Ask for the official nomination forms from the UFS, Room 303 Plaza Towers Building, L. Guerrero St., Ermita, Manila. For inquiries call phone nos. 5260668/ 5244888 and 5255806 or fax 5242336.

A WEB page enabling workers to gain rapid access to essential information about their health and safety rights and responsibilities has been set up by the Health and Safety Executive.

The "workers’ webpage" http://www.hse.gov.uk/ workers
- covers the roles and responsibilities of employers and employees, as well as issues such as ‘whistle-blowing’ and reporting accidents.

The POEA mess, a deadly trap 
 
 

REPUBLIC Act 8042, otherwise known as the Migrant Worker’s Act took effect on July 15, 1995. Section 29 and 30 of the said law requires the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) to draw up a five-year comprehensive deregulation plan that will phase-out the regulatory function of the POEA, immediately after the fifth year. Therefore, in layman’s terms, July 16, 2000, was the termination date of the regulatory function of POEA, unless Congress extended its life through an amendment, repeal, or extension.

The objective of a deregulation plan is to make the migration of workers and the “TERMS” of their employment like ordinary business between the workers and the prospective employers or their agents.

This law is very important to be read and understood by our seafarers and manning agents. We all know that MTC (Maritime Training Council) is a subset of POEA. Deriving its mandate from POEA, the MTC regulates the training of our seafarers, the accreditation of training centers and training courses, the assessment and control of training certificates, and the schooling of assessors. 

Using STCW 95 as the subject, with POEA at its back, MTC made a killing in the maritime industry. Few selected training centers were allowed to put up their facilities and then a MORATORIUM was placed to stop others from coming in. 

From 1996 up to present, that poisonous pill “Moratorium” is prescribed by quack doctor MTC. Manning agencies could not afford to go against the will of MTC because POEA can easily punish a non-cooperative agency by being strict in licensing requirements. 

As an example, Rule V No. 13 of the POEA rules, about a seaman failing PDOS (Pre-departure Orientation Seminar) can be a ground for revocation of the manning license. Whew, can you beat that?

The greed virus set in and damaged the whole body, the seafarers. The MTC secretariat exercised enormous power and influence even though they know nothing at all about ships. Resolution after resolution was passed and the “rebate” baby was born. More training more rebate. 

Manning companies were used as the front line collection agencies, para bang Lotto outlets, gan’un, It was very difficult to say NO to MTC or else, the company will fade away sooner. The force-fed training requirement was turned into a big money-making monster that turned facility owners into multi-millionaires overnight. If the legality of a training requirement was questioned by someone, the MTC would readily point to STCW 95 as the answer. MTC hired the services of land-based marine personnel, not seasoned ship officers, to interpret STCW 95. These consultants consider themselves “maritime experts.” 

In fairness to these people, some of them may have the reputation to be called “expert” but since most of them were not seasoned officers, they aggravated the requisites of seafarers further. You want proof? Go and see NAC (National Assessment Center), the offspring of MTC, and see with your trained eye if the system there is worth for us to be proud of.

If POEA cannot prove that its function today was extended by Congress, then it has no business regulating the recruitment and employment of seafarers. The MTC must cease to exist also because without POEA it has no legs to stand on. From July 16, 2000, the Migrant Workers Act mandated the full phase-out of the regulatory powers of POEA. There are amendments in the rules that kill our manning industry and for which our maritime czar, VP Teofesto Guingona, should look into. To cite some some: 

1) There is an increase in minimum capitalization from P1 million to P2 million. This is not favorable because a poor ship officer, with sure principal to supply to, can not open his manning agency without that much money and, worse, he can not get credit line easily anywhere. He can not even ask the principal to do all the spending for him either. Doing business in the Philippines does not require an individual to be rich first before he can ever start one. If it is the fly-by-night manning agencies that DOLE of, then they should resign and let more capable men to run the agency. 

2) The rule on New Market is shady. POEA says a new market is one whose principal has never been included in the list of accredited and registered principals. There are only a few principals in the world and no one knows if there are others in Mars. The main issue here is the rule on deploying not less than 50 seamen within one year upon approval of license. Just by playing with the definition of the new market rule, the POEA can make the life of an agency owner extremely difficult. Renewal of license can be denied until the agency owners beg for mercy. For the information of the agency owners, the issuance of license for the new applicant (Section 1, Rule II of the POEA rules) is different and distinct from the renewal of license (Section 17, Rule II, Book II of the POEA rules). 

There are manning agencies today being denied of renewal of their license because they failed to deploy 50 seamen in a year. The result is the gradual decay of manning agencies and the loss of employment to thousands of seafarers. Statistics released by POEA may not show this but you go to Luneta you will learn the truth. Agency owners must be protected and their rights to do business here should not be trampled upon. 

My suggestion to DOLE is to consider a newly acquired vessel. Not a newly accredited principal, as the new market. In this manner we will be giving an encouraging signal to foreign employers. 

3) The assumption of joint and solidary liability with the employer for all claims liabilities. This is not favorable because the current agency should not inherit the troubles on satisfying the claims of seafarers filed against the principal in other agency.

The problem with POEA now is that it is the main source of all troubles that our maritime industry experience today. It keeps on calling principals to come in and deploy our seafarers yet tricky provisions are there to squeeze them. It purports to help our seafarers yet its MTC is abusing them. It wants to protect the future of the seafarers yet it cannot account convincingly the seafarer contributions. What’s this, a trap?

EDITORIAL
Seafarers’ patriotic duties

SOUNDING LEAD
Seafarers have spoken
Capt. Reynold M. Sabay

UGONG NG MAKINA 
AT IKOT NG ELISE
Sobra sa training kulang sa galing
Engr. Nelson P. Ramirez

SPIRITUAL VOYAGE
Thanks, the most forgotten word
David B. Toring Jr., AOS-Cebu 

VAST HORIZON
The grace of humility
C/Engr. Rodolfo B. Virtudazo

THE LAW OF SEAFARERS
The meaning of due process
Atty. LeonardoVinz O. Ignacio

COMMENT
The POEA mess, 
a deadly trap
Capt. Leuel P. Oseña

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