Poland is the 26th ILO member State and the seventh EU member State to have ratified the Convention
On 3 May 2012, the Government of Poland deposited with the International Labour Office the instrument of ratification of the Maritime Labour Convention, 2006 (MLC, 2006). Poland is the 26th ILO member State and the seventh EU member State to have ratified the Convention. Poland has a fleet of over 180 vessels and supplies over 22,000 seafarers to international shipping while in 2011 it was the world’s sixth largest ship-building country for cargo carrying ships.
In depositing the instrument of ratification, Mr. Remigiusz A. Henczel, Ambassador and Permanent Representative of the Republic of Poland to the UN Office and other International Organisations in Geneva, stated: “The ratification of the MLC, 2006 is the result of joined efforts of the Polish Government and the social partners. It has also been an occasion for the review and advancement of our national legislation and practice in the maritime sector. Being one of the main source of maritime labour force in Europe, Poland attaches great attention to decent working conditions for seafarers and fair competition for shipowners promoted by the MLC, 2006 and we hope that the Convention will enter into force shortly.”
In welcoming the ratification of the MLC, 2006 by Poland, Ms. Cleopatra Doumbia-Henry, Director of the International Labour Standards Department, stated: “The ratification of the MLC, 2006 by Poland, a labour-supplying country with lengthy maritime tradition, is a major step toward bringing this landmark Convention into force. Poland joins today the group of those maritime nations whose commitment and leadership will permit the MLC, 2006 to take effect in the interest of promoting quality shipping operations and protecting all those men and women earning their living at sea and making it possible to transport 90 per cent of world trade. The ratification by Poland adds itself to the six other ratifications already received by European Union countries in implementation of the EU Council decision of 2007 authorizing the ratification of the Convention and inviting member States to complete the ratification process before the end of 2010. I am confident that several other European countries which have just completed, or nearly completed, their preparations for the legislative implementation of the MLC, 2006 will soon follow the example of Poland.”
The ratification by Poland brings closer the fulfilment of the second condition for the entry into force of the MLC, 2006, i.e. ratification by 30 member States. It is expected that the remaining four ratifications will be registered before the end of 2012, which will enable the Convention to enter into force in 2013.
Source: ILO
