Making sure seafarers are given a fair deal

ALMOST everybody would agree in principle that seafarers should get a fair deal for work they do, far from the sight and attention of most of us. But what does a fair deal mean? Well, recently there have been several developments that give some insight into that question.

Pay is one issue that has been resolved, at least for many seafarers, for the next three years. Representatives of shipowners and seafarers' unions have agreed on new pay rates for about 121,000 seafarers sailing on the 6,720 vessels covered by the International Bargaining Forum (IBF) Framework Agreement.

Actual pay levels are agreed locally but all will increase by one per cent next year, followed by increases of 2 per cent in 2016 and 3.5 per cent in 2017. The two sides said in a statement that negotiations were "particularly challenging" this year, following the depression of the global shipping market since the last agreement was negotiated in 2011.