Maritime News
New sea-based rules
being drafted
T
he Philippine Overseas Employment
Administration (POEA) is drafting a new seabased rules for better benefits and protection of
the seafaring industry.
According to administrator Hans Leo Cacdac,
it has become necessary for better protection
of the sea-based workers and as guidance to
manning agents and shipping principals involved in their
deployment overseas. They expect to finish the new rules
before the new administration comes in.
During the discussion with stakeholders, salaries and
benefits being enjoyed were widely discussed. ILO rates,
contracted rates and union rates were benchmarked to keep
the participants informed and guided.
It was learned that Philippine-ILO rates remained at
$465 per month for Able seaman. It has remained fixed for
years now while ILO present rate already stands at P614 for
AB per month. It will remain until 2018.
It was a decision made at the ILO Joint Maritime
Commission (JMC) meeting held in Geneva recently,
composed of representatives of maritime employers coordinated by the International Chamber of Shipping (ICS)
and seafarers’ unions co-ordinated by the International
Transport Workers’ Federation (ITF).
Mr. Max Johns, spokesman, said: “The continuation of the
current minimum wage until at least 2018, at the increased
level which came into effect in January 2016 as a result of
the previous JMC agreement, means that employers should
benefit from a period of stability in what are otherwise very
challenging markets for the global industry.
ICS, in its role as an official ILO social partner, says that
it firmly continues to support the global minimum wage, a
concept unique to the international shipping industry. While
the ILO minimum only refers to the basic wage for the nonofficer grade of Able Seafarer, the total minimum payable
is actually much higher when account is taken of overtime
payments and other pay related entitlements under the ILO
Maritime Labour Convention, it was noted. It will be up for
review come 2018.
Stakeholders from the Philippines’ leading maritime
schools, training centers, think tanks, as well as shipping
industries convene for the first Conference on Seafaring
on April 20, 2016 at Manila’s Ocean Park. The conference,
sub-headed “Toward Higher Quality Maritime Education
and Training: Learning Innovations for Safe Seafaring,” is
being organized by the Library for Safe Seafaring (L4SS) and
its mother maritime school, Mariners Polytechnic Colleges
Foundation based in its campus in Canaman, Camarines Sur,
south of Manila, Philippines.
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Organized in partnership with the Elsevier Foundation,
the conference is also in cooperation with the Philippine
Association of Maritime Institutions (PAMI), Philippine
Association of Maritime Training Centers, Inc. (PAMTCI)
where Mariners has been an active member institution since
formation, as well as with th e international Institute of
Marine Engineering, Science and Technology (IMAREST)
and Nautical Institute (NI).
Participants as well as speakers include maritime
educators and trainers from Singapore, Japan, India, and
Papua New Guinea.
“Inspired by the lessons from the Elsevier Foundationsupported library project, the conference aims to gather
major stakeholders - from the industry to the academe - to
arrive at a common understanding and shared plans to
achieve higher standards of quality maritime education and
training (MET) toward address the increasingly challenging
environment on seas through innovations like e-learning,
digitalized learning materials, technological applications and
the like,” declared Ms. Evita L. Jimenez, Project Manager
of Mariners’ Library for Safe Seafaring (L4SS) and member,
Board of Trustees of MPCF.
Aside from shared study on issues of health, security,
piracy and health, a seascape: a situationer on the state of
the seas will also be brought to a higher level of discourse
by Prof. Jay Batongbacal, Director of the University of the
Philippines’ Institute Maritime Affairs for Maritime Affairs
and Law of the Sea (IMLOS). The Philippine edition
of a book on sea safety, “Mariners’ Guide to Preventing
Collisions,” written by Capt. Yashwant Chhabra will be
launched at the Conference and will also present a paper on
the subject.
Other expert presentations on various topics of interest
on maritime challenges, trends and standards by Dr.
Angelica Baylon, Dr. Maragtas Amante, Capt. Richard
Teo; Apps Software and learning technology expert Engr.
Rudolfo Lozada, IMO, seafarers’ health and rights experts
from academic and industry professionals as well as faithbased seafarers' groups like the MissiontoSeafarers.org and
Apostleship of the Sea.
Dr. Cynthia Bautista, Commissioner of the Philippines’
Commission on Higher Education (CHEd) is keynote
speaker and Dr. Maximo Mejia, executive director of
Maritime Industry Authority (Marina) leads the afternoon
session.
“This Conference is not to be missed! A continually
developing library or a learning facility at every seafarer's
abode -on sea or land- is the avowed L4SS mission,” Ms.
Jimenez further stated.