Skatteudvalget 2019-20, Skatteudvalget 2019-20, Skatteudvalget 2019-20
L 72 , L 72 A , L 72 B
Offentligt
Danish Shipowners' Association
TRANSLATED VERSION
Annex 1
Description of the historical background for the development of the DIS act and the DIS Main Agree-
ment
1 June 2016
The parties in the maritime labour market that want to contribute to establishing and maintaining a strong
maritime industry in Denmark have, since 1997, had a formalised cooperation, which is currently consolidated
in the DIS Main Agreement of 28 February 2013.
The DIS Main Agreement
The first agreement on cooperation made was a direct follow-up on the recommendations of the so-called
"Funder Committee" in 1996 (Report no. 1312, March 1996
"A future for Danish shipping"). This commit-
tee, which had been established as a consequence of a Parliamentary debate in 1995, recommended that the
two sides of industry formulated a set of rules of the game to ensure that the collective agreements concluded
with foreign organisations were made at an "internationally acceptable level", while at the same time ensuring
that the Danish trade unions respected the shipowners' right to conclude collective agreements with foreign
organisations, thereby ensuring the competitiveness of Danish shipping.
The agreement was a charter stating that the shipowners would not conclude agreements below the inter-
national level and containing the shipowners' acceptance of the trade unions' possible presence during such
negotiations in order to "ensure" that the agreements met this condition. On the part of the shipowners, the
parties to the agreement were the Shipowners' Association of 1895 and the Shipowners' Association for Small
Ships (now merged into the Shipowners' Association of 2010) and the Danish Shipowners' Association, and
on the part of the wage earners, they were the Danish Association of Navigating Officers (now Danish
Maritime Officers), the Danish Engineers' Association, the Danish Radio Officers' Association of 1917, the
Danish Metalworkers' Association and the Semi-Skilled Workers' Union in Denmark (now 3F).
In October 2000, the parties renewed the agreement for a two-year period and, on the part of the wage earners,
the group was extended to include the National Danish Restaurant Trade Union (now 3F) and the Danish
Maritime Catering Union (now the Maritime Division of the Danish Metalworkers' Union). The new agree-
ment meant, inter alia, that regular meetings of the DIS Contact Committee were introduced, just as it con-
tained a number of obligations on the employer side, inter alia an action plan to "strengthen the maritime in-
dustry and the employment of Danish seafarers at an internationally competitive level". When the agreement
was about to be renewed, agreement was not reached with the SID (3F) and the National Danish Restaurant
Trade Union (RBF). Consequently, the new three-year agreement of 1 March 2002 did not include SID/RBF.
In connection with this agreement, a framework agreement was drawn up, which described in more detail the
minimum level to be included in collective agreements with foreign trade unions.
The peace and quiet that had been expected with a three-year agreement did, however, not become reality
since the International Transport Workers' Federation (ITF)
at the suggestion of the Danish Seamen's
Union/SID
adopted a resolution making it possible to declare ships registered in the Danish International
Register of Shipping as ships flying a so-called flag of convenience (FOC).
L 72a - 2019-20 - Endeligt svar på spørgsmål 35: MFU spm. om at oversende korrespondance/afrapportering, som regeringen har foretaget til FN-organisationen ILO m.v., til skatteministeren
The unions that participated in the DIS Contact Committee took sharp issue with the ITF decision and the
Contact Committee showed its legitimacy by ensuring that the ITF did not declare any ships FOC. It can be
added that the resolution and the actions of the SID (3F) were also judged by the Industrial Tribunal, which
established in its ruling that the steps taken in the struggle had been illegal. The SID was given a DKK 3 mil-
lion fine.
Faced with these challenges, the Contact Committee decided to further strengthen the cooperation, and in this
connection the existing agreement was replaced by an agreement making it possible for Danish trade unions to
represent foreign seafarers in disputes as a consequence of Danish law; and they actually do this. At the same
time, the shipowners assumed an obligation to inform the Danish trade unions about industrial injuries in-
curred by foreign seafarers. In other words, the employer side accepted that Danish trade unions assumed
some of the core tasks that they also perform for members in Denmark. Payment of an administrative fee for
performing these tasks was agreed on. Today, this fee amounts to DKK 120 per foreign seafarer on board DIS
ships and it is paid directly to the Danish trade unions in the Contact Committee by the shipowners.
Since then, the DIS Main Agreement has been renewed twice, in 2005 and in 2013. In connection with these
renewals, the shipowner side has undertaken to recognise bilateral agreements between the foreign trade
unions and the Danish trade unions on representation on Danish boards and committees and that the Danish
trade unions can attend to the interests of the foreign seafarers in disputes pertaining to labour legislation.
Other issues related to the cooperation between the parties
In addition to the DIS Main Agreement, an agreement has also been concluded within the framework of the
DIS Contact Committee to pay persons domiciled in Sweden and Norway wages at the same level as that of
persons domiciled in Denmark. This is secured by considering Swedish and Norwegian seafarers to be
covered by the collective agreements concluded by the Danish trade unions, with the necessary adjustments.
Furthermore, it has been agreed that shipowners make a number of work-experience placements available for
special purposes.
In 2009, the Contact Committee decided to establish a guarantee scheme for seafarers on board DIS ships so
that the seafarer is secured financing of his or her voyage home after having signed off due to entrance into a
war zone or in connection with other dangerous situations, for example voyages in piracy-infested waters.
Attending to the interests of foreign seafarers
Seafarers serving on board Danish ships are covered by the act on seafarers' conditions of employment, etc.
(the seamen's act) irrespective of nationality or home address and thereby they are secured the rights following
from work on board a Danish ship. In addition to the special provisions of the maritime legislation, seafarers
domiciled outside Denmark are to a greater or smaller extent also covered by the general Danish provisions on
social security. For EU seafarers this follows from EU law, and for seafarers from third countries this follows
from the bilateral social security agreements concluded. Thus, many foreign seafarers are automatically
covered by public Danish pension schemes.
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L 72a - 2019-20 - Endeligt svar på spørgsmål 35: MFU spm. om at oversende korrespondance/afrapportering, som regeringen har foretaget til FN-organisationen ILO m.v., til skatteministeren
All seafarers, irrespective of nationality, are also covered by the Danish act on industrial injuries with Danish
industrial injury insurance. Thus, they are secured in situations where they are in need of security benefits due
to sickness or bodily injury during or in immediate connection with their service on board. The assistance can
have the form of health insurance benefits such as medical care, hospitalisation, medicine, repatriation or
sickness benefits or maternity/paternity benefits in connection with maternity/paternity leave according to the
special regulations for seafarers.
Especially for seafarers from so-called labour force supplying countries, such as the Philippines, it is not un-
usual that they are perhaps also covered by supplementary national regulations, which is especially justified
when the seafarer is serving on board ships where he or she does not enjoy the same type of social security as
is the case on board Danish ships. Often such national regulations and the benefits deriving from them are
adjusted to the public security level in the country concerned
or rather the lack hereof.
Collective agreements concluded with foreign trade unions pursuant to section 10(3) of the DIS act do, insofar
as possible, take account of the possibility of the seafarers being covered by more sets of regulations simul-
taneously.
In order to make the foreign seafarers' way through the Danish security and authority system easier, mecha-
nisms have been established within the framework of the DIS Main Agreement whereby the Danish trade
unions can assist foreign seafarers though they are not members of Danish trade unions.
According to the DIS Main Agreement, the shipowners are obliged to inform the trade unions about foreign
seafarers' reported industrial injuries or deaths so that the Danish trade union can proactively offer its as-
sistance to foreign seafarers/their surviving relatives free of charge. This is a service and security for foreign
seafarers that national seafarers do not enjoy since they are required to be members. Foreign seafarers can
also, upon their own initiative, contact the Danish organisations whose contact details are printed in the col-
lective agreements concluded with the foreign trade unions.
Collective agreements for foreign seafarers
According to the DIS Main Agreement, Danish shipowners commit themselves to ensure that foreign sea-
farers' wage and working conditions are at least at an internationally acceptable level. Danish trade unions
guarantee foreign trade unions and international associations of trade unions that Danish shipowners meet this
obligation and, more specifically, ensure this in connection with Danish shipowners' conclusion of collective
agreements with foreign trade unions. In practice, Danish trade unions contribute both constructively and
critically when Danish shipowners negotiate and conclude collective agreements with foreign trade unions. In
this connection, it deserves to be mentioned that, since 1999, only the Danish Metalworkers' Union has
on
behalf of the other trade union members of the DIS Contact Committee
played an active role and taken part
in all negotiations. The Danish Metalworkers' Union has also had the ongoing dialogue and contact with the
foreign trade unions on behalf of everyone.
In consideration of foreign seafarers working internationally on board ships and with shipowners of different
nationalities, the wage and working conditions are basically very international, but on board Danish ships they
have typically been extended with a third part pension scheme and with holiday- and other rights, such as
occupational health protection deriving from Danish law.
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