Ministry Of Labour News

India's Ministry of Shipping has undertaken a diverse set of initiatives as part of its drive to boost profitability across major Indian ports.One major initiative is to improve the returns earned on treasury investments by the ports for pension, provident and surplus funds. Across all major ports, these funds add up to around INR  33,000 crore (USD 4.8 billion), yielding interest of around INR 2,700 crore (USD 394 million)Looking for ways to push this amount further, the Ministry has realized an opportunity to improve returns by INR 150 crore (USD 22 million) or more through a strategic shift in its guidelines for provident and surplus funds.As per the most recent guidelines…

NGOs and trade unions in Brazil have criticized the state-run Petrobras’ end-of-life fleet management by dumping toxic ships on South Asian beaches. The Brazilian Confederação Nacional dos Trabalhadores em Transportes Aquaviários e Aéreos, na Pesca e nos Portos (CONTTMAF) trade union federation and its member SINDMAR (Sindicato Nacional dos Oficiais da Marinha Mercante) have recently criticized the shipbreaking practices of Transpetro, the oil and gas transportation subsidiary of the Brazilian petroleum corporation Petrobras, majority-owned by the State. In the last five years, more than twenty vessels owned by the oil and gas giant have been dismantled on the beaches of India and Pakistan, where shipbreaking activities endanger both workers and the environment.

The findings of the ILO's Tripartite Action to Protect the Rights of Migrant Workers research indicate low compliance with Thai immigration and labour laws, and reveal significant gaps when measured against the relevant international standards on work in fishing. In addition, a considerable proportion of the fishers surveyed were found to be in exploitative situations, either employed through deceptive and coercive labour practices, working long hours for little pay, or working under age.

The Maritime Employers Association & the Longshoremen's Union Local 375 sign a new 6 year collective agreement. The Maritime Employers Association and Local 375 CUPE Longshoremen's have just inked a new collective agreement which will allow the Port of Montreal to continue its operations while remaining competitive and ensuring its growth. The Memorandum of Agreement, signed on January 4, 2013 by both parties, has now been presented to union members attending the union meeting. The new collective is valid for a 6 year period and the negotiations focused mainly on both parties' priorities. The M.E.A.'s concerns were workload flexibility as well as discussions of a Job Security program better suited to current reality.

Sweden’s Minister for Trade, Ewa Björling and ministers of the Kurdistan Regional Government today inaugurated the Swedish Transport Academy in Erbil, northern Iraq. The training is targeted at young unemployed Iraqis with a secondary school background and offers occupational skills demanded in the transport sector. The establishment of the school is the result of close cooperation between Scania, the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency (Sida), the United Nations, EF Education First and the Kurdish Regional Government’s Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs.

The Ambassador of the Republic of Panama, HE Mr. Juan Alberto Castillero, on Feb. 6 deposited the instrument of ratification of the Maritime Labour Convention, 2006 with the International Labour Organization (ILO). Panama, the largest flag State in the world, with nearly 25 per cent of the world’s merchant fleet flying its flag, is the fourth major shipping country in the world to ratify the Convention, adopted by the 94th International Labour Conference (Maritime) in Geneva in February 2006. Panama’s ratification is especially significant because, combined with the ratifications by Liberia, the Republic of Marshall Islands and the Bahamas (the next three largest States).