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EU Directives on Maritime Labour Convention, 2006 (MLC)

The EU Directive (the Directive for the enforcement of the MLC through Port State Control) entered into force on 20th August, 2013, and ships have not reported any problems encountered as of yet.

On 10th December, 2013, the new EU "Directive concerning certain flag State responsibilities for compliance with and enforcement of the Maritime Labour Convention, 2006" was published in the Official Journal of the EU, and entered into force on 30th December, 2013. Member States will have to transpose the Directive into national law by 31st March, 2015.

This Directive lays down requirements for the Member States to establish enforcement and monitoring mechanisms (including inspections) to ensure that ships flying their Flag are in compliance with the MLC. The text also includes provisions on the procedures to handle on-board complaints related to the MLC and how to implement corrective measures.

Following several rounds of negotiation, the provisions proposed by the European Parliament laying down additional requirements for Labour Supplying States far exceeding the requirements of the MLC and opposed by the shipping industry were officially deleted from the final text. In this context, a recital has been added calling for this issue to be addressed at a later stage.