A19. What will happen to the maritime labour Conventions adopted before 2006?

The existing 37 ILO maritime labour Conventions (36 Conventions and one Protocol) consolidated by the MLC, 2006 are now closed to further ratification and will be gradually phased out as countries that have ratified those Conventions ratify the MLC, 2006. Following the recommendations of the Special Tripartite Committee (STC) of the MLC, 2006 during its third meeting in April 2018, the Governing Body decided to classify 34 maritime-related instruments consolidated by the MLC, 2006 – including 22 Conventions – as outdated and placed an item on the agenda of the International Labour Conference of 2020 related to the abrogation of eight of conventions and withdrawal of nine Conventions and 11 Recommendations ²³ .The Governing Body also requested the Office to encourage countries bound by outdated Conventions to ratify the MLC, 2006. Countries that ratify the MLC, 2006 will no longer be bound by the previously ratified maritime Conventions that are revised by the MLC, 2006. Such Conventions will be denounced following the entry into force of the MLC, 2006 for the country. Countries that do not ratify the MLC, 2006 will remain bound by the existing Conventions they have ratified and which are still in force. They are required to continue to report on national implementation of such Conventions to the ILO supervisory system [see A38.]. Entry into force of the MLC, 2006 does not affect the remaining three maritime Conventions that are not consolidated in the MLC, 2006 [see A20.]. They will remain binding on States that have ratified them irrespective of the MLC, 2006. The ILO maritime Conventions dealing with fishing and with dockworkers are also not affected by the MLC, 2006. To find out which ILO Conventions a country has ratified, check the NORMLEX database (www.ilo.org/normlex), which is a comprehensive database with this information on the ILO public website.

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General questions about the MLC, 2006