Australian authorities have banned a bulker from entering its waters until 2021 for underpaying its crew — the third such incident since late July.
The 36,300-dwt Unison Jasper (built 2019) is barred for six months for numerous breaches of the Maritime Labour Convention, the Australian Maritime Safety Authority (AMSA) said.
The breaches relate to the operation of “several sets of wage accounts and multiple conflicting seafarer employment agreements”.
The Taiwanese-owned handysize has been under detention in the Port of Newcastle since 25 July, according to AMSA.
A week later, 11 crew members are said to have “exercised their right” to leave the ship and gone into quarantine in Sydney before being repatriated to their country of origin.
As a result, the ship remained under detention in Newcastle as there were not enough crew to sail it safely.
The operator, Taiwan-based Unison Marine Corp, has since organised replacement crew from overseas, which has allowed the ship to meet its minimum crewing requirements and to depart.
AMSA general manager operations Allan Schwartz said the lengthy detention of the vessel had “no doubt been an extremely costly exercise in non-compliance for the ship’s operator”.
The maritime regulator said the decision to ban the Unison Jasper was the result of a “combination of factors and systemic failings” by the operator.
Zero tolerance
“Our decision to ban Unison Jasper reflects our zero tolerance for the mistreatment of seafarers,” Schwartz said.
“We are sending a simple message to operators: Pay your crew properly, treat them respectfully, and comply with the requirements of the Maritime Labour Convention or you will not be welcome in Australia.”
Schwartz said seafarers were making “enormous sacrifices” by being away for extended periods from their loved ones, just to keep critical global trade moving.
“To respond to that sacrifice by depriving seafarers of their rightful wages, which they and their loved ones back home depend on, is completely unacceptable,” he said.
“We do not tolerate this in Australian waters and Unison Jasper is now the fifth ship in the last 12 months to be banned by AMSA for failing to pay seafarers their wages in full and on time.”
Unison Marine did not reply to requests for comment.
Australia has been clamping down on Maritime Labour Convention abuses, in particular the maximum period of shipboard service for seafarers during the coronavirus pandemic.
AMSA has received 94 complaints on the subject since launching a campaign in late June. Some 81 of these have been investigated and are said to have been “resolved to AMSA’s satisfaction”.
In late July, AMSA banned Yangzijiang Shipping’s 93,200-dwt TW Hamburg (built 2012) from entering Australian ports for a year after it was found that the crew had been underpaid.
A week earlier, AMSA banned the 28,300-dwt bulker Agia Sofia (built 2008) from Australian ports for six months after it was found the crew were due AUD 45,000 ($33,290) in unpaid wages.
