The government tabled a draft amendment in Parliament on Wednesday afternoon that would liberalize the labor and remuneration framework for lower-ranked crew-members serving aboard Greek-flagged merchant vessels, a long-standing demand by the country’s massive shipping sector.
The amendment was previously unannounced, and caused a minor stir in Parliament.
At present, the current wage scales and other collective bargaining provisions for lower-ranked crew-members, as prescribed in domestic labor law for Greek-flagged vessels, would give way to internationally recognized and applied collective bargaining agreements.
The intent of the legislation, according to the relevant shipping minister who presented it, is to reduce unemployment amongst Greece’s lower-ranked merchant seamen and entice more Greek shipping interests to hoist the country’s flag on their vessels, instead of opting for “flags of convenience”.
If ratified, the law would affect ocean-going vessels above 3,000 DWTs on the Greek registry.
Greek shipping executives and analysts have long decried the fact that wage scales for Greek-flagged vessels far exceed market rates paid to merchant seamen employed by the vast majority of shipowners.
“All sides should consider this reality, namely, the fact that Greece is the international shipping leader, controlling 20.67 percent of global capacity and 54.28 percent of European capacity, yet vessels on the Greek registry number just 599, in other words, only 12 percent of the total (controlled by Greek shipping interests),” the minister, Yannis Plakiotakis, said.
By contrast, deputies of the Communist Party (KKE) bitterly charged that “galley wages” will now be imposed for Greek-flagged vessels. In response, the minister said the minimum wage scale for a lower-ranked seaman will be 2,200 USD.
“If you believe that 2,200 USD is a galley wage, go tell that to an unemployed young adult looking for work,” the minister countered.
