MLC 2006 | Seafarers’ Bill of Rights Enters into Force | gCaptain ⚓ Maritime & Offshore News.

I really hope this helps, but I have my doubts. Notice how the seafarers have been punished worse than anyone after 9-11. Because of stupid TWIC rules, they have stolen away the RIGHTS we have always had for hundreds of years! Most ports in the USA now refuse to allow seafarers access to shore leave using excuses such as that we are security threats! If they do ‘allow’ us to transit through their facilities, they charge outrageous fees. No foreign seafarer can afford to pay to get out the gate, it is really sickening how these people (I’m one) are treated every day.

Another pet peeve of mine is the ongoing exploitation by crewing agents both here in the USA and in most other countries. It has been illegal by both US and international law to charge a seaman for a job, yet there are still plenty of companies that do that here (I have dealt with a few myself over the years) and especially virulent overseas. Why can’t they charge the hiring companies the fees? They are the ones who HAVE the money! Seafarers are not known to be rolling in the dough. No, but we are known to be desperate to go back to work and so they continue to take advantage of us instead of doing the RIGHT thing and going to get paid by the company they provide the seafarers to.

Oh yeah, then there’s the issue of refusing to provide a decent atmosphere on board the vessel, undermanned, under provisioned, just plain unsanitary and unsafe ships, and we all just put up with all that and do our best to do our jobs. Yeah, I HOPE the MLC 2006 helps the situation but since the ones in the past didn’t do a whole lot, the companies always found ways around, I think they will manage to find ways around this one to and all us seafarers will still be stuck in the same old boat (literally).