Drawing by Edward Lear (English, 1812 – 1888)
There are good and bad manning agents. From what I have seen up close over the years in Manila, I can confidently say that the bad ones outnumber the good ones. They have no compunction about using seafarers for their own ends, usually to fill their pockets. The following are seven egregious acts they have been committing against those who toil at sea:
Using cadets as unpaid office workers and domestic servants (aka “utility”)
Skimming money from the homeward remittances of seafarers
Delaying the release of seafarers’ family allotments
Not paying back wages and overtime/holiday pay
Stonewalling and putting up obstacles to deny seafarers their rightful sickness and disability benefits
Placing the interests of foreign shipping principals above the interests of seafarers
Blackballing seafarers who report shipboard malpractices and shenanigans to the International Transport Workers’ Federation (ITF)
I have described in more detail the sins of manning agents and other players in the second edition of my book, Close Encounters in Maritime Manila. I urge readers of Marine Café Blog to check out the book.. CLICK HERE to learn more about it and where you can get a copy.
~ Barista Uno
