zoomImage Courtesy: Mission to Seafarers

The minimum wage for able seafarers recommended by the International Labour Organization (ILO) will remain at its current level of USD 614 basic pay per month until at least 2018, according to the International Chamber of Shipping (ICS).

This follows an ILO Joint Maritime Commission (JMC) meeting held in Geneva last week, comprising representatives of maritime employers co-ordinated by the International Chamber of Shipping (ICS) and seafarers’ unions co-ordinated by the International Transport Workers’ Federation (ITF).

“The continuation of the current minimum wage until at least 2018, at the increased level which came into effect in January 2016 as a result of the previous JMC agreement, means that employers should benefit from a period of stability in what are otherwise very challenging markets for the global industry,” the spokeperson for the Shipowners’ Group, Max Johns (German Shipowners’ Association) said after the ILO JMC meeting.

ICS, in its role as an official ILO social partner, says that it firmly continues to support the global minimum wage, a concept unique to the international shipping industry.

While the ILO minimum only refers to the basic wage for the non-officer grade of Able Seafarer, the total minimum payable is actually much higher when account is taken of overtime payments and other pay related entitlements under the ILO Maritime Labour Convention.

The ILO Joint Maritime Commission is next expected to review the ILO minimum wage during 2018.