In executing its maritime activities, the ILO cooperates with governments and with non-governmental international organisations through special meetings and seminars aimed at improving both working conditions for maritime workers and the efficiency of maritime industry operations. For example, in September 1992, the ILO held an Inter-regional Tripartite Meeting of Experts on Drugs and Alcohol in the Maritime Industry as part of a project recommended by the Joint Maritime Commission and sponsored by the United Nations International Drug Control Programme (UNDCP) to develop measures to reduce drug and alcohol problems in the maritime industry. Representatives from IMO, WHO, UNDCP and the European Union (EU) participated. Other activities of this nature include the convening of seminars on labour problems resulting from automation and technological change on board ship, and participation in various United Nations, governmental and shipping industry seminars. In addition, the ILO takes an active part in the work carried out under the Memorandum of Understanding on Port State Control (MOU). The objective of the MOU is to ensure that foreign merchant ships visiting the ports of any of the MOU participating States comply with the international Conventions included in this agreement. ILO Convention No. 147 is one of the Conventions.
In 1990, the ILO published Inspection of Labour Conditions on Board Ship: Guidelines for Procedure based on Convention No. 147. These Guidelines are intended to assist ship and labour inspectors, and others concerned with labour and social conditions on board ship. The Guidelines relate to the control procedures for national flagships as well as to foreign flagships.
In 1991, the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP) published Guidelines for Maritime Industry Labour Legislation. The Guidelines were produced through a joint ILO/ESCAP project and provide a comprehensive reference work to assist countries in the preparation of up-to-date maritime labour law. Copies may be obtained by contacting ESCAP in Bangkok, Thailand.
In 1993, an ILO Tripartite Meeting of Experts on Accident Prevention on Board Ship revised the ILO Code of Practice for Accident Prevention on Board Ship at Sea and in Port, originally published in 1978, taking into account technological and operational changes in shipping and new means of improving the occupational safety and health of seafarers.
Technical assistance provided by the ILO in the port industry
Stemming from the instruments concerning dock workers mentioned above, the ILO has adopted guidelines, both for vocational training and for the safety and health of dockworkers. It has developed and executed projects covering issues such as recruitment and placement of port workers and occupational safety and health. Furthermore, the ILO has also developed and executed projects concerning the organisation of work in ports, the assessment of training needs and subsequent curricula development for training programmes, the training of instructors, the establishment of port training centres and provided assistance in supervisory training.
ILO's Portworker Development Programme (PDP)
The underlying philosophy of the PDP is the provision of centrally prepared training material, properly tested and validated, to be presented by a corps of specially trained instructors within a carefully established organisational framework. The development objective is to enable the governments and port authorities of developing countries to establish effective and systematic portworker training schemes, designed to improve cargo-handling performance, working conditions and practices, safety, and the status and welfare of portworkers." The material relates to container terminals "Portworker" In this context is defined as a port or terminal employee of supervisory grade or below, and covers foremen, drivers, operators, stevedores and other operations personnel of similar grades, as well as office and workshop employees of equivalent status.
