The International Transport Workers’ Federation (ITF) says it has secured $1m in unpaid wages for the crews of two livestock carriers abandoned in Australia and Singapore.
The ITF said the Hong Kong-based shipowner of both vessels had a “long history” of abandoning crew and that its vessels have been detained before for “violating safety and crew welfare rules”.
Thirteen Filipino seafarers who spent five months aboard the 11,670-gt Yangtze Harmony (built 2004) in Singapore have secured back pay of $429,972, according to the ITF.
The ship’s owners are said to have abandoned the vessel and its crew after the ship after it was arrested in October 2022 over an unpaid bunker bill.
Meanwhile, in Australia, the ITF said the 30-strong crew of the sistership Yangtze Fortune (built 2005) also secured their unpaid wages, taking the amount recovered for the two ships to more than $1m.
However, the crew of the Yangtze Fortune only had to wait a matter of weeks to secure their back pay as well as flights home.
The ITF said this was only possible because it was able to lobby to have the Yangtze Fortune’s flag state reduce the ship’s minimum manning levels.
“The ITF was able to make the case as soon as it became clear that the vessel would not be leaving anchorage anytime soon,” the ITF said.
For the Yangtze Fortune, the change saw its minimum number fall from 30 to just 16.
Those remaining original crew eventually boarded a flight to Manila in late March and a replacement crew, supplied by the ship’s new owner, relieved them.
“We’re all very relieved to see the crew of the Yangtze Harmony finally going home, better yet with half a million dollars of their owed wages in hand,” Ian Bray, national coordinator of the Australian ITF Inspectorate, said.
“It’s good to see the 13 crew members of the [Yangtze] Harmony joining the 30 of the [Yangtze] Fortune who also went home recently.
“In both Singapore and Australia, the ITF has been effective in our interventions to see the two crews freed, paid what they’re owed for time on board, and repatriated home safely to their families.”
S&P Global’s International Ships Register indicates that the Yangtze Fortune was sold at auction in Australia to Dalian-based Hop Shun Shipping, with its management assigned to Dalian Apollo Marine Service.
The ISR database has yet to reflect new ownership details for the Yangtze Harmony following its auction sale in Singapore.
