MLC 2006 — Maritime Labour Convention

Last verified 4 months ago

The Maritime Labour Convention, 2006, was adopted by the International Labour Organization in February 2006 and entered into force on 20 August 2013. It consolidated and replaced 37 earlier ILO maritime conventions and is widely known as "the seafarers' bill of rights". It applies to all seafarers on all ships — public or commercial, on international or domestic voyages — except warships, naval auxiliaries, fishing vessels, traditional craft, and small (under 200 GT) ships not on international voyages.

MLC sits alongside SOLAS (safety), MARPOL (environment), and STCW (training) as one of the four pillars of international shipping regulation. Compliance is verified by the flag state through inspection and the issue of a Maritime Labour Certificate, supported by a two-part Declaration of Maritime Labour Compliance (DMLC). Port state control under regional Memoranda of Understanding (Paris MoU, Tokyo MoU, USCG, AMSA, Indian Ocean MoU, etc.) verifies the certificate and inspects compliance directly.

Five Titles

• Title 1 — Minimum requirements for seafarers to work on a ship

  • ·Minimum age (16, with limits on hazardous work and night work for under-18s).
  • ·Medical certificate for fitness for duty (per STCW + MLC standards).
  • ·Training and qualifications (tied to STCW).
  • ·Recruitment and placement: licensing, no fees to the seafarer, financial-security cover by agencies.

• Title 2 — Conditions of employment

  • ·Seafarers' Employment Agreement (SEA) — written contract, signed by both parties, copy to the seafarer.
  • ·Wages — paid monthly, statement provided, allotment to family permitted.
  • ·Hours of work and rest — minimum 10 hours rest in 24, 77 hours in 7 days.
  • ·Entitlement to leave — paid annual leave, public holidays at sea.
  • ·Repatriation — at the shipowner's expense, with financial-security backing (post-2014 amendment).
  • ·Seafarer compensation for ship's loss or foundering.
  • ·Manning levels — sufficient, safe, efficient.
  • ·Career and skill development.

• Title 3 — Accommodation, recreational facilities, food and catering

  • ·Accommodation standards: cabins, sanitary, hospital, mess, recreational space — minimum dimensions and facilities defined by ship age and type.
  • ·Heating, ventilation, lighting, noise and vibration limits.
  • ·Recreational facilities — TV, library, internet where reasonable.
  • ·Food and water — sufficient, free of charge, varied, suitable for crew nationality. Ship's-cook certificate required on vessels with ≥ 10 crew.

• Title 4 — Health protection, medical care, welfare and social security

  • ·Medical care onboard and ashore — at no cost to the seafarer for the duration of the SEA.
  • ·Shipowners' liability for injury, illness, or death — covered by financial security (post-2014 amendment).
  • ·Health and safety protection and accident prevention.
  • ·Access to shore-based welfare facilities — including shore leave at port.
  • ·Social security — flag state, seafarer's home state, and shipowner's state must collectively provide cover.

• Title 5 — Compliance and enforcement

  • ·Flag state responsibilities — inspection, MLC certificate, DMLC.
  • ·Port state control — inspection of foreign-flag ships in the port; can detain non-compliant vessels.
  • ·Labour-supplying responsibilities — ensure recruitment and placement agencies are compliant, regardless of flag.
  • ·Onboard complaint procedures (5.1.5) — must be posted, with names of contact persons.
  • ·Onshore complaint-handling (5.2.2) — port state must accept complaints from any seafarer in its ports.

DMLC Part I and Part II

The Declaration of Maritime Labour Compliance is the practical compliance document inspected by the flag and port states. Part I is issued by the flag state and lists the national requirements that implement each MLC area for ships flying its flag. Part II is prepared by the shipowner and describes the measures the ship has put in place to satisfy each Part I requirement — manning, accommodation arrangements, complaint procedures, financial-security insurer, hours-of-work records system. Both must be displayed at a place onboard accessible to seafarers (typically the messroom).

Amendments timeline

• 2014Financial security for abandonment, injury, death

  Mandatory financial security (typically P&I cover) for unpaid wages and repatriation in cases of abandonment, and for compensation in case of injury or death. Certificate must be displayed onboard. In force 18 January 2017.

• 2016Bullying and harassment guidance

  Guideline B4.3.1 added explicit reference to the prevention of harassment and bullying. Made mandatory in 2026 STCW review.

• 2018Continuation of SEA during captivity

  SEA continues — wages and entitlements payable — while a seafarer is held in captivity, e.g. by pirates, regardless of contract expiry. In force 26 December 2020.

• 2022Connectivity, PPE, fatalities reporting, repatriation

  Required free reasonable internet access onboard; minimum-quality PPE; mandatory reporting of crew fatalities; expanded MLC certificate to cover compliance in port denial of repatriation. In force 23 December 2024.

• 2025Standards under negotiation (in progress)

  ILO Special Tripartite Committee continues work on shore-based welfare access, abandonment data sharing with the IMO/ILO database, and recognition of seafarers as "key workers" in any future health emergencies.

Financial security — Standards A2.5.2 and A4.2.1

Two financial-security mechanisms are mandatory. The first (Standard A2.5.2, in force 2017) covers abandonment — unpaid wages up to four months and repatriation costs. The second (Standard A4.2.1) covers compensation for contractual claims arising from death or long-term disability. Both are typically met by P&I club entry, and the certificates from the insurer must be posted onboard. A vessel without valid certificates is a port-state-control detention case.

Onboard complaint procedure (Standard A5.1.5)

Every ship must have a written onboard complaint procedure, posted in a place accessible to seafarers, naming the persons in the chain (head of department → master → DPA → flag state administration). It must allow direct complaint to the master or to the shipowner, must protect against victimisation, and must allow any seafarer to be accompanied or represented during the procedure.

See also

• · STCW — companion convention on training and certification.
• · Port state control — how MLC is enforced in ports.
• · ITF & IBF framework — collective bargaining sitting alongside MLC.
• · ITF wage claim toolkit — practical recovery steps under MLC Standard A2.5.2.
• · Glossary: MLC 2006 · DMLC · SEA.
• · Help: filing an MLC complaint.
• · Help: sign-off & repatriation.
• · Help: abandonment.
• · Help: wages claim toolkit.

Primary source

• · ILO NORMLEX — MLC 2006 (Convention 186) full text.
• · ILO Maritime Labour Convention hub.
• · IMO — Maritime Labour Convention overview.