Competing for seafaring labour: Social security and agency employment in Chinese shipping

Abstract

This paper discusses one strategy that Chinese crewing agencies adopt to compete with each other in the global seafarer labour supplying market. This strategy is related to Chinese seafarers' social insurance participation. It shows that crewing agencies utilised a dual workforce -'company-owned seafarers' and 'externally hired seafarers' . Externally hired seafarers, though in precarious employment, are offered higher salaries in place of social insurance coverage. By contrast, company-owned seafarers are paid less, though enjoy social insurance arranged by agencies. This strategy serves to segment the seafarer labour market, conceal the level playing field and help agencies recruit seafarers cost-effectively, though in violation of labour rights. This paper argues that this strategy grows out of the competitive landscape co-shaped by the national regulatory and institutional settings and the global structure of the shipping industry.

Fatigue during the COVID-19 pandemic: The experiences of Chinese seafarers

“…They also recruited some ratings through crewing agencies on single-voyage contracts. As state-owned companies enjoying government financial support, the two companies provided directly employed seafarers with better social insurance coverage, more non-wage benefits, and better working conditions than companies under other types of ownership [6] . Furthermore, the crew sizes in the two companies were bigger than the market average.…”

Asia Pacific and the global maritime industry: Hierarchies, vulnerabilities, solidarities

“…Maritime scholars have examined how globalization has shaped and has been shaped by the modern maritime industry (Campling and Colás, 2021;DeSombre, 2006), and how neoliberalism has structured employment and labor practices in the industry (Knott, 2017;Lu, 2011). In particular, the maritime industry has implemented widespread contractualization (Chen and Tang, 2021;Pia, 2016). The practice of hiring temporary staff has seen a global expansion across business sectors in the past decades (Bohle et al, 2011;Carter, 2022;Coe et al, 2007;Vosko, 2000) and has led to increased precarity and the diminution of workers' rights and protection (McKay et al, 2012;Strauss and Fudge, 2013).…”

Chinese seafarers’ use of the Internet and social media to promote labor rights

“…In 2020, it boasted to have 592,998 registered seafarers (MSA, 2021). While it has a large national fleet manned by Chinese seafarers, China also has a well-established crewing industry (Chen and Tang, 2022; Zhao et al, 2016). Chinese seafarers started working on foreign-flagged merchant cargo vessels in 1979 (Tang, 2022a).…”

“…The agreement states that seafarers may make complaints to the Union, which can help resolve disputes through mediation. More broadly, the employment of seafarers in China is also governed by the Labor Contract Law (LCL) which has been in force since 2008 and covers all Chinese workers (Chen and Tang, 2022; Tang and Zhang 2021). In this context, the CS-CBA further states that seafarers may also settle their employment disputes through legal means in accordance with the LCL.…”