C2.1.k. May a SEA without a fixed end date but specifying a period of flexible duration be considered in conformity with the MLC, 2006?

Standard A2.1, paragraph 4(g) of the MLC, 2006 requires that SEAs must in all cases contain information about the termination of the agreement and the conditions thereof. Although the reference to a “definite period” or a “fixed date” naturally implies a specific calendar date, there is nothing in the Convention which would prevent, in principle, a fixed period specified in the SEA from being exceptionally shortened by, or extended for, another limited fixed period thus setting a new expiry date. The ITF collective bargaining agreement– a negotiated global reference for the maritime industry in seafarers’ employment matters – offers a practical example in this connection: it provides that a fixed contract period may, for reasons of operational convenience only, be extended or reduced by one month. It is clear, therefore, that whether terminated upon the expiry of the basic fixed period, or 30 days before or after the original end date, the SEA in question would still qualify as an “agreement made for a definite period [including] the date fixed for its expiry”, as required under Standard A2.1(4)(g)(ii) of the MLC, 2006.

Seafarers’ employment agreements