It will take concrete forms in different ways and according to different circumstances. Workers and employers should organize and negotiate whether in Lesotho, Chile or Sweden but the results of their bargaining will be influenced by the socio-economic possibilities of each society. Ultimately, preserving basic human values at work while adapting to change is also vital to the sustainability of global economic development and to the weaving of a strong social fabric. Shipping, the first globalized industry, probably remains the most globalized of industries. So you need to think of standards in a global context.
Ships are extremely mobile assets, free to trade almost anywhere.
Also, seafarers increasingly work on ships owned and registered in countries other than their own. Almost everywhere, seafarers and shipping are covered by a different set of laws as compared to land-based industry. Today, as you well know, there are almost 50,000 ships in the world merchant fleet engaged in international trade. Approximately one and a quarter million seafarers are employed on those ships. The shipping industry's specific characteristics make it particularly vulnerable to the erosion of social standards.