ITF's 'Nowhere to Hide' campaign targeting WA ports next week

IAN BRAY

COORDINATOR, ITF AUSTRALIAN INSPECTORATE 

MEDIA RELEASE

18 JULY 2024

ITF's 'Nowhere to Hide' campaign targeting WA ports next week

• The International Transport Workers’ Federation (the ITF) Australian Inspectorate will be targeting wage theft in a week of action at Western Australian ports between 21 - 27 July 2024.
• The Week of Action is part of the ITF’s Nowhere to Hide Campaign (the Campaign) launched in 2023 to target and identify the exploitation of international seafarers calling into Australian ports.
• The ITF Australian Inspectorate will be joined by international inspectors from USA, Sth Korea, UK and Sweden to undertake welfare checks of international seafarers working on foreign flagged ships. Inspectors will be supported by ITF trained volunteers throughout the week. 
• The ITF expects the wage theft found on ships will replicate findings of two weeks of action on the eastern seaboard in 2023, which identified $USD10 million USD in stolen wages, including failure to pay the Australian seagoing award rates on ships engaged in coastal trading where crews had qualified for such payments
• Wage theft in Australian waters is a significant concern with the ITF identifying and recovering a total of $USD20 Million for seafarers from 650 inspections in 2023.

The ITF is implementing the Week of Action at all Western Australian ports as part of its Nowhere to Hide Campaign launched in 2023.

The aim of the Campaign is to raise awareness about the treatment of international seafarers on Flags of Convenience (FOC) registered ships and call on the Australian Government to make legislative and regulatory changes that close loopholes and make it more difficult for exploitative practices to occur.  

The Week of Action will target all forms of exploitation on ships by ensuring that the rights of seafarers are being upheld in accordance with the Maritime Labour Convention 2006 (MLC2006).  This includes but not limited to, regular payment of wages (including overtime), hours of work and rest being properly documented, shore leave provided for, repatriation of seafarers, adequate supply of food and fresh water, accessible Wi-Fi services, and seafarers being treated fairly without fear of intimidation, bullying and harassment.     

“We are putting international ship owners on notice that we will be shining a light on the maritime industry and will be attempting to identify as much exploitation as we possibly can for the wage justice and rights of overseas seafarers,” said Ian Bray, the ITF’s Australian Inspectorate Coordinator.

“We will also be focussing on payments under the Fair Work Act, the employment arrangements for international workers employed in the Offshore Oil and Gas industry, as well as the visa and employment arrangements for ship’s crews operating in the expedition cruise industry. The emphasis will be on international seafarers working in these industries being employed on the same terms and conditions as any Australian doing the same job,” Bray explained.

“The seafarers on the FOC ships come from some of the poorest countries in the world and most Australians would agree they should receive fair and just wages”, Bray outlined.

Two Weeks of Action in 2023, held firstly in New South Wales and then across Victoria, Sth Australia and Tasmania, identified a total of $USD10 million in unpaid wages to international seafarers. This included failure to pay $USD8.4 million of Australian Seagoing Industry Award payments on ships licensed to engage in coastal trading.

The ITF expects the wage theft that will be identified at Western Australian ports during the Week of Action will also be significant.

In the Robbed at Sea report, published by the Australia Institute’s Centre for Future Work in 20244, set out the systematic exploitation of vulnerable seafarers working in Australian waters.

The report found that:

• 70% of ships carrying imports and exports fail to meet minimum international standards for wage payment
• $38 million in stolen wages were recovered over a ten-year period by the ITF Inspectorate undertaking spot checks at Australian ports.
• The FOC vessels are usually registered in low-wage, developing countries, with limited power to resist exploitation by unethical ship owners, contractors and sub-contractors.

“The ITF is concerned that the regularity in which employers are underpaying or avoiding payment altogether under existing Australian legislation identifies an industry that either fails to understand its responsibility to adhere to the legislative instruments or chooses to ignore the law altogether because the risk of being caught and prosecuted is dwarfed by the reward,” Bray said.

MEDIA CONTACT:

Ian Bray, ITF Australia Coordinator

0403 352 376