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ITF Secures Aid for Crews of FOC Vessels

August 2003

$140,000 in Back Pay for Cruise-Ship Crew It took two weeks of often round-the-clock efforts, but SIU ITF inspectors Scott Brady and Tony Sacco recently secured $140,000 in back pay for mariners aboard the runaway-flag cruise ship Regal Voyager in Charleston, S.C. Crew members telephoned Brady from the vessel in Trinidad and informed him they hadn’t been paid in three months. The Bahamian-flag vessel sailed to Charleston, where Brady and Sacco immediately met with the mariners and confirmed their claims. “Negotiations between the ITF and the company (Miami-based St. Thomas Cruise Line) began, but our demands weren’t properly addressed,” Brady reported. “We gave the company a deadline which they failed to meet, so we arrested the vessel.” Shortly thereafter, negotiations resumed—and the crew received all of their back wages, plus additional wages in line with the ITF contract already in place between the federation and the company. The company also assumed all financial responsibility to end the ship’s arrest and repatriated three crew members. According to Brady, the ship remains in Charleston undergoing repairs and is expected to resume its charter this fall. “Tony and I worked day and night for about two weeks on this vessel to meet all of the crew’s just demands,” Brady said. “It was a tough but successful case and we were glad to help, as always.”

$34,846 and Plane Tickets for Russian Crew Constantly on the lookout for flag-of-convenience vessels that are fraught with danger, poor working conditions and lack of pay, the International Transport Worers’ Federation (ITF) once again came to the aid of crew members aboard such a vessel. ITF Inspector Shwe Tun Aung, who works out of Houston, was alerted to conditions aboard the Panamanian-flagged oil tanker Ousto several months ago after receiving a phone call from Father Sinclair Oubre (SIU member as well as Diocesan Director for the Apostleship of the Sea and Executive Director of the Port Arthur International Seamen’s Center). The seamen’s center had visited the ship and brought the crew to its facilities. However, the crew members only used the recreational services, since they had no money for shopping or use of the communication services. While there, one of the mariners asked a volunteer if she could help them. Aung and Fr. Sinclair met in Port Arthur with the all-Russian crew, who complained about not getting paid, not enough food aboard ship and no cash advance money. Their requests to the shipping agent had gone unanswered. Since the vessel (formerly the American-flagged S.S. Houston) is going to scrap in India, crew members were concerned as to what would happen to them then. Aung called the shipping company, warning them that if money was not received within three days, the ship would be seized. Several days later, $29,713 was sent, followed the next week by an additional $5,133, for a total of $34,846. Additionally, nine airplane tickets were delivered for those members wishing to return home. The others would help sail the ship to India and be repatriated from there. The SIU is affiliated with the ITF, a London-based federation of 570 unions.