Tag: Nautilus

UK government will support the training of merchant seafarers Nautilus International has welcomed the shipping minister's announcement that the UK government will continue to provide support for the training of merchant seafarers.Fears for the future of the Support for Maritime Training (SMarT) scheme - which covers around 40% of the costs of the three-year studies to gain a Merchant Navy officer's certificate - were generated when the government announced a wide-ranging review of the measures last year.But shipping minister Mike Penning announced today that, following an independent analysis of SMarT - the government had decided to retain the scheme and guarantee support at 12m a year for the life of the Parliament, including 2014-15. The focus of the support will be on training cadets to their first certificate of competency, for ratings' training and for ratings studying to become officers.The minister also announced number of additional changes to the SMarT system, including skewing payments so that more is paid over when the cadet qualifies and tightening up accountability so that the outcomes of the support can be better measured. Mr Penning said he will also consider longer-term options to deliver Merchant Navy training within an overarching skills and apprenticeship framework.Nautilus ...

Nautilus International says The grounding of a cruiseship carrying more than 4,000 passengers and crew two weeks into the Titanic centenary year should serve as a wake-up call to the shipping industry and those who regulate it, says the maritime professionals' union Nautilus International.The union says the incident involving the Italian-flagged cruiseship Costa Concordia is the latest in a series that have highlighted its long-standing concerns over safety.'In this, the centenary of the loss of the Titanic, major nostalgia industry is already in full flow - but it is essential that everyone recognises that the Titanic offers lessons for today and that there are contemporary resonances that should not be lost,' said general secretary Mark Dickinson.In particular, Nautilus is concerned about the rapid recent increases in the size of passenger ships - with the average tonnage doubling over the past decade.'Many ships are now effectively small towns at sea, and the sheer number of people onboard raises serious questions about evacuation,' Mr Dickinson pointed out.'Nautilus is by no means alone in voicing concern at underlying safety issues arising from the new generation of "mega-ships" - whether they be passenger vessels carrying the equivalent of a small town or containerships with ...

Nautilus International express condolences Nautilus International has expressed sadness at the news that one seafarer has been killed and two more injured onboard the Isle of Man-flagged tanker, Annie PG.'Our thoughts are with the seafarer's family at this difficult time and we wish a speedy recovery to colleagues who were injured, said general secretary Mark Dickinson.'Our thanks go the Falmouth Coastguard who mounted a rescue and ensured the seafarers got the medical assistance they needed during the terrible weather yesterday.'Source: Nautilus International

Fatal accident rates are 12 times higher for merchant seafarers -Seafarers' Health Care 2011 report An expert report has recommended new approaches to help provide priority access to NHS care for working seafarers.Nautilus has welcomed a report by the Institute of Occupational Medicine (IOM) recommending new strategies to steer UK working seafarers towards priority access to NHS health care when ill or injured.The wide-ranging Seafarers' Health Care 2011 report was commissioned by the Seamen's Hospital Society (SHS) and funded by the Maritime Charities Funding Group(MCFG).Analysis was drawn from questionnaire surveys of working age seafarers and Dreadnought Medical Service patients, focus groups with seafarers, and interviews with Dreadnought doctors, as well as reviews of existing data -- including Maritime & Coastguard Agency (MCA) medical examinations and available literature.The report found seafarers to be affected by a variety of health conditions -- most notably work-related accidents and injuries, with fatal accident rates 12 times higher for merchant seafarers and 115 times higher for fishermen than for the general working population.Nautilus senior national secretary Allan Graveson said the Union welcomed the recognition of the need for improved medical assistance for seafarers across the whole of the UK. 'Seafarers need a service that meets ...

Proposals for controlling smoking onboard ships and preventing violence A raft of new guidelines on health and safety issues for seafarers, has been produced by the UK's national maritime occupational health and safety committee.New proposals aimed at controlling smoking onboard ships and preventing violence against staff on passenger vessels have been agreed.Revised guidelines on HIV and Aids have also been re-launched by the NMOHSC - which comprises the UK Chamber of Shipping, Nautilus International and the RMT. The proposals on smoking and violence against staff need ratifying by Chamber committees.Guidelines prohibiting smoking at sea in enclosed public spaces onboard ships have been drawn up after the government indicated that it would not bring forward legislation to control smoking on ships registered in, or trading to, ports in the UK.The guidelines reflect the principles of UK law, setting out a general ban on smoking in public enclosed spaces but allowing a designated 'smoking room' on the basis of the 'residential' nature of the workplace at sea.Companies should consider a range of control measures in the interests of health, the guidelines suggest. But they also urge companies to consult their seafarers and the maritime unions when formulating their smoking policies.The new guidelines ...

Nearly 200 responses were submitted to the maritime section of the 'red tape' challenge Nearly 200 responses were submitted to the maritime section of the 'red tape' challenge website during the government's month-long online consultation.Nautilus International featured heavily among the responses in each of the five sections and was one of the largest comment tags (which measures key word repetition) for the duration of the consultation.The Department for Transport (DfT) will now analyse all the comments and present some key recommendations for merging, simplifying or removing any legislation to the government.This may be a difficult task as the responses were over-whelming in favour of retaining all existing legalisation in order to preserve the safety of life as sea, as one respondent commented: 'I don't believe lawmakers create legislation and regulations just to fill up their lonely days. Rather, someone's behaviour was so abhorrent that it became necessary to create a regulation against that practice.The section relating to industry safety generated more than 100 responses alone, with the Pilotage Act featuring heavily.'The 1987 Pilotage Act is the statutory backbone to our profession, I do not want to see it diluted. We need to keep standards high for both Pilots and PEC ...

Fatigue affects decision-making and performance of seafarers A pioneering research project investigating the way in which fatigue affects decision-making and performance of seafarers is set to publish its findings early in the new year.Nautilus officials took part in a meeting at which preliminary results from the 32-month Project Horizon study were presented to members of the European Parliament and European Commission officials, and the Union will also take part in a further meeting with the European Maritime Safety Agency next week.Part-funded by the European Commission, the 4m project made unprecedented use of ship simulators to replicate real-life working patterns and shipboard situations to examine how different watchkeeping rotas affect cognitive performance and decision-making over the course of a week.Nautilus is one of the key shipping industry partners involved in the study. Other organisations include Warsash Maritime Academy, Bureau Veritas, the European Community Shipowners Association, the European Harbour Masters Committee, the International Association of Independent Tanker Owners, the UK Marine Accident Investigation Branch and the Maritime & Coastguard Agency.Project coordinator Graham Clarke said the study has provided scientifically robust results that take knowledge and understanding of the impact of sleepiness at sea to new levels.'The initial findings clearly demonstrate the way ...

Nautilus is seeking more talks with the UK government re armed guards onboard Nautilus is seeking more talks with the UK government following the Prime Minister's announcement that the use of armed guards is to be permitted on British ships.Guidance published by the government today (Tuesday 6 December) covers the factors ship owners should include in a risk assessment and advice on selecting a private security company, as well as the process for gaining authorisation for the carriage of armed guards.The Union has given a cautious welcome to the announcement - welcoming the recognition that seafarers deserve greater protection against piracy, but expressing concern at some of the implications arising from the use of firearms on merchant ships.General secretary Mark Dickinson commented: 'While we are pleased that the UK has legalised the use of armed guards, we do not believe this in any way reduces the necessity for a strong naval force in the area.'We also believe it is essential that action is taken to ensure that private security teams used at sea are properly vetted and accredited, and that their training, experience and competence are at acceptable levels.'It is also of critical importance that clear procedures are in place ...

Red Tape Challenge Campaign In the nearly 100 years since the sinking of the Titanic and on the eve of the 25th anniversary of the Herald of Free Enterprise ferry disaster, Nautilus is urging a defence of the safety rules for UK ships and seafarers from the government's proposals to 'cut red tape'.The government has pursued a self-confessed ambitious deregulation agenda to stem the flow of new regulation. The Red Tape Challenge is an online forum open to the public with rolling themes for debate. The maritime and transport debate is expected to start online around November 10.Such an exercise should not result in cutbacks on the very regulations set up to protect the health and well being of maritime professionals, and the safety of the ships on which they work.REASON FOR CAMPAIGNThe government has repeatedly urged the business lobby to press for removal of regulation. In June, business secretary Vince Cable admitted the Red Tape Challenge for the retail sector had 'backfired' for retailers, because most responses were supportive of regulation. Therefore, in the interests of safety of life at sea it is essential that we respect the international conventions and codes and European directives and regulations; and protect ...

Reaction and comments by ITF, SOS, Nautilus and Intermanager News that the UK Government has endorsed the use of armed guards on UK-flagged vessels has triggered comment from the major shipping organisations, most of which were favourable but with caveats.ITF's general secretary David Cockroft said: "Somali-based piracy has been allowed to become so successful, savage and wide-ranging that seafarers' and seafaring organisations' worries about armed guards have had to be set aside. However, guards can never be anything but a supplement to the sorely-tried existing naval presence, which is now trying to cover an entire ocean."The ITF, like the International Shipping Federation and International Chamber of Shipping, would like to see on-vessel detachments made up of the ship's flag state forces whenever possible."He continued: "Sadly no move is without risks. Pirate gangs are making fortunes out of their crimes. It is easy for them to reach for heavier and heavier weapons and turn to obscene levels of violence to counter defensive measures."'We welcome David Cameron's interest in maritime affairs, but we also have to warn him that the current defence cuts are likely to compromise the Royal Navy's ability to fight piracy."ITF seafarers' section chair Dave Heindel added: "What's an ...