INS
IDE

Be careful
how you spell
pain relief
Page 3

JSU meets with South Korean counterparts
Separate meetings with FKSU, KSSU address inspection campaign co-op and training programs, respectively
On May 12, the 12th JSUFKSU Summit Meeting and
JSU-KSSU staff meeting
convened on Cheju Island,South Korea.
The All Japan Seamen’s
Union (JSU) was represented
by a delegation of five, led byPresident Yoji Fujisawa. The
Federation of Korean Seafarers’ Unions (FKSU) and the
Korean Special Seafarers’
Unions (KSSU) comprised ofa party of 11, which included
FKSU President Bang DongSig.

During the JSU-FKSU prevent mackerel pike the Maru-ship Agreement,
Summit Meeting, informa- (saury) fishing by Taiwanese applied to two cruise ships
tion was exchanged regard- fishermen.
operating between Hakata
ing the enhancement
and Busan, would beof cooperation among
revised partially.
seamens’ unions in
It was also agreed
JSU to also indirectly support new
Asia and vessels to bethat the JSU would
seamen facility plan at Busan port
inspected when theindirectly support the
FOC and POC camplan for developing apaigns are carried out.
new seamen facility at
Discussions were also held
During the JSU-KSSU the Port of Busan and invite
on a wide variety of subjects, staff meeting, it was con- six KSSU trainees to proincluding measures to sup- firmed that Japan and South mote interchange between
port to new education and Korea would continue to help the two countries, hopefully
training programs for Asian each other in the FOC and in autumn of this year.
seafarers and measures to POC campaigns, and that
Among the FOC ships

JSU staff join May Day rally in TokyoT

he Japanese Trade Union Confederation (RENGO) convened
its 79th May Day general
assembly at Yoyogi Park in Tokyo at
11:00 a.m. on April 26.
Some 45,000 individuals attended
the assembly, with guests including
Health, Labor, and Welfare Minister
Yoichi Masuzoe and President Ichiro
Ozawa of the Democratic Party ofJapan (DPJ).
A party of 77, including members of
the Central Executive Board Committee, other executives, and their family
members, represented the All Japan
Seamen’s Union (JSU).
The assembly started with the
RENGO choir singing May Day songs,
followed by an opening declaration.
It was this year’s main slogan that
all workers should cooperate with eachother in working on peace, humanrights, labor, the environment, andcoexistence for a better world, while
the sub slogan was to bridge thewidening socio-economic gap in society.
“During the spring wage negotiations, many small and midsize enterprise workers and partners won wage
hikes, as they had not increased for ayear,” Rengo President Tsuyoshi Takagi said.
“The target of improving consumer
spending, however, was not achieved.”
Expressing strong concern over thewidening of the socio-economic gap insociety, “the largest challenge to overcome to correct this is the issue of
irregular employment,” he said. Takagi called on the attendees to help
assist in this area.
He also commented also on the current Diet structure – that is, the ruling camp maintaining a majority in
the House of Representatives while
the opposition camp prevails in theHouse of Councilors.
RENGO was against the decision
made by the lower house regarding
gasoline bills, temporary tax rates,and on a special law for road construction, he added.
Regarding the medical system for

operated by Kotoku Kaiun
Co. Ltd. and other Japanesecompanies, there are large
numbers of chemical tankers
and containerships that do
not cater to Japan.
Thus, when these vessels
call South Korean ports, thecountry should require themto comply with the ITF Agreement, the JSU suggested.
FKSU and KSSU presidents, both of whom had justassumed their respective
posts, attended the meetings
for the first time.

IGA concludes
ITF-JSUagreement
Welcome,
IGA crewmembers!

JSU staff joined the May Day rally together with other unions affiliatedwith RENGO (Japanese Trade Union Confederation) at Yoyogi Park in
Tokyo on April 26.

elderly citizens of 75 years old or higher, he suggested that it be revised
drastically, and even called for its abolition.
During the meeting, RENGO,
NGOs, and NPOs adopted a joint message, claiming that they would work
hand in hand to realize a society inwhich members could maximize theirabilities.
A May Day declaration was also
adopted, consisting of several key
points: the hope of transferring power
when the next lower house generalelection is held; realizing an everlasting world peace; rescuing victims fromhuman-rights violations; and bridging
the socio-economic gap in society.
After a special resolution was madeto call for the abolition of the resur-

rected gasoline and other temporary
tax rates, the medical system forelderly citizens of 75 years old andhigher, as well as resolutions to bemade on the pension record issue, themeeting was concluded with all participants indicating that they would dotheir best to help one another.
In the afternoon, RENGO held an
event for the first time for workers of
irregular employment at the Yoyogi
Park’s open-air stage.
Proclaiming that companies should
not simply employ workers for the
short-term and dispose them whencontracts expire, Takagi had a talksession with writer Karin Amamiya
and others, while the Newspaper, agroup of comedians, performed to
liven up the event.

My cellular phone rang in
the early morning of April 5,2008 Japan time, as Stephen,a friend of mine, called fromLong Beach, Calif.
“I am onboard IGA now,”
he said. “Wages are so lowthat they are even below ITF
standards; please tell theJapanese shipowners that weare staging a protest.”
The call woke me up, but
as it was 4 a.m. on a Saturday, there was no way that I
could contact anyone.
“You can take your time
contacting [the company],” hecontinued. “In the meantime,
we will be actively protesting.”
Later in the morning, I wasable to talk to the company
in question, but it said that it
had not yet decided to comply
with the ITF agreement, andthat more time was necessary.
I told the company that I
would not mind waiting, butthat I did not like to wastetime.
Six hours later, during
which I had countless cups ofcoffee, a decision had still notbeen made.
When it was close to early
evening, the company agreed
to sign the ITF-JSU agreement and pay wages according to the agreement retroactively from when crewmembers began to work onboard
the vessels.
Although it was already
IGA, See Page 4(2)MARITIME NEWS/WARNINGS

MAY/JUNE 2008

forForeign crewmen jumping ship off Japan Benefits
victims of illegal
Thirteen foreign crewmenof Japanese coastal tunaboats have run away over the
past six months, bringing thetotal number of missing foreign fishermen to 127 since2003, according to transportministry officials.
The 13 crewmen are Indonesians who came to Japan
under the “Maru Ship” system, which was introduced in2003 to allow foreigners towork aboard Japanese fishing boats. It was done tocover the acute shortage oflabor in the nation’s fishingindustry and to enhance its
competitiveness.
The Land, Infrastructure,
Transport and Tourism Ministry has found that the 13
crewmen ran away from ports
at Shiogama in Miyagi Prefecture, Nachikatsuura in
Wakayama Prefecture andIndia implements
unsafe manning
regulation

Manning group calls for MTC abolition

India’s shipping regulator
has temporarily relaxed thestaffing, or so-called manningrequirements, for bulk carriers from four officers to three
in an attempt to help theindustry tackle a shortage of
officers.
The relaxation in manningrequirements will apply tothe so-called deck-side ofIndian registered bulk carriers and not to the engineering side.
The country has around
1,000 officers less than necessary, according to industry
estimates.
The new rules will be tried
out for six months.
The move by the Directorate General of Shipping, or
DGS, will apply to the socalled deck-side (or management function) of Indian registered bulk carriers, with acargo carrying capacity of lessthan 30,000 tons. Under the
new manning requirements,
such ships will now have one
master, one chief officer and asecond officer. The requirement for a third officer has
been scrapped. On the engineering side, the existingmanning requirements offour officers will continue.
Apart from helping themtackle a shortage of officers,
the move will also help shipping companies save around$5,000 a month in terms of
the salary paid to an officer.
And because shipping
firms that operate more than
one ship need to keep a certain number of reserve officers on their rolls (this number, too, comes down proportionately), they can look forward to more savings.
DGS has said the reduction
is applicable for both thedomestic and international
movements of dry bulk carriers. “The rate of accidents
and general efficiency ofadherence to nautical andsafety certification requirements will be studied during
this period to decide if thedispensation should be
extended or made into anational regulation andrevised safe manning documents should be issued, orshould be withdrawn,” DGS
said in its order.

Choshi in Chiba Prefecture
between late October andApril, according to the officials.
Most of the 127 are believed
to have come to Japan tosecure other jobs by taking
advantage of the easy procedures to work on boats under
the system. Some were founddoing agricultural work in
Ibaraki and other prefectures.
Since a series of cases
involving missing foreign

fishermen was made public
in October, a national association of coastal bonito andtuna fishing operators hastaken steps to prevent further incidents, including
stepping up foot patrols at
ports. However, their efforts
have proved ineffective, partly because of brokers whoarrange jobs for illegal workers. (Source: Japan Times/Kyodo)

Maritime Training Council under fire for creating confusion
The Maritime Training
Council (MTC) has gotten
its hands full after several
former captains and an
association of manning
agencies expressed support
on the Department ofTransportation and Communications plans of either
paring down or abolishing
the Maritime Training
Council’s control over seafarer handling.
In a letter sent to President Arroyo, the group, led
by the Philippine Maritime
Institute Alumni Association and the Conference ofMaritime Manning Agencies, stated that the MTC
should only coordinate policies among its members. It
said, “This proposal will
avoid confusion in seafarer
certification process andprovide a netter system ofaccountability.”
The group added, “We areconcerned that MTC and its
sub-office, the National

Assessment Center, complicate the certification process of our ship officers anddeprive them of hassle-free
employment,” they said.
“We find MTC as the central generator of confusing
directives that led to overlapping, if not encroaching,of functions among council
members.”
The group cited the Maritime Industry Authority as
the proper office to performthe central authority in certification. The MTC was
created on May 1, 1984 by
the order of former president Ferdinand E. Marcos
and was mainly concernedwith implementing theInternational Maritime
Organization’s Standards ofTraining, Certification andWatch keeping for Seafarers.
The Labor Secretary as
chairman and the heads of
the Commission also leads
on Higher Education,

Philippine Overseas Employment Administration,
OWWA, Marina, Professional Regulation Commission, Philippine Coast
Guard, and the Department
of Foreign Affairs.
Late last February, DOTC
Undersecretary
Maria
Elena H. Bautista proposed
before the Department ofLabor and Employment theabolishment of the MTC,
which mainly accredits
hundreds of training centers for seafarers in thePhilippines. She added thatit should be Marina acting
as the central maritime
administrator.
However, the DOLE has
rejected the DOTC initiatives stating that the Labor
department is recognizedglobally as the lead agency
in regulating the placements of all overseas Filipino workers including seafarers. (Source: Balitang Marino)

recruitment
Philippine Overseas Employment Administration(POEA)’s Rosalinda Baldoz is
encouraging the victims ofillegal recruitment to makeuse of the POEA’s incentive
program in filing cases
against their recruiters. She
has observed that most illegal
recruitment cases do notprosper in courts due to desistance of the complainants.
Baldoz said many illegal
recruitment cases are dismissed due to complainants’disinterest to pursue thecase or their inability to pay
the required docket fees.
Most often, after filing thecases, victims will not continue with court proceedings,
accepting measly sums ofsettlement money instead.
The POEA’s incentive program hopes to perk complainants’ interest in illegal
recruitment cases by providing assistance to victims andwitnesses through the payment of docket fees andother court-related expenses.
As a bonus, victims and witnesses utilizing the program
shall be given priority foroverseas employment at nocost, Baldoz said.
“It is very disappointing tosee illegal recruitment cases
we have helped build up
being dismissed and archived
because the complainants
lost interest or accepted settlement money to drop thecase,” said Baldoz.
She cited a case filed in
Manila which was already inthe pre-trial stage when one of
the accused offered the complainant PHP70,000 as settlement money. (Source: POEA)

Top RP maritime school chooses quality over quantity
Ten years after its founding, the Maritime Academyof Asia and the Pacific(MAAP) has maintained its
mission and vision of accepting only top quality students
for enrollment in the country’s premiere maritime
school after passing a toughentrance examination. “Wecannot exchange quality forquantity,” said MAAP chairman Eduardo Ma. R. Santos,
a retired vice admiral andflag officer in command of
the Philippine Navy.
Enrolling at MAAP for a
five-year course either as adeck officer or marine engineer is difficult because themaritime school only accepts
200 new students a year
from among the thousands ofstudents who take the toughentrance test. Santos cited as
example in 2001 wherein atotal of 4,591 students
applied for MAAP admission
but only 173 were selected
for training.
“Our principals (international shipping lines) need

54 more students, but wetold them that we can only
accept 200 students,” Santos
said.
For school year 2008-2009,
MAAP plans to increase thenumber of applicants to
10,000 by adding more testing centers all over the country but they will still selectstick to its principle of producing only topnotch graduates.
He said it is not a practicaldecision to increase the number of students as they only
have sufficient facilities andinstructors for 200 candidates.
Santos said they would

In 2001...of a total of 4,591 students [who]applied for MAAP admission, only 173 wereselected for training.

only 200 students for training. The entrance examination is so tough that it ispractically a survival of thefittest.
When asked if they areplanning to increase thenumber of cadets to be
accepted due to the risingdemand of international
maritime companies for
qualified deck officers andmarine engineers, Santos
insisted that MAAP would

never sacrifice quality in the
training of maritime cadets
because MAAP prides itself
as “the leading institution of
excellence in maritime education and training in the
Asia-Pacific region andbeyond.” MAAP is also committed “for the developmentof competent seafarers who
shall possess the character,knowledge, and skills necessary for the successful pursuit of a maritime career,” headded.
He pointed out that it
would be much better for
MAAP to produce few but
top caliber graduates than a
training center that produces
more but fails to meet international maritime standards.
The MAAP chair addedthat the 200 who managed topass are the “best and thebrightest out of the thousands who applied.”
MAAP is one of the maritime institutions that housetheir students in dormitories
at their sprawling 18-hectare
complex in Mariveles,
Bataan some 150 kilometers
north of Manila.
The Associated Marine
Officers and Seamen’s Unionof the Philippines (AMOSUP), which has a 75,000
membership, operate it. Students accepted for MAAP
training have only two
weeks vacation a year
because of their lengthy andrigorous training. (Source:
Balitang Marino)

SEAFARERS’ CORNER

MAY/JUNE 2008

(3)

Beware of pain relievers: NSAID complications
By William Mambalo
JSU ISSA

lmost everyone is familiar
with pain relief formulas.
Known as “Non-Steroidal
Anti-Inflammatory
Drugs”(NSAIDs), a few commonly known
names include Aspirin, Ibuprofen,
Advil, Motrin as well as prescription products like Celebrex, Vioxx,
Daypro and more.
Here’s something you might notknow about common pain relief…
Thousands of people are hospitalized annually for non-steroidal
anti-inflammatory drug (NSAID)related gastrointestinal (GI) complications and also thousands of
NSAID-related deaths occur eachyear among arthritis patientsalone. The figures of all NSAID
users would be overwhelming, yet

the scope of this problem is generally under-appreciated.
These toxic effects remain mainly a “silent epidemic,” with many
physicians and most patients
unaware of the magnitude of the
problem.
It is important to note that mostpeople have no warning signs thatthese drugs are causing internal
damage before they end up in thehospital in serious condition.
A Related Story: On May 15,
2008, the three International Service Staff from JSU Kanto Regional Branch visited the PCC vessel
Grand Race berthed in Daikoku,
Yokohama Port.
An expected routine meetingwith the crew turned out to be an
emergency action for support to a
Filipino Chief Cook needing imme-

diate medical assistance. Walking
with a cane and discharging bloodystool, the Chief Cook was being
sent to the hospital by the Captainjust to have a (doctor’s) second
opinion since a doctor alreadychecked him when the vessel wasin Toyohashi Port.
Allegedly, the Korean captaindidn’t want the Chief Cook repatriated, as the vessel was about toleave in a few hours.
With the coordination of the JSU
ISS, the ship’s company was contacted and requested to provide
the Chief Cook necessary medical
attention. Immediately, Chief
Cook Carlos V. Golfo was admitted
to the Yokohama Fureai Hospital
due to abdominal bleeding.
Upon knowledge of his internal
bleeding, the doctor in Fureai Hospital had subjected him to a seriesof medical check-ups, such ascolonoscopy, to view the entire
inner lining of his intestine.
After determining that he was inserious condition, the doctor confined him and administered bloodtransfusion (800cc) as his blood
platelet count was very low.
At the time of writing, Chief
Cook’s discharge of bloody stool
had lightly subsided.
According to the doctor, he needs
to stay at the hospital for one or
two weeks more until his fullrecovery from the abdominal problem.
What caused the Chief Cook’s
bloody stool? Since he was feelingsevere pain on his right leg, maybe
due to arthritis, he took pain
relievers without a doctor’s prescription or guidance, leading him
to suffer abdominal bleeding.

JOKE CORNER

VOICES from SEAFARERS

Pray For Life
With the storm raging, thecaptain realized his ship was
sinking fast.
He called out, “Does anyone here know how to pray?”
One of the crewmembers
stepped forward. “Yes, Captain, I pray a lot.”“Good,” said the captain.
“You pray while the rest of us
get out on life jackets. We’re
one short.”
Submitted by: ISS John
Canto

Crewmembers of M/V MOL PARTNER
We wish that the free e-mail access as provided by the
JSU/AMOSUP CBA be implemented as soon as possible for us
to enjoy. We thank the JSU for the upgrade in our wages andworking conditions, the reading materials and the souvenirs
we received.

Crewmembers of M/V CAPE AZALEA
We thank the JSU for the regular visitation by the Union Officers and the updates we get. We are looking forward to theirnext visit.

Crewmembers of M/V MIYABIFor every crewmember, the hardship andboredom can be relieved by someone who visits
them onboard and I am thanking the JSU
Union Officers and JSU ISS staff for theireffort of regular visitation to their members
whenever a ship docks here in Japan.
Providing useful information and the latest
updates on our JSU agreement, checking ourliving and working condition aboard is an
important task that the Union Officers give us.
Again, may I say many thanks and good luck,
you are serving us as our protector.
CAPT. Efren P. Cagatin
Master of M/V SHIN HEIRYU

As all of us have a hard time going out to shore, we welcome the visitation by
JSU staff who inform us of our rights and benefits under the JSU agreement.

I thank the JSU for its effort inrecovering my back wages frommy previous vessel.
I also thank the JSU Filipino
staff for a job well done.
Oiler Gliny Flares
M/V ESPERANZA II

Custody FightA seaman and his wife
were getting a divorce at a
local court, but the custody of
their children posed a problem.
The mother jumped to herfeet and protested to thejudge that since she hadbrought the children into thisworld, she should retain custody of them.
The seaman also wanted
custody of his children, so thejudge asked for his side of thestory.
After a long moment ofsilence, the seaman rosefrom his chair and replied:“Your honor, when I put a dollar into a vending machine,
and a Pepsi comes out, does
the Pepsi belong to me or tothe machine?”
Don’t laugh...he won!
Submitted by: HeroI was thinking about how
people seem to read the Biblea whole lot more as they getolder; then it dawned onme—they’re cramming fortheir final exam.
– George Carlin –1937American Comedian

INFORMATION/ADVISORIES(4)

MAY/JUNE 2008

Letter
Security advice for the frontline: back to basics
from JSU
With the five-year span of
The message remains clear revalidated. As such it sions on how gangway andfirst International Ship then, that all access to ves- appears that the basics of access control is managed.
Headquarters the
Security Certificates (ISSC) sels must be controlled, mon- security need to be stressed
As we know, the gangway

W

e are very grateful
to you non-domiciled special members, for continuing to operate ships safely around theclock.
Today, we would like toinform you about the JSU
non-domiciled membershipfees, as we receive manyinquiries about them.
The fees are paid – inaccordance with the JSU constitutions and those for nondomiciled members – by nonJapanese seamen without
resident status in Japan who
work onboard commercial
vessels to which the following
agreements are applied: theIBF JSU/AMOSUP-IMMAJ
CBA, IBF JSU/PSU-IMMAJ
CA, IBF JSU-IMMAJ CA,
ITF-JSU/AMOSUP CBA,
ITF-JSU CA, JSU/AMOSUP
CBA for Japanese Flag,
JSU/PSU CA for JapaneseFlag, JSU CA for JapaneseFlag, and JSU CA for nearsea.
The fees are used to carryout various activities to protect the rights and employment of non-domiciled members and to improve labor
conditions.
Articles written in labor
agreements are not binding
unless negotiation with the
JSU has taken place.
Only when the JSU negotiates and conclude contracts with oceangoing shipping service providers, will
they become legally effective, having conditions on
the following items applied
to you, such as wages, fixed
overtime payments, guaranteed overtime payments,
retirement pay plans, andprovident funds.
We need to promote activities jointly with the ITF,
including FOC and POC
campaigns, which are conducted to apply the ITF
Agreement to more ships.
And to this end, much morework and time needs to be
spent.
The non-domiciled membership fees, which we collect from you, are used tofinancially support union
activities.
Thus, please understandthat the fees will not be
refunded when you retire.

ALL JAPAN SEAMEN’S UNION
15-26, Roppongi 7-Chome,
Minato-Ku, Tokyo 106-0032
Tel.: (03) 5410-8320
Fax: (03) 5410-8336
E-mail: iss@jsu.jp
Internet: http://www.jsu.or.jp
Publisher: Takashi Miyake
Send inquiries to the attention of
Mr. Masanobu Makizoe,
Director, Foreign Trades Dept.

now reaching an end, andwith the prospect of re-validation looming, the pressure
to apply the basics of maritime security has never been
more pressing.
Sadly it seems many ships
are still failing to properly
implement the most fundamental requirement of maritime security – that of effectively policing access to thevessel. In fact according to
The United States Coastguard (USCG), 33 percent of
security deficiencies havebeen related directly to vessel
access, and they havestressed that, “Access control
is the cornerstone of a security regime and the most sensitive part of any security
arrangement is the facilityto-ship interface.”

itored and supervised, and it
is vitally important that personnel know how to control
access, when to act, who toallow onboard and who todeny, all while keeping adequate and proper records.
In order to assist these
efforts and to give clear andsimple advice to seafarers
with security duties, Shiptalk
has begun a series of Security Guides with the first entitled, “Shipboard Access Control.”According to Shiptalk managing director, Capt. Thomas
Brown, “the fact that ships
are still being detained for
not applying the very basics
of maritime security is hugely concerning, especiallygiven that deficiencies could
see many ISSC’s not being

to all personnel, and that isexactly what this new guidedelivers.”
The aim of the guide is toreally help crews to achievemore, and to allow them tofeel confident to act, tounderstand their role and thehuge importance it carries,
all written in basic terms
that can easily be understoodeven if English is their second language.
The guidance within “Shipboard Access Control” isbased on the requirements of
the ISPS Code, and also bestindustry practice – it provides background guidance towork in tandem with the
Ship Security Plan (SSP) for
each vessel, while encouraging personnel to ask questions and to engage in discus-

watch is the most visible partof any security regime – it isalso where mistakes are
made.
Controlling access is not
simply about being the firstline of defense it is also thefirst aspect of security to beassessed by port and Flag
State, and by law enforcement agencies – so it isimportant we get it right,
and “Shipboard Access Control” can help seafarers dojust that.
“Shipboard Access Control”
by Steven Jones (ISBN 9780-9556513-3-5) is available
from Shiptalk priced £10 for
single copies (with bulk andfleet discounts available),email: enquiries@shiptalk.
com or visit www.shiptalk.
com for more details.

U.S. proposes tighter crew identification requirements
The U.S. Coast Guard proposes torequire crewmembers on foreign commercial vessels en route to U.S. ports oralongside, to carry and present on
demand acceptable identification whenin U.S. navigable waters. The proposed
requirements also cover crewmembers
on U.S. commercial vessels arrivingfrom a foreign port or place.
Acceptable identification means a
passport; a U.S. Permanent Resident
Card; a U.S. merchant mariner’s docu-

ment; a U.S. Transportation Worker
Identification Credential (TWIC); or a
Seafarer’s Identification Document(SID) issued in accordance with International Labor Organization (ILO) Seafarers’ Identification Documents Convention (Revised), 2003 (ILO 185).
Crew may secure the identification
with the master, so long as it can be presented on demand. The vessel operator
would be required to ensure that crew arein compliance.

Violations may subject the mariner
and the vessel operator to civil penalties.
In addition, control measures may betaken against the vessel.
Such requirements, if implemented,
would apply even if the crewmember
never departs the vessel while it is in
the U.S. If the crewmember intends togo ashore in the U.S., all of the current
immigration requirements (particularly
the U.S. visa requirement) will apply.
(Source: Shiptalk)

CBP directive calls for immediate departure of off-signing crew
The Customs and Border
Protection (CBP) are taking
an interest in respect of those
involved in crew changes who
do not join their ship immediately on entering the U.S., or
who are not repatriatedimmediately on signing off.
It has long been expectedby the CBP that departingcrew will leave the U.S. on
the next available flight but
members should understandthat the CBP’s current directive is that off-signing crew
must depart the country thesame day they are signed off
the ship.
Crew that do not depart/arrive the same day theyleave/join the ship will subject owners/crew managers
with a fine of US$3,300 per
crewmember.
In the interest of safety andcrew welfare, some operators

are understood to have a policy of giving officers a night’s
rest in a hotel after flying
before joining their ships.
Such policies and actions will
now result in fines being
imposed. In cases where thearrival date of a ship is notcertain, members will findthis regulation particularly
unfair as it is normal practice
to get crew to their joining
ports in good time in order

IGA, From Page 1late in the evening in the
United States, people were
ecstatic over the decision.
The gap of some US$40,000
was paid in Hawaii.
IGA welcomed in JapanOn April 15, IGA arrived at
the Port of Yokohama from
Hawaii.
From the JSU, ITF Coordinator Shoji Yamashita and
Eduardo Galang welcomed
IGA crewmembers. Whenthey met the ship’s South
Korean master, however, he
exploded in anger, claimingthat JSU did not do anythingfor his crew.
Now that the owner of IGA

The crewmembers of IGA listen to Shoji Yamashita, ITF
coordinator, explaining their backwages and their new
agreement under the JSU.

has concluded the ITF-JSU
agreement, the master was

told that wages would increase,that welfare would improve,not to miss the ship.
Members should not expect
the authorities to be lenienton this matter as it has been
noticed that the number offines issued nationwide by
the CBP has increased. It
has also been noticed that
the CBP are now issuingfines for infractions thatwould have previously warranted no more than a warning.

and that crewmembers would
be able to begin using an email service, while efforts
would be made to improve thequality of foodstuffs.
When Yamashita andGalang entered the crew’s
salon to give briefings, thecrewmen were very happy,
expecting that IGA would
enter a new stage as a resultof the conclusion of the agreement.
In Japan, the JSU and the
ITF work together, having
had 90 percent of Japanese
shipowners conclude the ITFJSU agreement.
When Yamashita andGalang said that they weregrateful and respectful tocrewmembers for understanding ITF-JSU-AMOSUP, thecrew burst into applause.