The Panhellenic Maritime Federation calls for the review of the reduced compositions in coastal shipping, in order to ensure the safety of maritime transport. With a letter to the Minister of Shipping and Insular Policy Yiannis Plakiotakis, the head of the Coast Guard Vice-Admiral Georgios Alexandrakis and the Directorate of Maritime Labor, the seamen’s trade union requests the repeal or amendment of Law 4150/2013.

They point out the need for the establishment of a new legislative framework that fully responds to today’s real needs of ships and seafaring in order to fully ensure humane working conditions and above all the safety of ships, passengers and crew. “We have repeatedly emphasized and we emphasize again that the safety of ships, routes and passengers and crew is and must be above any spirit of business speculation and must not for any reason be sacrificed on the altar of any expediency,” says PNO.

He also adds that in the continuous joint inspections carried out by the Federation on coastal shipping vessels, continuous violations of the maximum employment limit of the crews are found in most cases, with a prominent position in the specialties of Chamberlains, Cooks and Financial Officers. “It is no coincidence that most of the provisions of increased force have been enacted worldwide, in which it is emphasized that under no circumstances is it permissible to violate the employment limits determined by these provisions, since these violations mathematically and directly affect the safety levels with all the adverse consequences” emphasizes the Panhellenic Maritime Federation.