EU-China maritime dialogue a good template, say European Shipowners

The 12th Implementation Meeting of the China-EU Maritime Transport Agreement, hosted by the Polish government, was held in Szczecin, Poland from 21 to 23 September. Official delegations consisted of representatives of the Chinese Ministry of Transport, the Directorate-General for Transport and Mobility (DG Move) of the European Commission and EU...

EU Member States show trust in IMO's ability to deliver

“The EU Council’s decision to entrust the IMO with the regulation of greenhouse gas emissions (GHG) from international shipping is a vote of confidence in the international organisation’s ability to deliver” claimed Patrick Verhoeven, ECSA Secretary General following the adoption of the EU Member States’ negotiating position at the UNFCCC...

Seafarer's right to protection, information & consultation and fair & just working conditions endorsed by the European Parliament's plenary session

Yesterday, the European Parliament’s Plenary session adopted the agreement reached in trialogue with the Council of the EU last May, on the European Commission’s proposal for a Directive on seafarers. This adoption marks the end of a very long process, which started some eight years ago and which had opposed...

MEPs support shipping industry’s call for stronger Member State action in the Mediterranean

ECSA, the European Community Shipowners’ Associations and the Norwegian Shipowners’ Association (NSA) participated yesterday in a hearing on migration organised by the European Parliament’s Civil Liberties, Justice and Home Affairs (LIBE) Committee in Strasbourg. The hearing was organised following the launch of the European Commission’s Agenda on Migration, on which...

Shipping industry part and parcel of West Africa security situation

ECSA, the European Community Shipowners’ Associations, organised on 29 June, in cooperation with the European External Action Service and the European Commission, a very well attended workshop on the ways in which the shipping industry can get involved in the Gulf of Guinea Strategy and Action Plan. The workshop took...

EU decision makers recognise key role of sectoral social dialogue for maritime transport

On 4 June, the Commission services DG MOVE and DG EMPL organized a joint High-Level Conference on “a social agenda for transport”.

The conference gathered EU decision-makers, experts and social partners to have an intensive discussion on important social issues related to transport policy making, to underline the need of social...

EU shipping industry calls for an ambitious TTIP chapter on shipping

The European Parliament will vote on Wednesday 10 June on its much-debated recommendations to the European Commission on the negotiations for the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP). The draft to be adopted during tomorrow’s plenary session has been prepared by the International Trade (INTA) Committee, in coordination with other...

ECSA and ETF share a common vision on social-related issues of the Commission’s Mid-Term maritime strategy review

On Friday 22 May, the European Social Partners for Maritime Transport – the European Community Shipowners’ Associations (ECSA) and the European Transport Workers’ Federation (ETF) – presented a joint position paper on the Commission’s Mid-Term Maritime Strategy Review.

Pia Voss, spokeswoman for ECSA said: “I am particularly pleased that the...

Clarity needed as new rules on reporting formalities loom over shipping community

In an effort to gather much needed information and to obtain some clarity regarding the situation on the ground, cargo owners, freight forwarders, port authorities, terminal operators, ship agents and shipping companies have sent EU Member States a questionnaire to ascertain which systems countries are putting in place to comply...

Social partners welcome positive agreement in trialogue on social Directives

Following the adoption of the Council’s General Approach in December 2014 and the adoption of the European Parliament’s Employment Committee position in April 2015, both EU Institutions met with the European Commission in trialogue on 6 May and reached an agreement on the Commission’s proposal for a Directive on seafarers’...