Crew Agreements, Crew Lists and the Master's Contract

Read first: the MLC 2006 and the Seafarer Employment Agreement and how MCA notices work. This topic then covers the older UK crew agreement, the lists of crew and the master’s own contract.

What a Crew Agreement Is

In short: a crew agreement is the written employment contract between the owners and the crew of a UK ship or yacht. One document covers the whole crew.

• It is a collective contract: one set of clauses, signed by every crew member who joins (UK Government, Hiring crew: crew agreements).
• Legal basis: Merchant Shipping Act 1995, s.25, and the Merchant Shipping (Crew Agreements, Lists of Crew and Discharge of Seamen) Regulations 1991 (SI 1991/2144), the “Crew Agreement Regulations”. Regulation 4(1) sets the exemptions.
• The form and clauses must be approved by the MCA on behalf of the Secretary of State (MSA 1995 s.25(3)).
• Since the MLC, most commercial UK ships use individual Seafarer Employment Agreements (SEAs) instead (MGN 477 (M)). The crew agreement survives for the vessels outside the MLC (MGN 474 (M)).
• Old guidance: MGN 148 (M) (merchant ships) and MGN 149 (M) (yachts). For crew agreement content the source of today is MGN 474 (M); the SEA rules sit in MGN 477 (M).

Who Still Needs a Crew Agreement

In short: the MLC rules (and so the SEA) apply to all sea-going UK ships wherever they are, and to non-UK ships in UK waters. Vessels outside the MLC keep the crew agreement.

• MLC rules apply to: sea-going UK ships anywhere, non-UK ships in UK waters (MGN 477 (M)). These use SEAs.
• MLC rules do not apply to (MGN 477 (M); MGN 474 (M)):
  • pleasure vessels;
  • fishing vessels (they use Fishermen’s Work Agreements, MGN 583 (F));
  • ships of traditional build;
  • warships or naval auxiliaries;
  • vessels not ordinarily engaged in commercial activities.
• Those of them that already needed a crew agreement keep it: the Crew Agreement Regulations 1991 stay in force for them (MGN 474 (M)).
• Non-MLC yachts (private pleasure yachts): no SEA needed, but a crew agreement is required if the yacht makes a voyage other than a coastal voyage on which more than 4 crew are paid wages (MGN 474 (M)).
• Coastal voyage = between places in the British Isles (including the Republic of Ireland), or out and back to one, with no call outside those islands (MGN 474 (M); MGN 149 (M)).
• Royal Navy warships need no crew agreement; a naval auxiliary registered as a merchant ship keeps one unless it adopts SEAs (MGN 474 (M)).
• On the bridge: a private 40 m motor yacht with 6 paid crew cruising from Southampton to the Med needs a crew agreement. The same yacht with 4 paid crew, or staying on a coastal voyage, does not.

What a Crew Agreement Contains

In short: a cover, a crew list, a list of under-18s and exempt people, and the contract clauses.

• Every crew agreement has (UK Government, Hiring crew: crew agreements):
  • a cover with the details of the ship and its owners;
  • an up-to-date crew list with names, dates of birth and addresses;
  • a list of anyone on board who is under 18 or exempt from the crew agreement;
  • the contractual clauses for each crew member.
• The clauses must state (Hiring crew guide; MGN 149 (M)):
  • the name of the crew member;
  • the voyage(s) the agreement covers (and its limits or duration);
  • the job description (capacity);
  • pay, hours and leave (see hours of rest);
  • the notice needed and how the agreement can be ended.
• The forms (MGN 148 (M); MGN 149 (M)):

• Pay must be written as a rate for each seafarer: “As agreed” is not acceptable (MGN 148 (M); MGN 149 (M)).

Duration, Signing On and the Paperwork

In short: a crew agreement lasts up to 12 months. Then a new one must be opened.

• Up to 12 months, then draw up a new agreement (Hiring crew guide; MGN 474 (M)).
• The MCA may approve indefinite agreements, normally only for vessels in the Near Coastal Area (repatriation costs) (MGN 474 (M); MGN 148 (M)).
• Opening: the employer or master signs the cover and the clauses. Each crew member reads the clauses and signs on the ALC 1(a) when joining, and signs off when leaving (MGN 149 (M); Hiring crew guide).
• A copy is displayed on board where the crew can read it (ALC 6) (MGN 474 (M)).
• Crew joining or leaving: tell the owners/managers by the quickest means, so they hold an up-to-date list ashore (MGN 148 (M); MGN 149 (M)).
• Closing: the agreement, the lists of crew and the Official Log Book for the same period go to a superintendent or proper officer within 3 days of expiry, and on to the Registry of Shipping and Seamen (Hiring crew guide; MGN 474 (M)).
• Substitutes may not be signed on more than 2 hours before the time fixed for sailing (MGN 474 (M)).

Exemption from a Crew Agreement

In short: the Secretary of State (the MCA in practice) may exempt a vessel or a person, if the seafarers are adequately protected another way.

• Typical case: people employed on a company contract instead of the crew agreement (MGN 474 (M); MGN 149 (M)).
• On a yacht, the nanny, bodyguards, entertainment staff and usually the captain have their own contracts and do not sign the agreement (Hiring crew guide).
• People who do not sign are still listed: they go on the ALC 1(b).

The Master’s Contract of Employment

In short: the master’s contract is separate from the contract between the employer and the “seamen” (the crew, officers included). The master signs the ALC 1(b), not the ALC 1(a).

• For the crew agreement rules the master is not a “seaman”. So the master does not sign on the ALC 1(a) with the crew who are party to the agreement.
• On joining, the new master writes their particulars on the ALC 1(b), the list of people exempt from signing, with certificate and endorsement details at the foot of the page (MGN 149 (M); MGN 474 (M)).
• The master often signs the agreement on behalf of the owner (cover and clauses), which is one more reason they are not a party as crew (MGN 149 (M)).
• Supernumeraries such as contractors working on board also go on the ALC 1(b) (MGN 149 (M)).
• On the bridge: a relief captain joins a yacht mid-season. They sign the ALC 1(b) with their CoC and endorsement numbers; the crew already on the ALC 1(a) stay as they are.

Crew Lists

In short: the master gives the owner an up-to-date crew list at the start of every voyage, and reports changes. If the ship is lost, it tells rescuers who is missing.

• Who and when: the master (or skipper) of a UK ship gives the owner a crew list at the start of each journey (UK Government, Hiring crew: crew lists).
• Changes during the journey: the master must tell the owner.
• Why: if the ship is lost at sea, the list shows who is missing.
• Where it goes: the owner hands it to an MCA Marine Office or sends it to the Registry of Shipping and Seamen (RSS) in Cardiff (Hiring crew guide).
• On demand: the RSS may ask for the crew list on any date; it must be supplied within 28 days (MGN 474 (M); MGN 148 (M)).
• The crew list is also on the list of documents carried on board, beside the crew agreement, the passenger list and the list of young persons.