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Bulkcarrier banned from Australian waters for non payment of crew

The Australian Maritime Safety Authority (AMSA) banned two bulk carriers from Australian ports on Sep 11, 2019, for breaching the most basic rights of seafarers. The "Fortune Genius" in Gladstone and the "Xing Jing Hai" in Brisbane have been banned for a period of 12 months and 18 months respectively for failing to pay crew their wages in full and on time. AMSA surveyors boarded the "Fortune Genius" in Gladstone after receiving a complaint via the International Transport Workers’ Federation (ITF). AMSA’s investigation revealed the crew of the "Fortune Genius" had been deliberately under paid by the operator, New Fortune Genius Management, by about A$100,000 ($69,000) for the months of April to August. The ship had been operating with two sets of wage accounts, one showing the amount of wages the crew should have been paid and the other showing what they had actually been paid. The ship was immediately detained. On Sep 11, AMSA surveyors also boarded the "Xing Jing Hai" in Brisbane following similar complaints from the ITF. The complaints related to unpaid crew wages, and the operator, Dalian Ocean Prosperity International Ship Management, has previously been warned over unpaid wages with a sister ship, the Xing Ning Hai. AMSA’s investigation revealed the crew of the Xing Jing Hai had been paid late for the months of May and June, while wages for July and August amounting to about A$140,000 were still outstanding. In July 2018, AMSA had detained the sister ship "Xing Ning Hai" after it was discovered that crew were owed about A$215,000. It was an unprecedented amount for a ship caught in Australian waters. An investigation found the manning agent had failed to pass on the crew’s wages, and the operator committed to terminating its contract with the manning agent to ensure it would never happen again. The operator was issued with a once-off warning. AMSA re-inspected the "Xing Ning Hai" in Port Kembla on September 11 after receiving new allegations from the ITF. The allegations were not substantiated, said AMSA. However the vessel will continue to be subjected to a heightened inspection regime due to the previous issues and the active ban against its sister ship "Xing Jing Hai". Any further transgressions by Dalian Ocean Prosperity International Ship Management can expect a very robust response. AMSA General Manager of Operations Allan Schwartz issued both ships with bans, preventing them from entering or approaching any Australian port – 12 months for the "Fortune Genius" and 18 months for the "Xing Jing Hai" as the failure to pay crew their wages in full and on time is a reprehensible breach of the Maritime Labour Convention and one that AMSA will not tolerate. The operator of the "Fortune Genius" has acted in a dishonest and predatory fashion towards its seafarers, while the operator of the "Xing Jing Hai" has demonstrated a systemic failure to ensure its seafarers get paid properly. The ITF assistant coordinator Matt Purcell said the "Xing Jing Hai" was in Brisbane to deliver clinker to Cement Australia, while the "Xing Ning Hai" was in Port Kembla to carry steel from Bluescope. The "Fortune Genius" was actually enroute from Gladstone to Taean with an ETA as of Sep 29.

Chinese bulk carrier detained in Gladstone / Australia with crew owed $64,000

A Chinese-owned bulk carrier chartered to carry coal to South Korea has been detained at the Port of Gladstone by the Australian Maritime Safety Authority (AMSA) after crewmembers reported they were owed tens of thousands of dollars in unpaid wages. An inspector from the International Transport Workers’ Federation boarded the Panama-flagged Fortune Genius when it docked in Gladstone yesterday, finding eight crew members from Myanmar who had been underpaid $8,000 dollars each during the past six months.

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