Port and flag State control (PSC and FSC) are conducted in accordance with the International Maritime Organization’s (IMO) and International Labour Organization’s (ILO) requirements. Primarily, compliance activities may involve issuing deficiencies or a detention (a prohibition on the vessel being allowed to depart the port).
In 2023, AMSA conducted a total of 2797 initial PSC inspections resulting in 176 detentions (11 of which were MLC-related).
MLC compliance is one of the core elements of all PSC and FSC inspections. When investigating an MLC complaint, AMSA may attend onboard to conduct an MLC inspection. Where this inspection identifies deficiencies, AMSA will then undertake a port or flag State control inspection, and this will likely include a more detailed inspection. Figure 14 shows the number of MLC deficiencies issued following PSC inspections.
Figure 14 Total number of MLC deficiencies issued per year including MLC deficiencies per inspection, 2019-2023.
Figure 15 Number of PSC MLC related detentions per year 2019-2023
Figure 16 MLC defiencies as a proportion of all PSC deficiencies in 2023
Further information on the rate of MLC deficiencies by vessel type is available in the AMSA Annual Inspections report .
PSC deficiency data related to MLC issues
Figure 17 shows the number of PSC MLC deficiencies issued by MLC title in 2023, originating from a more detailed inspection or a PSC inspection.
Regulation 4.3, dealing with health and safety protection and accident prevention, is the major deficiency item identified and is reflected in the number of Title 4 deficiencies below. While most complaints were related to Title 2 – Conditions of employment (as seen in Table 3), PSC MLC deficiency data has identified that health and safety protection which includes bullying and harassment)is the most frequently recorded MLC deficiency on foreign-flagged vessels.
Title 1 – Minimum requirements for seafarers to work on vessels
Title 2 – Conditions of employment
Title 3 – Accommodation, recreational facilities, food and catering
Title 4 – Health protection, medical care, welfare and social security protection (including bullying and harassment)
Title 5 – Compliance and enforcement
Figure 17 PSC MLC deficiencies originating from a complaint or PSC inspection.
FSC deficiency data related to MLC issues
In 2023, a total of 96 initial FSC inspections were carried out. 29 MLC deficiencies were issued across a total of 19 regulated Australian vessels (16 vessels with one deficiency, 2 vessels with two deficiencies and one vessel with more than two deficiencies).
Figure 18 shows a breakdown of MLC deficiencies by MLC Title issued during FSC inspections on regulated Australian vessels with Title 4 - Health Protection, medical care, welfare and social security protection representing the highest number.
Figure 18 FSC MLC deficiencies by MLC Title and whether related to complaint
Glossary – Fatality Type
| Fatality Type | Definition |
| Operational | Fatality that occurred in relation to the operation of the vessel. |
| Illness/disease | Any death of a seafarer on a vessel resulting from any illness or disease that is not the result of an occupational injury. Includes deaths from natural causes where the death is a natural progression from disease1. |
| Person Overboard (Presumed Deceased) | Any loss of a seafarer resulting from unintentional departure from the vessel into the water where the seafarer’s body is not recovered. |
| Suicide | Any death of a seafarer on a vessel where the death resulted from a self-inflicted injury2 . |
Footnotes
1 Refer to the ILO list of occupational diseases (revised 2010), available at: http://www.ilo.org/safework/info/publications/WCMS_125137/lang--en/index.htm
2 Use of term injury rather than harm as this is consistent with ILO definition of occupational injury (which includes fatal injuries).