ETF Maritime

18/08/2026

🌊 Europe wants to move more freight by inland waterways. But modal shift needs waterways – and workers – that can withstand a changing climate.

The current low water levels on European rivers are another reminder that ambitious targets alone are not enough.

Europe needs sustained investment in navigable waterways and resilient infrastructure, alongside innovation and new technologies. And resilience cannot mean asking workers to compensate through longer hours, greater flexibility or increased workloads.

As the EU’s NAIADES III Action Plan approaches the end of its implementation period, its follow-up must put climate resilience and the human dimension at its heart.

Because there can be no resilient inland waterways without a skilled, protected and valued workforce.

The current low water levels underline a fundamental challenge for European transport policy: if Europe wants to shift more freight towards inland waterways, it must ensure that the sector can remain reliable, competitive and socially sustainable in a changing climate.

16/07/2026

No Ocean Board without the workers!

The European Commission has excluded maritime and fisheries worker representation from the European Ocean Board. Together with our social partner Europêche, we have sent a joint letter to Commissioner Costas Kadis to protest this unacceptable decision.

The Ocean Board currently includes no representation of workers from the fisheries, maritime, and port sectors, even though environmental groups and various industry representatives have been given seats.

⚓︎ Workers are not an afterthought: The Commission's suggestion to consult trade unions only as "additional experts" on an ad-hoc basis is not enough. The social dimension must be an integral part of ocean governance.

⚓︎ No discussions on blue economy future without us: We cannot have a serious discussion about the blue economy while ignoring the men and women who make it possible.

⚓︎ Socio-economic viability is key: Environmental sustainability and decent working conditions must go hand in hand.

We urge the European Commission to immediately reconsider this decision and formally include the ETF as a full member of the European Ocean Board.

✉️ Read the joint letter
https://u.pcloud.link/publink/show?code=XZKylr5ZBC3ttFEPtSp73Vk5TupDahgoOPQV

📰 Read the Press Release
https://www.etf-europe.org/etf-and-its-social-partner-europeche-denounce-exclusion-from-the-european-ocean-board/

ETF and Europêche have strongly criticised the European Commission's decision to exclude maritime and fisheries worker representation from the newly established European Ocean Board

09/07/2026

🏗️ Working Together. Much Safer ✊🏽❤️

This week in Rotterdam, the ETF proudly launched the first training session of the EU-funded project "Working Together. Much Safer", bringing together dock workers and trade union representatives from ports across Europe.

We marked the beginning of a shared journey to strengthen occupational safety and health in the port sector through knowledge, cooperation and practical learning.

Participants exchanged experiences, discussed common challenges, and explored solutions to make Europe's ports safer workplaces for everyone. Because safety is a shared responsibility, improving working conditions requires the commitment of workers, trade unions, employers and all stakeholders across the sector.

This is only the first step: together, we are building stronger safety skills, fostering social dialogue, and laying the foundations for the European Network for Safety in Ports.

🟥 Thanks to all participants for your enthusiasm, engagement and valuable contributions. We look forward to the next training sessions and to continuing this important work together 💪🏼

09/07/2026

Safety at sea starts with proper training.

In a joint position paper, European social partners are calling on the European Commission to adopt an EU Directive implementing the STCW-F Convention, ensuring harmonised standards for the training, certification and watchkeeping of fishers across Europe.

A common legal framework would:
⚓ Improve safety at sea
🎓 Harmonise professional training and qualifications
🌍 Facilitate the free movement of skilled fishers across the EU
🤝 Help create a fairer and more attractive fisheries sector

It's time to bring the STCW-F Convention into EU law - find our core policy recommendations here: https://www.etf-europe.org/joint-press-release-european-social-partners-call-for-an-eu-directive-to-implement-the-stcw-f-convention/

Copa-Cogeca Europêche Bruxelles

08/07/2026

Yesterday, the joint ETF-Europeche project "Pillars of the sea 4" held its second steering committee meeting in Rome.

This project has the objective of implementing the EU social partners work program and focuses on three areas:

1⃣️Safer workplaces: developing occupational health and safety guidelines to submit to the International Labour Organization (ILO).
2⃣️Sector attractiveness: conducting qualitative research to identify why the European fishing sector struggles to attract talent and proposing clear areas of action.
3⃣️Enforcement of minimum social standards: drafting a legislative proposal to improve the control and enforcement of Directive 2017/159, which brings ILO C188 minimum standards into EU law.

A key highlight of the meeting was an interactive session with representatives from the Italian fisheries sector. Fishers, trade unionists, and cooperatives shared firsthand testimonies, local experiences, and innovative initiatives aimed at boosting awareness and drawing young people into the profession.

Read more about the project: https://www.etf-europe.org/how-do-we-make-europes-fishing-sector-safer-fairer-and-more-attractive-for-the-next-generation/

29/06/2026

ETF's Nikolaos Koletsis during the SAFETY4SEA Crew Welfare Week, 2026 with Thomas Boddy from the International Chamber of Shipping, John Lloyd FNI of The Nautical Institute, and David Parmeter of the Australian Mariners Welfare Society, moderated by Namrata Nadkarni:

“Fatigue and excessive workload need urgent addressing. It sits at the heart of many other welfare challenges; it affects safety, physical health, mental well-being, job satisfaction and ultimately retention. One of the key findings of the recent WMU research that was presented in an ETF event in Brussels was that seafarers are working on average 74.9 hours per week, far beyond what the ILO considers as decent working time. 53,3% work more than 72 hours/week and 11,7 % more than 91 hours/week (full report available here: https://www.etf-europe.org/landmark-report-reveals-labour-social-rights-gap-for-sea-workers-in-europe/?fbclid=IwZXh0bgNhZW0CMTAAYnJpZBExZFoxSjN3SmxzOWNLNnEzRHNydGMGYXBwX2lkEDIyMjAzOTE3ODgyMDA4OTIAAR7bTiur3pghhoqSEns5I9aL3akuUnFyQGgOzLVU8yM23uFbRpalZoyeDEdtzQ_aem_G7M4DXdtV1jNznGasZN9QQ )

We cannot praise seafarers for their resilience, for their heroic contribution to keep the supply chain open during any crisis and to say that people are the most important asset, but when it comes to crucial decisions, to be treated as a cost rather than a strategic investment.

Watch the session here: https://www.youtube.com/live/ntijgIlwR_Q

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25/06/2026

Today Andrea Albertazzi, ETF Senior Policy Officer for Fisheries, spoke at the event "Charting CFP Reform to Secure the Future of Europe's Fisheries and Coastal Communities", co-organised by CPMR and the Xunta de Galicia.

He presented the ETF view on the evaluation of the Common Fisheries Policy, highlighting the urgent need to strengthen the CFP's social dimension, which the evaluation itself shows has fallen short significantly. A reform of the CFP is necessary to tackle these policy flaws and restore a balance between the three dimensions of sustainability: environmental, economic, and social.

Key areas of action highlighted during the event include:

🔹Fleet renewal: Introducing a "social tonnage" to ensure better and more ample living and working space on board for the crew.

🔹The landing obligation: Addressing current social implications and evaluating If the instrument is fit for purpose.

🔹Safety and skills: Transposing the IMO STCW-F standards for basic safety training into an EU Directive to raise safety levels, enhance skills, and elevate the profile of the fishing profession.

CPMR - Conference of peripheral maritime regions

25/06/2026

⚓️Today, on the International Day of the Seafarer, the European Transport Workers' Federation stands in solidarity and pays tribute to the millions of seafarers around the world who spend months away from their families, facing very demanding working conditions and increasing pressures at sea.

We must never forget that seafarers have been among the heroes of every major crisis in recent years—from the pandemic and the war in Ukraine to the Red Sea crisis and the recent tensions in the Persian Gulf. Despite significant risks and uncertainty, they continue to keep global trade moving and supply chains open. In return, they deserve safe working environments, fair wages, decent working and living conditions, fair treatment, access to shore leave, strong legal and social protections, and strong career prospects.

ETF calls on Flag States, employers, all maritime stakeholders, and international institutions to focus on creating high-value, quality and sustainable work at sea, and guaranteeing that every seafarer is treated with the dignity, respect, and recognition they deserve.

24/06/2026

Yesterday, the Sectoral Social Dialogue Committee for Sea Fisheries met to discuss key challenges facing the sector.

Social partners exchanged views with DG MARE on the outcome of the Evaluation of the Common Fisheries Policy and the latest EU Fleet Report. ETF highlighted that, in light of the sector’s ongoing decline, as acknowledged by the European Commission, there is an urgent need to adapt EU fisheries policies to fully integrate the social dimension and address the needs of fishers and coastal communities.

Discussing the EU Fleet Report, social partners stressed the importance of modernising the fishing fleet to improve working and living conditions on board. Investments are needed to provide safer vessels, better accommodation for crews, enhanced safety standards, and modern facilities that can help make the profession more attractive to current and future generations of fishers.

A sustainable future for European fisheries requires not only healthy fish stocks, but also decent jobs, safe working conditions, and attractive careers at sea.

24/06/2026

ETF's Nikolaos Koletsis will be speaking during the SAFETY4SEA Crew Welfare Week, 2026. Join us today in the conversation during the Panel discussion on “Industry Stakeholders Panel – Driving initiatives beyond compliance.”

The 6th Crew Welfare Week is happening from Tuesday to Thursday, 23-25 June 2026, celebrating the Day of the Seafarer.