For a bowl of soup

In fact, that's how much the employer estimated the work of two cadets.

The cadets applied to the   Kaliningrad Territorial Organization of the Seafarers’ Union of Russia (KTO SUR), one of them worked on board  m/v Dzintarjura (IMO 8107050, flag  Guinea-Bissau) from October 2022 to March 2023, the other worked on board m/v Dzintars (IMO 8606680, flag  Guinea-Bissau) from May 2022 to January 2023. Both had been employed for work on trawlers through dubious agents, whom they did not even personally meet. They received job offers by phone, and a little later they got tickets to Africa to join the vessels.

Their stories are a dead ringer. The guys went to work without having got any documents, even contracts of employment. The KTO SUR Chairman Lyudmila Izmalkova notes that these trawlers are always at sea - they do not call at ports: crews are brought to them by transfer ships. “Who will check what is going on there? - she asks.

The guys worked for half a year as seamen. For their work they received $1,000 for the first month and $500 upon signing off. And that's all.

- It turns out, they salary was  RUB17,000 per month, - she calculated.

According to the cadets, they were promised to be paid   $1000 each month: allegedly, this information was posted on the bulkheads. All they got after signing off from the vessel were certificates of seafarer service on ship.

-Thus, the shipowner saved a lot on cadets,” Lyudmila Izmalkova added. – And this is only two cases we know about. The cadets told that the employer managed to deceive not only them, but almost all the crew members of both ships, with the exception of those who were personally acquainted with the businessman.

Such a negative experience of work at sea the cadets got: it is not known whether they will want to go to work at sea again, but they will definitely remember for the rest of their lives that the most important thing   in any job is an employment contract, which sets the amount of payments, the rights and obligations of the parties. “It is impossible to prove anything without this document,” - Lyudmila Izmalkova outlined.

The second advice to seafarers is come to the trade union before the voyage and make inquiries about the shipowner you are going to work for. By the way, the SUR warned about the unscrupulousness of the Latvian company that owns Dzintar- vessels  back in 2016.

Source: KTO SUR