Seafarers would be subject to the rules described in the Working Conditions Directive if it is submitted to the European Parliament. So, there is potential for additional financial and administrative burdens for the maritime industry, Danish Shipping believes.
Since the European Commission presented its proposal for a directive on “Transparent and predictable working conditions in the European Union”, it has been linked to several so-called ‘European Pillar of Social Rights’.
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The proposed directive aims to introduce minimum rules across all sectors of the European labor market. This also applies to the maritime industry, which is already subject to international regulations, such as the Maritime Labor Convention and the Convention on Standards of Training, Certification and Watchkeeping for Seafarers.
According to Danish Shipping, current conventions already regulate areas such as working hours and employment contracts, with Danish shipping attempting to introduce a partial exemption for seafarers. However, it has been voted down by the Employment Committee in the European Parliament.
Now there are the trilogue negotiations, where representatives from the European Parliament, the Council of Ministers and the European Commission will negotiate in order to conclude on the legislative text before the proposal for a directive is formally voted by the European Parliament and Council of Ministers.
Anne Windfeldt Trolle, Director of Danish Shipping, commented on the occasion:
It’s a shame that there is no more responsiveness to the fact that maritime traffic is regulated at international level and that it does not benefit European shipping companies to introduce special rules that instead weaken their competitiveness.