24 Filipino seafarers paid less than $2/hour, forced to buy water

The bulk carrier San Nikolas with 24 Filipino crewmen.

SAN FRANCISCO — A spokesperson for the Maritime Union of Australia (MUA) said Greek-owned and Panama-flagged bulk carrier San Nikolas was “riddled with deficiencies” and he had “grave concerns” for the welfare of the 24 Filipino crewmen.

There are claims that the crewmen were being paid less than $2 an hour and forced to buy water. The ship owned and managed by Greece’s Athenian Shipping, was found to have insufficient food and no potable water onboard when it berthed in Newcastle, Australia.

“In an already shady industry there’s a further race-to-the-bottom as international freight rates drop,” said International Transport Workers’ Federation (ITF) President Paddy Crumlin as quoted by Splash24.com. “Therefore we get these greedy ship owners and operators trying to save a buck by withholding pay and in the worst case scenarios, rationing food.”

Maritime Union Australia official Glen Williams inspected the ship in Newcastle and claimed the crew was being rationed water and, if they required more, they had to pay for it. He said the inspection also found no fresh fruit and that there was only one medium-sized pot of soup on the stove for dinner for the 24 crewmen.

He claimed that a trainee seafarer was on $425-a-month, working 12–14 hour shifts, seven-days-a-week, for the privilege of being away from his family for a year.

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