Labour Certifi cate that will serve as prima facie evidence of compliance.
STCW Convention The fi rst tranche of the Manila amendments to the Standards of Training, Certifi cation and Watchkeeping (STCW) Convention entered into force on 1 January 2012. However, the implementation of these amendments in the UK and other EU member states has been hampered by delays in the development of a revised European directive on the Minimum Level of Training for Seafarers. Unfortunately, the commission only began discussions on revising the directive late in 2011, and does not expect to complete the process until mid-2012. Of even greater concern was the fact that port
state control offi cers in other parts of the world will become entitled to enforce the new STCW rules in respect of minimum rest hours for seafarers on visiting UK and other European ships. The Chamber was subsequently advised that the government had exercised its right under the convention to delay the implementation of these provisions until the beginning of 2013.
Pensions auto-enrolment Late in 2010, the Chamber was advised by the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) that the government proposed to apply its new laws on auto-enrolment of pension schemes to seafarers, following initial exclusion from the legislation pending further consideration. However, when the proposed
regulations were published, it was clear that no such consideration had taken place, as it was stated that the laws would apply to seafarers without modifi cation. Upon closer examination, it became apparent that foreign seafarers who joined their ships in the UK would need to be auto-enrolled into pension schemes, while a UK resident seafarer whose ship operated wholly outside the UK would be excluded.
20 EMPLOYMENT
IT BECAME APPARENT
THAT FOREIGN SEAFARERS WHO JOINED THEIR SHIPS IN THE UK WOULD NEED TO BE AUTO- ENROLLED INTO PENSION SCHEMES, WHILE A UK RESIDENT SEAFARER WHOSE SHIP OPERATED WHOLLY OUTSIDE THE UK WOULD BE EXCLUDED
The Chamber developed an alternative proposal
that would narrow the scope of application of auto-enrolment to seafarers, in order to ensure that persons retiring in the UK had suffi cient pension income to avoid placing a burden on the state. It suggested that the question of which seafarers ordinarily worked in the UK – and would therefore be included in auto-enrolment – could be decided by reference to a series of indicative criteria. These would not be decisive individually, but would give a reasonable indication of whether or not auto- enrolment should apply. The Chamber included these in its response to the DWP consultation and discussions with the government continue.
Harassment and bullying A Nautilus International report highlighting continued harassment and bullying of seafarers onboard ship resonated loudly after the tragic death of a South African cadet on board a UK registered ship in 2010. The Chamber, along with other national shipowners’ associations in Europe, has agreed to seek funding from the European Commission for a follow-up project to the EU Guidelines on the Elimination of Harassment and Bullying at Sea, published in 2004. The Nautilus survey indicated that, while the guidelines had made an important contribution to improvements in the shipboard environment for many seafarers, they had not been distributed suffi ciently widely. The new project will seek to address this, while also examining whether new training materials
to assist companies in the elimination of harassment and bullying could reasonably be developed.
Health and safety The National Maritime Occupational Health and Safety Committee, comprising the Chamber, Nautilus International and RMT, has continued to be active throughout 2011. In conjunction with several members, the committee published guidelines
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