The Maritime Labour Convention, 2006 and the ILO Decent Work Agenda: A Work in Progress

Abstract

Abstract The Maritime Labour Convention, 2006 came to light to “secure the right of all seafarers to decent employment” as stated in Article I thereof. In line with the ILO Decent Work Agenda, the Convention is meant to contribute to four objectives: employment creation, respect for rights at work, social pro-tection and social dialogue. However, after reviewing each objective, this article contends the Convention’s success is limited because decent work deficits still remain on board ships. The governance model set out in the Convention reinforces public capacity by allocating responsibilities to flag, port and labor supplying States, involving other stakeholders in supporting public governance to ensure compliance and enforcement. However, this research shows that the problem might not be in enforcement, but in the Convention’s standards where there is much room for improvement. To this end, social dialogue is of the essence. While local collective bargaining is impaired by global competition in labor matters, the social dialogue mecha-nisms embedded in the MLC, 2006 itself still provide a way forward as long as the ILO maintains its ability to bring States, capital and labor together in order to promote decent employment in shipping.