD Tel: +44 (0)20 8989 6677 Fax: +44 (0)20 8530 1015 enquiries@nautilusint.org

Useful organisations

Swiss Maritime Navigation Office +41 (0)61 270 91 20 www.smno.ch Swiss maritime authority.

g Women’s Forum Monday 5 October 2015 1200hrs to 1400hrs at the Titanic Hotel, Stanley Dock, Regent Road, Liverpool L3 0AN, UK. The Forum provides guidance to Nautilus Council on the challenges facing women in the industry and encourages female participation in Union activity.

Open to all female members.

Contact Lisa Carr: +44 (0)20 8989 6677 women@nautilusint.org

International Seafarers’ Welfare and Assistance Network +44 (0)300 012 4279 www.seafarerswelfare.org Global organisation providing a 24 hour, year-round multi-lingual helpline for all seafarers’ welfare and support needs, as well as an emergency welfare fund.

SAIL (Seafarers’ Information and Advice Line) 08457 413 318 +44 (0)20 8269 0921 www.sailine.org.uk UK-based citizens’ advice service helping seafarers and their families with issues such as debt, benefit

entitlements, housing, pensions and relationships.

Seafarers Hospital Society +44 (0)20 8858 3696 www.seahospital.org.uk UK charity dedicated to the health and welfare of seafarers.

Includes the Dreadnought health service.

Seafarers’ Link +44 (0)1752 812674 www.communitynetworkprojects.org Telephone friendship project connecting retired UK seafarers at home through a fortnightly telephone conference service.

Seatax Ltd +44 (0)1302 364673 www.seatax.ltd.uk Company providing specialist tax advice for merchant seafarers.

Marine Society +44 (0)20 7654 7050 www.marine-society.org UK charity dedicated to the learning and professional development of seafarers.

Offers 120,000 books to ships through its library service, plus distance-learning programmes and scholarship schemes including the Nautilus-administered Slater Fund.

23/09/2015 17:13

October 2015 | nautilusint.org | telegraph | 43

NAUTILUS AT WORK

The face of Nautilus John Thomson, professional and technical forum chairman

g

The Nautilus professional and technical forum provides members with an opportunity to discuss important issues such as training, certification, and health and safety — and John Thomson was elected as its new chairman at last month’s meeting.

John grew up on the Wirral and was a very keen sportsman at school, winning awards for cricket, football, and athletics.

He had his heart set on a seafaring career at a very early age. ‘In fact,’ he adds, ‘I had my first interview at the age of 12, with a Captain Brown from the Shipping Federation in Liverpool.’

He started his marine engineer cadetship with BP in 1964 and progressed to the rank of second engineer before serving with Unicorn Lines of South Africa.

He spent some time working ashore and with various shipping companies before rejoining BP in 1990, gaining promotion to chief engineer in 1996.

He went on to serve as chief engineer on a chemical tanker and as a technical superintendent responsible for seven vessels, as well as spending time working as a cargo engineer and onboard LNG and LPG carriers.

John says his life changed in 2008 following a contract working as a

charterer’s representative on an LNG tanker newbuild project in Japan.

‘I decided to become a consultant and I have never looked back since,’ he says. ‘I do just about anything to do with the engineering side of things — ranging from disputes over bad fuel to investigation work.’

Trained as an Oil Companies International Marine Forum inspector, John has also been involved in vetting inspections and training — which he describes as ‘smashing work’.

In recent years he has also spent time serving onboard a wide range of vessels including a dredger, tugs, workboats, an

FPSO, a bunkering mother vessel and a research ship.

‘I always knew I wanted to go to sea and I was never disappointed,’ he says.

‘It’s been a great career and I still enjoy it and don’t want to give it up.’

John is married and lives in Rhyl, and says he got involved with the Nautilus professional and technical forum after receiving an email from the Union about the meetings. ‘The forum does great work and I am now at the time in my life when, being semi-retired, I would like to put something back into the industry in which I have been working,’ he explains.

‘This is an excellent way in which to do it.’

Wherev er you are , so are we

CALL NOW TO JOIN NAUTILUS ON: UK: +44 (0)151 639 8454 NL: +31 (0)10 477 11 88 CH: +41 (0)61 262 24 24

Want to keep your job in 2017? Then read on!

It’s time to get your papers out and start checking whether your UK certificate of competency will still be valid when STCW 2010 comes into force…

A

Nautilus is urging members to take note that the countdown has begun to new rules that will require additional training to be undertaken to keep UK certificates of competency valid for service after 31 December 2016.

The new requirements are being introduced as part of the ‘Manila amendments’ to the Standards of Training, Certification & Watchkeeping (STCW) convention, which were agreed at an international conference in 2010.

g Members are encouraged

to refer to the relevant M-Notices or alternatively contact the professional and technical department: protech@nautilusint.org

43_infosprd.indd 43

15 MONTHS TO GO UNTIL 1 JANUARY 2017 HELM course or acceptable equivalent

DECK UPDATEE TO TO 010 STCW 2010

(e.g. sea service)

ECDIS certificate caat ate te ach achie achi achieved chie hie h after 1 January 2005 to avoid endorsement oid idd negative nega neg

HELM course or acceptable equivalent

ENGINE UPDATEE TO TO 010 STCW 2010

(e.g. sea service)

High Voltagee certifica certificat certificate ertific ertifica tifi ifi or qualifying sea void oid idd negative ne n neg service to avoid endorsement

NEW FICATE ICATE CAT CATE A AT CERTIFICATE alternati lternat lterna t terna — otherwisee alternat alternative designation, ctrical trical rical icall En E such as Electrical Engineer

I addition: sea-time In rrequirements for revalidation — 12 months in preceding five years or three months in preceding six months plus valid ENG1.

5

I addition: appropriate In ttanker endorsements — subject to revalidation.

6 To serve as an ETO certification is required...

ETO

4

R Refresher training — rrequired every five years for certificates held.

Dependent upon rank (support/ operation/management) and duty — for example, Fast Rescue Craft. Certificate.

23/09/2015 17:45

44 | telegraph | nautilusint.org | October 2015

NEWS

Million milestone for UK port welfare milestone for seafarer welfare F in the UK, with more than £1m being Nautilus has welcomed a

UK seafarer welfare workers gathered in the port of Tilbury to celebrate the £1m vehicle replacement milestone Picture: Andrew Linington

spent in a project to upgrade vehicles for ship visitors and chaplains in ports around the country.

The Union joined welfare agencies and charities in Tilbury last month as a new multi-purpose vehicle (MPV) was handed over to the port’s seafarers’ centre. The MPV is one of more than 90 cars, vans and minibuses which have been replaced since the collaborative funding scheme was launched in 2008.

Assistant general secretary Mike Jess took part in the Merchant Navy Day event, which also involved the four primary UK funding charities — the ITF Seafarers Trust, the Merchant Navy Welfare Board (MNWB), Seafarers UK and Trinity House.

MNWB deputy chief executive Peter Tomlin said the programme had been launched to streamline the funding and grant-making process and to make it easier for vehicle users and funders to plan ahead. Under the previous arrangements, vehicles — which operate in the harsh environments of ports — could sometimes remain in service well past their sell-by date and the ideal replacement target of five years, he added.

‘The scheme has benefited hundreds of thousands of seafarers

and their dependants, helping to deliver much-needed transport ashore to places such as seafarers’ centres, doctors, dentists, hospitals and even prisons,’ he added.

The MNWB manages the scheme on behalf of the funding charities and chief executive Captain David Parsons said it avoids unnecessary administrative duplication for the funders.

Seafarers UK director general Commodore Barry Bryant added: ‘Seafarers UK has been an enthusiastic supporter of this project from its inception, seeing it as an excellent example of what the maritime charities can achieve through working in partnership. The major funders, often working through the Maritime Charities Group, will always strive to use the total resources of the sector to provide optimum services for the greater benefit of our whole seafaring community.’

Apostleship of the Sea national director Martin Foley said his organisation was ‘enormously grateful’ for the ‘invaluable’ scheme. ‘Surveys of seafarers consistently show that one of their primary needs in port is the provision of reliable transport,’ he pointed out. ‘Thanks to the generous support of this project we have been able to help meet this important need.’

ITF hits back on owners’ complaints about FoCs MLC deficiencies and unpaid wages demonstrate the relevance of long-running campaign, conference is told

P

The International Transport Workers’ Federation has hit back at shipowner claims that the long-running flag of convenience campaign is past its sell-by date.

Leading owners and flag state representatives told the International Chamber of Shipping conference last month that the campaign was no longer relevant in a world where the distinctions between open registers and traditional flags have become increasingly blurred.

Arthur Bowring, MD of the Hong Kong Shipowners’ Association, told the meeting: ‘In the 21st century there is nothing inherently unusual about a ship operating in a system in which the ownership or management may be in a different country from the flag.’

He said the way in which the ITF determines

which registers are FoCs ‘leaves much to be desired’ and many traditional flags have much worse records.

The top eight flags — all of them open registers — account for almost two-thirds of world tonnage and all of them are on the port state control whitelists, he argued. ‘Many other flags to which the ITF definition would apply include so-called traditional flags in developed countries,’ he added.

Scott Bergeron, chief executive of the Liberia International Ship & Corporate Registry, complained that the term flag of convenience is ‘pejorative’ and he said many open registers were among the first to sign up to international regulations like the Maritime Labour Convention (MLC).

But ITF maritime coordinator Jacqueline Smith defended the FoC campaign and said the results of MLC inspections demonstrated its continued value.

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Man Over Board / Rib Capsize Drills NAEST (O) & (M) Security Awareness Designated Securities Duties Shipboard Safety Officer Shipboard Security Officer

‘It is argued that the distinctions between traditional flags and FoCs are increasingly meaningless and unhelpful, but it is a fact that the largest flag of convenience registers account for the highest number of vessels with problems regarding wages and working conditions,’ she pointed out.

Since the MLC came into force two years ago, ITF inspectors had found that 36% of ships had MLCrelated deficiencies, Ms Smith said, and it was disappointing to note that the number had actually increased over the second year.

ITF inspectors have also recovered almost $89m in owed wages for seafarers in the past two years, she added. ‘That is 89 million reasons why we continue to play an important role in the enforcement of seafarers’ rights,’ she added.

‘All this was collected from FoC vessels and that is

not a level playing field for the industry when they are not paying their crew.’

Ms Smith said quality registers ensure that their ships have both high technical standards and internationally-acceptable conditions for their crews.

Some flag states treat the ratification of conventions as a theoretical exercise and need to do much more to demonstrate that they are discharging their responsibilities, she stressed.

‘How many FoCs contributed to the protection of merchant ships against piracy? They may not have naval forces, but where was the financial contribution to help safeguard transits in high-risk areas?’

The term flag of convenience remains accurate, Ms Smith told the conference, because there are commercially convenient reasons why shipowners decide to use a non-national flag.

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23/09/2015 17:45