The Magna Carta of Filipino Seafarers

On Sept. 23, the President signed into law Republic Act (RA) No. 12021, otherwise known as the Magna Carta of Filipino Seafarers. This marks an important milestone in the long fight for the codification of some of the basic rights of seafarers – of a brave and often exploited class of workers with a population of more than half a million. Filipino seafarers constitute about 25 percent of the global maritime workforce and the Philippines is the leading supplier of seafarers in the world.

I’ve been an advocate of the Magna Carta for seafarers for more than a decade now, filing my own version of the same during my time in Congress. The Magna Carta outlines many rights of seafarers, providing minimum standards and working conditions for employers to meet and reiterating certain basic human rights. This codification is important because it has been shown that it is easier for people to learn of their important rights and internalize them if these are found in a single place – it’s why we have documents such as the Bill of Rights after all.

In addition, the Magna Carta serves to implement the Maritime Labor Convention 2006 (MLC 2006), as amended, and the International Convention on Standards of Training, Certification and Watchkeeping for Seafarers (STCW Convention) – significant international agreements for which compliance has been deemed necessary in order for our seafarers to maintain their edge in the international sphere.

Among its provisions, the Magna Carta provides for the right to just terms and conditions of work (to be read alongside the provided standard employment contract), to collective bargaining, to affordable training, to consultation, to protection from all forms of harassment, to safe travel and to immediate medical attention. The law includes a special section for women in the maritime industry, acknowledging the special difficulties faced by women seafarers and the urgent need for their protection. Also given special attention are medical care and health standards for seafarers, standards for facilities and accommodation, as well as the rights of seafarers in the event of termination or dispute resolution.

This law and the standards it lays out have been a long time coming, and are very much needed. Being a seafarer is one of the most demanding jobs in the world and, at the same time, one of the most important. Both of these facets became readily apparent during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, when seafarers became victims of a humanitarian crisis where thousands were required to quarantine on their vessels, and where disruptions of shipping led to broken supply chains and shortages of essential goods.

The importance of supporting our seafarers makes the passage of the Magna Carta something to celebrate, and I commend all those who have been part of the fight to at last bring it into being. As someone who has been part of failed attempts in the past to bring a Magna Carta for Seafarers into law, I know firsthand that it was a difficult struggle.

At the same time, it is imperative that the passage of the Magna Carta not be seen as the end of that struggle, or even a resting point. There is much yet to be done. This goes beyond the usual concerns about ensuring the law is implemented correctly and in a manner that lives up to the spirit of the law. There are provisions of the law which we may seek to explore to further improve the law and I also have a suggestion on another piece of legislation that may fill in some of the gaps.

One provision of the law pertains to the execution bonds. The Magna Carta provides that should a seafarer win a judgment, any contested amount won or any award of damages will be released to the seafarer only after the seafarer “posts a sufficient bond to ensure the full restitution of those amounts and the bond shall be maintained by the obligee until final resolution of the appeal or judicial review.” Considering the amounts involved in a case brought to Court by a seafarer and the amount of money a seafarer will typically have available to them, it is easy to see how the existence of this bond could conceivably prevent the receipt of an award for an indefinite period of time. Such a bond seems, on its face, to belong to another law, not in the Magna Carta of Seafarers that has the purpose of enhancing the rights of seafarers.

The Magna Carta also has a limited scope. It does not apply to, among others, those who work on fishing vessels, or ships of “traditional build.” Absent other laws protecting those who fall between the gaps, there are a substantial number of Filipinos in similarly precarious situations – such as fishers, who are left symbolically adrift. Fishers are a frequently exploited class of workers and I hope our legislators would seek to protect their rights through legislation as well.

Around the world there are many instances when Filipino seafarers are treated unfairly. According to the International Transport Workers’ Federation, Filipinos are the fifth highest number of seafarers who have a delay of two or more months in receiving their wages, do not receive enough food or water and who are not able to go home right after their contracts have ended. The Equal Justice Equal Pay Foundation stated that Filipino seafarers are even paid less than their Dutch counterparts for performing the same kind of work, on the same ship. Clearly, there is much yet to be done to protect the rights of Filipino seafarers.

The passage of the Magna Carta of Seafarers is a very important milestone and a laudable achievement. But it cannot mean the end of the State’s engagement with seafarers and those Filipinos who make their livelihood on and from the sea. The government must continue to fight for them, listen to their voices and take their needs into account, even when they speak of what they see as inadequacies of the Magna Carta itself.

The struggle to protect and uplift Filipinos at sea can and must continue.