You have just been promoted to Chief Stewardess on a 60m charter yacht. A second stew comes to you in tears: her contract was verbal, she has not been paid for six weeks, and the crew agent has stopped answering. She asks whether she has any rights at all. She does — and knowing where they come from is the first management skill in this course.
Why MLC 2006 Exists
The Maritime Labour Convention 2006 (MLC), adopted by the International Labour Organization, is often called the fourth pillar of maritime regulation, alongside SOLAS, MARPOL and STCW. Before MLC, seafarer rights were scattered across dozens of conventions and were largely unenforceable on a foreign-flagged vessel. MLC consolidated them into one instrument that flag states enforce and port states can inspect.
Commercial yachts over 500GT on international voyages are firmly in scope. Many flag states apply MLC principles to smaller commercial yachts too. Check what your flag state actually requires — this varies.
The Five Titles
| Title | Covers | Examples of what it protects |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Minimum requirements | Minimum age, medical fitness (ENG1 or equivalent), training, recruitment and placement services |
| 2 | Conditions of employment | Seafarer Employment Agreement, wages, hours of work and rest, leave, repatriation, manning |
| 3 | Accommodation and catering | Cabin standards, recreation, food and drinking water free of charge |
| 4 | Health, medical care, welfare | Onboard and ashore medical care, health and safety, accident prevention, shipowner liability |
| 5 | Compliance and enforcement | Flag state inspection, DMLC, onboard and onshore complaint procedures, port state control |
The Rights Your Crew Actually Rely On
- A Seafarer Employment Agreement (SEA) in writing, signed by seafarer and shipowner, a copy held onboard, with clearly stated terms.
- Regular payment of wages, at intervals no greater than monthly, with an account statement, and a means to remit money home.
- Hours of work and rest limits and a record of them.
- Paid annual leave and repatriation at the shipowner expense in defined circumstances.
- Medical care onboard and ashore, essentially free of charge to the seafarer.
- Decent accommodation, food and drinking water provided at no cost.
- An onboard complaint procedure that the seafarer can use without fear of victimisation.
Exact figures — rest hour totals, notice periods, leave accrual, repatriation triggers — sit in the Convention, in flag state law and in the SEA itself. State the principle, then check the document. Do not quote a number from memory to a crew member.
What MLC Does Not Do
MLC does not make you a lawyer, and it does not resolve every dispute. It sets a floor. A crew member with a serious unresolved claim needs the flag state administration, a union or professional employment advice.
Onboard Notes
- The Declaration of Maritime Labour Compliance (DMLC) Parts I and II and the Maritime Labour Certificate live onboard. Read them. Part II is what your yacht says it does, and it is what a port state control officer will test you against.
- The most common yacht MLC failings are not exotic: missing signed SEAs, no rest-hour records, and a complaint procedure nobody can find.
- This is general guidance, not legal advice. xplor is not an accredited GUEST provider; nothing here awards or counts toward a unit, certificate or Certificate of Competency.