Russian Union Wins Compensation for Death Aboard a Sanctioned Tanker
The Russian Seafarers' Union (SUR) has begun publicizing cases of labor rights enforcement against "shadow fleet" tankers, the lightly-regulated and questionably-insured vessels that carry most of Russia's oil to market. The calibrated "price cap" G7 sanction regime has restricted Russia's access to Western tanker owners and insurers, creating business opportunities for anonymous players who operate along the edges of maritime law and practice - and are occasionally caught shorting their seafarers.
Last month, the SUR reported that it had secured the detention of the tanker Unity, a sanctioned vessel owned in Moscow and managed in the UAE. Russian enforcement actions against the Russia-facing shadow fleet are rare, but SUR convinced the port captain in Murmansk to detain Unity for multiple violations, including an estimated $90,000 in unpaid back wages. The vessel had just changed legal owner, flag state and insurer, and the crew were concerned that their employment contracts would not be honored.
On Monday, the SUR reported that its Black Sea branch had pursued compensation for the death of a second engineer aboard the tanker Sun (IMO 9293117). Like many shadow fleet vessels, Sun "did not have a valid insurance policy," and the owner refused to pay any compensation to the seafarer's family.
"Not only was the amount of compensation for death not specified in the contract, but there was no information about insurance at all. In addition, it turned out that the insurance policy on the tanker was invalid," union official Alexey Belyakov reported.
The union got involved in the matter at the family's request, and it reached out to the flag registry of Antigua and Barbuda. However, the registry said that Sun was no longer flagged in Antigua, so it could not assist. Sun's paperwork now declares that it is flagged in Benin, but shipping database Equasis records that this declaration is false - a common shadow fleet practice.
Without help from the insurer or the flag state, the SUR reached out to Sun's owner. By the union's account, the shipowner ignored all requests and only got in touch when the union contacted the flag state. Then the owner brought in Turkish lawyers to negotiate, without success. At last, a representative of the shipowner in Russia joined the negotiations, and the SUR settled on a final payment of $125,000 for the family.
In a statement, the union cautioned seafarers to read their employment contracts carefully before signing, with particular attention to insurance and medical care - and to contact their union for advice if there are red flags.