Arrested ship owes 20-man crew €150,000
The galley slave-like conditions on board the ro-ro ferry Merchant Brilliant were almost a repeat of the case, late last month, involving the crew of the Merchant Bravery ferry.
In the earlier case, the International Transport Federation (ITF) fought successfully for €200,000 in payments for the east European crew, some of whom were paid just €2 per hour.
Yesterday, Judge Liam McKechnie of the Admiralty Division of the High Court granted a ship’s arrest order to ITF inspector Ken Fleming, against the Merchant Brilliant which, like the Merchant Bravery, is chartered by the Norfolk Line.
Mr Fleming, who is on secondment to the ITF from SIPTU, said that $204,000, or €153,788, is owed to the 20 man crew of Latvians and Russians.
“It was almost a carbon copy of the situation we found on the vessel’s sister ship the Merchant Bravery just over a week ago.
“When I arrived on board the Merchant Brilliant this morning, the crewing agency attempted to evict the crew and, when that failed, they attempted to leave Dublin port. Fortunately Norfolk Lines, who had chartered the ro-ro vessel, withdrew their pilot,” he said.
As the crewing agency, which works independently of the ship’s charterers, attempted to find a pilot to navigate their departure, the ITF won their court order to prevent the ship leaving Dublin.
“If they want to remove the vessel from Dublin they can do so by honouring their debts to the crew or successfully challenging the ‘arrest’ of the vessel.
“This sort of behaviour by crewing agencies, or other marine employers, will not be tolerated on the Irish Sea. This is exploitation on a level reminiscent of a Jack London novel from the early 1900s,” Mr Fleming said.
