Union claims marine workplace raid nets unpaid wages

TONY EASTLEY: More than a quarter of a million dollars of unpaid wages has been recovered for international seafarers during a workplace sting at the port of Newcastle.

The International Transport Workers' Federation spent days checking the wages and living conditions of international sailors.

In one case it says it found a company hadn't paid its crew since October.

The checks are in response to three suspicious deaths over the past few months on board the coal carrier the Sage Sagittarius.

Reporter Will Ockenden went along on one of the union inspections in Newcastle for AM.

WILL OCKENDEN: So we're just standing on the bridge of the ship and we're looking out across the Newcastle Port. What kind of ships are they over there?

DEAN SUMMERS: These are all coal terminals. So you can see as we look down, there's one, two, three, four

WILL OCKENDEN: The Port of Newcastle is the king of coal. It has the world's largest coal exporting terminals, with 122 million tonnes of the stuff sent overseas last financial year.

It's only an hour before the Kwelin - a container ship at 183 meters long - sails for Townsville. Its 28 crew members are scurrying around, getting everything in order.

Dean Summers is from the International Transport Workers' Federation and he is going over the books, checking conditions and making sure the crew has been paid.

DEAN SUMMERS: Captain can I ask you for a crew list

WILL OCKENDEN: The workplace checks are in part because of three separate deaths on the coal carrier the Sage Sagittarius, which hauls coal from Newcastle to Japan.

One crew member went missing in international waters, another fell down some stairs and the third was found in the ship's coal conveyer-belt. All the deaths happened over six weeks.

TONY BAKER: Sounds very suspicious to me, if there's, you know

WILL OCKENDEN: On board the Kwelin, Captain Tony Baker is doing some last minute paperwork.

In his office, computers and communications equipment are bolted to the walls, paper binders are lined up on the shelf, locked into place with big wooden beams.

Do you ever hear stories about people going missing?

TONY BAKER: I've heard of it, yes.

WILL OCKENDEN: How often?

TONY BAKER: It's not a common event but I've definitely heard of it happening. Somebody's upset somebody else and disappeared.

WILL OCKENDEN: The Kwelin's crew is a mix of nationalities. Some are from Ukraine, the captain is British. But like much of the shipping industry, most of the crew are from developing nations where wages are cheap.

Filipino Layo Ogensa says the shipping industry is tough but it's good work if you can get it.

LAYO OGENSA: Sometimes we have problem with food, and sometimes crazy people, you have to know their attitude, how to manage these kinds of attitudes because every person, they have different attitudes. But normally, not a problem.

WILL OCKENDEN: Do you have problems on this ship?

LAYO OGENSA: No, we have a very good coordination here. But me, I stick here since 1994 to this company. This company is very nice, very good.

WILL OCKENDEN: The International Transport Workers' Federation's Dean Summers says of 22 inspections, one shipping company owes $250,000 to its mainly Indian, Filipino and Fijian crew.

And as three different police investigations into the three deaths on board the Sage Sagittarius drag on, Dean Summers hopes for answers.

DEAN SUMMERS: If nobody kicks up about the three suspicious deaths, who is going to do that? Certainly not the police. They're not in a position to do that. So what we need again for the Sage Sagittarius is a coordinated response, if for no other reason, to show some respect for those dead seafarers and their families.

TONY EASTLEY: Dean Summers from the International Transport Workers' Federation, ending Will Ockenden's report.

Source: http://www.abc.net.au/am/content/2012/s3635454.htm

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