The Australian Maritime Safety Authority (AMSA) announced that a new Focused Inspection Campaign (FIC) on hours of work and rest has been initiated from 1 May 2022 to run up to 30 June 2022.
This FIC has been initiated by AMSA and is specific to Australia. It will apply to foreign flagged ships and Regulated Australian Vessels (RAVs) arriving at an Australian port.
The purpose of the FIC is to determine:
- The level of compliance with the maximum hours of work or minimum hours of rest for seafarers in accordance with the requirements of International Conventions, and
- The familiarity of the master and officers with implementing the provisions when working onboard ships.
AMSA inspectors will undertake the FIC in conjunction with a normal port or flag State control inspection. Any port State control deficiencies will be reported to regional port State control databases.
AMSA encourages ship owners and masters to familiarise themselves with the requirements of the Maritime Labour Convention 2006 (MLC) and the International Convention on Standards of Training, Certification and Watchkeeping for Seafarers (STCW), Australian Marine Orders 11 and 28 and their respective safety management system, including how they are implemented onboard.
Inspectors will complete a checklist when conducting focused inspections so that AMSA can collate and report on the outcomes. As announced, the results of the FIC will be analysed at the conclusion of the campaign, and a de-identified report will be published on AMSA’s website.