Philippines ratifies Maritime Labour Convention 2006

Six years after the Philippines became a signatory on so called international magna carta for seafarers rights, the Philippines has finally ratified the Maritime Labour Convention of 2006 (MLC2006). The Philippine Senate has passed last Monday, August 13, 2012, Senate Resolution 829 or the Resolution Concurring in the Ratification of Maritime Labour Convention, 2006.  making it the thirtieth country to ratify MLC 2006 and  one of the of the first thirty ratifying countries required for the convention to take effect.

With the  ratification by the Philippines  of the MLC 2006 by Philippines     last August 13, 2012  , 30 member States of the International Labour Organization (ILO) have now ratified this important Convention, which sets out minimum standards and fair working conditions for seafarers worldwide. While the first requirement for entry into force of the Convention – coverage of 33 per cent of the world gross tonnage – has already been attained, the ratification by Philippines  is an important step towards achieving the second requirement: 30 ratifying countries.  The MLC,2006 will  soon enter into force in 2012.

 

The convention was already ratified by 30 countries/ states, to wit: Liberia (June 7,2006), Marshall Islands (September 25, 2007 ), Bahamas (February 11,2008), Panama (February 6, 2009), Norway (February 10, 2009) , Bosnia and Herzegovina (January 18, 2010) , Spain (February 4, 2010), Croatia (February 12, 2010) , Bulgaria (April 12, 2010) , Canada (June 15, 2010),Saint Vincent and the Grenadines (November 9, 2010) , Switzerland (February 2, 2011), Gabon (May 12, 2011) Benin (June 13, 2011), and Singapore ( June 15, 2011). Denmark (June 23, 2011) Latvia (August 12, 2011)_ Antigua and Barbuda (August 11, 2011) , the Government of Luxembourg (19 September 2011), Kiribati (24 October 2011) Netherlands (December 2011) Australia (14 December 2011), Tuvalu (February 16, 2012) Saint Kiss and Nevis (February 21, 2012), Togo (March 14, 2012) Poland (May 3, 2012), Palau (May 29, 2012), Sweden (June 12, 2012) Cyprus (July 20, 2012) and Philippines.

Ratification is the formal act by which a state confirms and accepts the provisions of the convention concluded by its representatives. The purpose of ratification is to enable the contracting states to examine the convention more closely and to give them an opportunity to refuse to be bound by it should they find it inimical to their interests. It is for this reason that most treaties/conventions are made subject to the scrutiny and consent of a department of the government other than that which negotiated them. Ratification is generally held to be an executive act, undertaken by the head of the state or of the government, as the case may be, through which the formal acceptance of the treaty is proclaimed.

In the Philippine jurisdiction, the power to ratify is vested in the President and not, as commonly believed, in the legislature. The role of the Senate is limited only to giving or withholding its consent, or concurrence, to the ratification. The MLC 2006 will become valid and effective if concurred in by two-thirds of all the members of the Senate (Section 21, Article VII, 1987 Constitution.) This means it forms part of Philippine law by virtue of transformation. By an act of the legislature, the convention rules may be transformed into Philippine law, to be applied or enforced as part of Philippine law.

The MLC 2006 is an important new Convention that was adopted by the International Labour Conference of the ILO at a maritime session in February 2006 in Geneva, Switzerland. It sets out seafarers’ rights to decent conditions of work and helps to create conditions of fair competition for shipowners. It is intended to be globally applicable, easily understandable, readily updatable and uniformly enforced. The MLC , 2006 has been designed to become a global legal instrument that, once it enters into force, will be the “fourth pillar” of the international regulatory regime for quality shipping, complementing the key Conventions of the International Maritime Organization (IMO) such as the International Convention for the Safety of Life at Sea, 1974, as amended (SOLAS), the International Convention on Standards of Training, Certification and Watchkeeping, 1978, as amended (STCW) and the International Convention for the Prevention of Pollution from Ships, 73/78 (MARPOL). Between 1920 and 1996, a total of 39 Conventions, 29 Recommendations and one Protocol concerning seafarers have been adopted by the ILO.

The MLC contains a comprehensive set of global standards, based on those that are already found in 68 maritime labor instruments. It modernizes the global standards to: (a) set minimum requirements for seafarers to work on a ship; (b) address conditions of employment, accommodation, recreational facilities, food and catering, health protection, medical care, welfare and social security protection; (c) promote compliance by operators and owners of ships by giving governments sufficient flexibility to implement its requirements in a manner best adapted to their individual laws and practices; and (d) strengthen enforcement mechanisms at all levels, including provisions for complaint procedures available to seafarers, shipowners’ supervision of conditions on their ships, the flag States’ jurisdiction and control over their ships, and port State inspections of foreign ships.

The new Convention was perceied to   achieve the aim of near universal ratification because the Convention was adopted by a record vote of 314 in favour and none against (two countries abstained for reasons unrelated to the substance of the Convention), after nearly two weeks of detailed review by over 1,000 participants drawn from 106 countries.

Countries that ratify the Convention will require ship owners to put the standards in place before allowing seafarers aboard. And ratifying countries will have the right to inspect vessels for compliance before port calls are allowed. The Convention gives these countries the right to deny ships that are not compliant from sailing onwards. This applies to ships regardless whether the countries they are registered in have ratified the Convention or not.

The Philippines will definitely be one of the major beneficiaries of this convention. The Philippines is considered as the major supplier of maritime labor globally. Philippine Overseas Employment Administration (POEA) data showed that the deployed Filipino seafarers in 2006 (274,497), 2007 (266,553), 2008 (261,614), 2009 (330,424),  2010 (347,150),  2011 (400,000) brought in  the dollar remittances that have also  been constantly increasing from US$1.9B in 2006, US$2.2B in 2007 , US$3B in 2008, US$3.4B in 2009, US$3.8B in 2010 to S$4.3B in 2011. On the other hand, the Philippines as a flag State has a registered fleet comprising around 1.4% of total world tonnage.

Given the vast Philippine coast line (twice the size of the United States and nearly three times more than China), Filipinos have natural maritime instincts that place them at an advantage over other nationalities. Foreign shipowners are known to prefer Filipino seafarers for equally important qualities: dedication and discipline, industry, flexibility, loyalty, English language fluency, adaptability, positive work attitude, law-abiding, and problem-solving capability.

The Philippines can benefit from ratifying the Convention as a labour supplying state, flag or port state. The maritime labour convention is a good reference point for the Philippine’s formulation of laws and policies responsive to the conditions and contexts of seafarers. Ratification can serve as basis for technical assistance.

As the foremost seafarer-supplying country and a flag State with a registered fleet comprising around 1.4% of total world tonnage, it behooves upon Philippine social partners and stakeholders to determine the passage most beneficial to our national interests. The Philippine government properly ratified MLC2006 in order that it will be one of the thirty ratifying countries required for the convention to take effect