• Journal of the Korean Society of Marine Environment & Safety
• /
• v.25 no.1
• /
• pp.18-26
• /
• 2019

The Maritime Labour Convention, 2006, (MLC) aimed to ensure decent working conditions for seafarers and entered into force on August 20, 2013. It was considered as the fourth pillar in the maritime sector. This paper evaluates how the MLC has been implemented in the field and what issues were addressed in the shipping industry. To achieve this, statistical analysis was conducted using inspection data of Port State Control (PSC) carried out by the Paris MOU and the Tokyo MOU during 2010-2012 and 2014-2016 for deficiencies under the MLC and International Labour Organization (ILO) No. 147 Convention. This study compared pre-2013 and post-2013 deficiency data according to ship's age, size (gross tonnage) and type. The results showed that, although the deficiencies reported by the Tokyo MOU during 2014-2016 were nearly double those from 2010-2012, the deficiency share against total deficiencies for the Tokyo MOU remained two thirds of those for the Paris MOU. This study suggests that the Tokyo MOU should strengthen its inspection efforts on MLC and ILO should provide clear references, such as guidelines and a unified interpretation for national discretions under the MLC for the purpose of harmonized PSC inspections. Additionally, it would be desirable to consolidate the deficiency coding system for the MLC by deleting the codes for the ILO No. 147 Convention, which was incorporated into the MLC. It would also be beneficial to add new deficiency codes for social security, including seafarers' leave and repatriation.