THE government is planning to give seafarers greater protections for welfare and working conditions thanks to new legal requirements.
Amendments to the Employment Rights Bill could pave the way for a legally binding Seafarers’ Charter, which will allow ministers to set higher standards for seafarers’ rights and protect wages beyond British waters.
The move includes setting maximum periods of work at sea and minimum periods of rest, robust requirements to manage seafarer fatigue, and reinforced training requirements for operators.
MARTYN GRAY asks TUC congress to endorse measures that would help stop the present exploitation of seafarers
Ben Chacko talks to RMT leader EDDIE DEMPSEY about how the key to fixing broken Britain lies in collective sectoral bargaining, restoring unions’ ability to take solidarity strike action and bringing about the much-vaunted ‘wave of insourcing’



