Abstract
The safety and health of merchant seafarers is of grave concern. With the ongoing global pandemic, the weaknesses in the governance structure to protect the safety and health of seafarers have been further exposed. Safety and health on ships is governed by two international instruments, the International Safety Management Code (ISM) and the Maritime Labour Convention 2006 (MLC). Yet, the maritime industry is challenged with how to effectively manage safe and healthy working conditions in the global merchant fleet. Regulations in and of themselves have been found to be inadequate. Other considerations are important such as representative participation, which has been neglected as a viable mechanism in the maritime safety and health regulatory regime. This chapter foregrounds representative participation as necessary for effective safety and health management on ships. It argues that along with enabling regulations and other supports for its effective implementation and practice, representative participation might help to address the challenges in safety and health management on ships.
[There are] injurious consequences of management alone determining health and safety… (Nichols, 1997: 149).
TopIntroduction
The occupational safety and health (OSH) of merchant seafarers has been of grave concern. With the ongoing COVID-19 global pandemic, the weaknesses in the governance structure to adequately protect seafarers on board merchant ships have been further exposed. Over the years, seafarers have faced a myriad of safety and health issues ranging from the physical to the psychological and the political (Walters and Bailey 2013). Seafarers face dangers inherent to the nature of their work such as the weather and other more traditional safety issues relating to maritime casualties and personal injuries resulting from slips, trips and falls.
Psychosocial ill-health, including mental illness appears to be increasing (Georgieva, 2019; Lefkowitz and Slade, 2019; Sampson and Ellis, 2019). Although in the past the literature seems to present conflicting evidence as to the mental state of seafarers, with some reports being more positive than others, it is suggested that the complexity of the subject requires continued attention (Mellbye and Carter, 2017). Seafarers are additionally threatened by abandonment and there are geo-political concerns involving piracy, criminalization, and humanitarian actions, making seafaring a dangerous profession. With the myriad of OSH concerns for seafarers, it is important that keen attention is paid to how to manage their work environment for positive safety and health outcomes.
Safety and health on merchant ships is governed by two international regulatory instruments from two international regulators. These are the International Safety Management Code (ISM) an instrument of the International Maritime Organization (IMO), and the Maritime Labour Convention (2006) (MLC), an instrument of the International Labour Organization (ILO). Yet, the maritime industry continues to face challenges in how to ensure effective OSH management in the global merchant fleet. The regulations in their current form have been found to be inadequate to protect seafarers’ OSH (Bhattacharya 2012a; 2012b; Graham and Walters 2021; Walters and Bailey 2013). Other considerations are also important if the issue of on board safety and health is to be effectively addressed. These considerations include ensuring effective participation for seafarers in OSH management and the necessary supports for effective participation, in addition to having regulations with the provisions to enable these supports. Researchers who examine the shipboard work environment, although acknowledging the complexity of work risks for seafarers, are of the view that better OSH results would be possible if seafarers were allowed effective representative participation with the other supports in place (e.g. Walters and Bailey, 2013).
Representative participation allows workers to elect their safety representatives who interface with management on behalf of their constituents on OSH concerns. It allows workers, through their representatives, to contribute to decisions on how safety and health is to be managed, the organization of work, changes in technology and procurement of equipment as well as other workplace matters that might impact safety and health. Representatives can also inspect workplaces, they should participate in risk assessment and be given relevant and timely OSH information (Walters and Nichols 2007; Walters and Nichols, 2009).
Key Terms in this Chapter
Seafarers: Any person who is employed or engaged or works in any capacity on board a ship to which the Maritime Labour Convention 2006 applies.
Representative Participation: Workplace institutional arrangement supported by law in many jurisdictions to allow workers to select persons from among their group to liaise with management on matters having to do with their occupational safety and health.
International Safety Management Code (ISM Code): An international maritime resource management standard developed by the International Maritime Organization to address safety of life at sea and protection of the maritime environment. The ISM seeks to address human error in maritime casualties by focusing on the human element both ashore and onboard ships.
Maritime Labour Convention 2006 (MLC): The labour standard developed by the International Labour Organization to regulate employment and working conditions for the global seafaring workforce.
Merchant Ships: Ships engaged in world trade to transport consumer goods and/or raw material. It is said that upwards of 80% of world trade goes by sea.
Merchant Seafarers: Seafarers holding certificates of competency from accredited maritime institutions who are employed to work on board ships and are responsible for the legal, navigational, and technical operational activities on board a cargo ship involved in coastal or international trade of consumer goods and/or raw materials.
Safety Representatives: Persons elected by workers or appointed to act on behalf of their fellow workers in bringing workplace safety and health issues to management. Safety representatives in many jurisdictions have rights and duties and are protected by law in carrying out these duties. Although the most common term used is safety representative or safety representation, it is understood that this refers to both safety and health concerns and is embodied in the understanding of occupational safety and health (OSH).