ITF affiliates the Panhellenic Seamen's Federation (PNO) and the Cypriot Federation of Transport, Petroleum and Agricultural Workers (OMEPEGE/FTPAW-SEK) brought unions, governments and shipowners together in Athens on Friday to mark 20 years of the Maritime Labour Convention – and to set out what the industry must now do to strengthen it.
ITF General Secretary Stephen Cotton said that the strength of the Maritime Labour Convention (MLC) lies in the tripartite partnership that built it, and that the same partnership must now answer a harder set of questions.
Cotton said that challenges are mounting: “Artificial intelligence and the rising power of data, increasing protectionism and tariffs, military conflict, and the IMO's failure to agree its Net-Zero Framework are all significant challenges facing the industry, challenges that all have a material impact on the lives of the seafarers at the heart of the industry.
“The lesson of the MLC and the past 20 years is that none of these challenges will be solved by one party acting alone. Twenty years ago, governments, shipowners and seafarers came together to establish a comprehensive global framework that continues to benefit the industry and seafarers today.
“That is the model we need to apply to the challenges in front of us now."
The Convention has been ratified by 113 ILO member states covering 96.6% of world gross tonnage, setting minimum standards on recruitment, pay, rest hours, safety and life onboard.
The MLC has established itself as a fundamental pillar of decent work at sea and is part of a global maritime infrastructure. Alongside the ITF’s Flag of Convenience campaign, ITF agreements and ITF’s global inspectorate, it underpins the recovery of millions in unpaid wages, provides support in abandonment cases and protection for seafarers.
But the ILO now faces the worst financial crisis in its recent history after its largest donor, the United States, stopped paying dues in 2023, with US$22 million in cuts agreed for 2026–27.
“Meeting challenges, whether it’s protecting crews in conflict zones, managing the transition to cleaner fuels or setting standards for automation and AI, depends on a functioning ILO,” said Cotton. "A diminished ILO means weaker standard-setting, less support for ratification and implementation of conventions, and reduced capacity to hold governments and employers to account.
The ILO needs the resources to continue this vital work, to ensure that instruments like the MLC keep pace to address what is happening in the world. On behalf of the ITF, I congratulate our affiliates for the leadership they have shown in bringing us all together – this is what social partnership looks like in practice and is precisely what is needed to ensure our industry’s future."
Attendees at the symposium included European Transport Workers’ Federation (ETF) General Secretary Livia Spera, the ILO's Beatriz Vacotto, ITF Seafarers’ and Inland Navigation Section Coordinator Fabrizio Barcellona, Nautilus International's Mark Dickinson, Greek Shipping Minister Vassilios Kikilias, Cypriot Deputy Shipping Minister Marina Hadjimanoli and shipowner representatives from both countries.
