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      Nautilus to campaign for workers' rights in race to automation

      9 October 2019

      Image:Union members voted to ensure maritime professionals are not overlooked in the drive to implement new technology. Image: Getty Images
      Union members voted to ensure maritime professionals are not overlooked in the drive to implement new technology. Image: Getty Images

      Nautilus International members at the 2019 Nautilus General Meeting voted unanimously to ensure that workers are not overlooked in the drive to implement 'smart' shipping systems and automation.

      The motion, passed at the Union's main policy-setting forum in Rotterdam on Wednesday 9 September, also proposed working with other unions, owners, operators and maritime authorities to develop new training programmes to furnish seafarers with the relevant skills and knowledge needed to work with new and emerging technologies.

      Nautilus undertook to continuously campaign to ensure that maritime professionals are at the heart of policy developments and International Maritime Organization (IMO) and International Labour Organisation (ILO) deliberations on automation.

      A Nautilus Federation survey published in February 2018, 'Future Proofed - What maritime professionals think about autonomous shipping', found that 84% of seafarers consider automation to be a threat to jobs, 85% see it as a threat to safety and almost 80% believe that radical changes in training and certification are required.

      A separate two-year study published in February 2019, undertaken by the World Maritime University and funded by the International Transport Workers' Federation, concluded that new technology will cut global demand for seafarers by around 22% between now and 2040.

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