Seafarers now have a formal right to decline voyages that pass through the Middle East Gulf area, including transit via the Strait of Hormuz, after the threat level for that region was raised to its highest point, leading maritime labour and industry organisations said on Thursday.
Industry observers reported that roughly 300 vessels are currently at anchor on both sides of the Strait as tensions rise amid a U.S.-led military campaign involving Iran. Since February 28, nine ships have suffered damage and at least one seafarer has been killed.
The protections were set out in arrangements finalised on Thursday between mariners and commercial ship operators under the framework known as the International Bargaining Forum, or IBF. Under those terms, seafarers may refuse to sail into the designated area. If they exercise that right, their employer must pay for their repatriation and provide compensation equivalent to two months of basic wages.
Additional measures agreed by the parties were announced by the International Transport Workers' Federation in a statement. The organisation said seafarers assigned to operate in the high-risk zone will receive higher pay, and in the event of death or disability compensation will be doubled.
"Today’s designation ensures that seafarers on vessels covered by IBF agreements have critical protections if they operate in this dangerous region," ITF General Secretary Stephen Cotton said. "The fact we have to take these measures at all is a damning indictment of the situation facing seafarers today. No worker should have to risk being killed or maimed simply for doing their job – particularly when that job is transporting the oil and goods that keep the world’s economies running."
The negotiated protections apply to vessels covered by IBF agreements, offering defined financial and logistical support for crew members who choose not to transit the high-risk waters, and enhanced compensation for those who continue to operate there.
The measures come as shipping traffic and crew safety concerns intensify in the region. The agreements aim to balance the operational needs of commercial shipping with the safety and welfare of seafarers facing elevated threats in the Gulf and Strait of Hormuz.