Medical Examination (Fishermen) Convention, 1959 (No. 113) - Netherlands (Ratification: 1988)

Direct Request (CEACR) - adopted 2011, published 101st ILC session (2012)

Article 3(2) of the Convention. Nature of medical examination for fishers. Further to its previous comment, in which the Committee noted that the Government shared the view of the Netherlands Council of Employers’ Federation (VNO-NCW) and the Federation of Shipping Employees (FWZ) that the scope of medical examination should vary according to the duties carried out on board, as prescribed by this Article of the Convention, the Committee recalls that the same provision is now reflected in Paragraph 6 of the Work in Fishing Recommendation, 2007 (No. 199). Noting that the Government is currently considering the possibility of ratifying the Work in Fishing Convention, 2007 (No. 188), the Committee requests the Government to keep the Office informed of any new legal text which would provide for different medical examination requirements for fishers performing different duties.

Article 4(1). Validity of medical certificates for young fishers. The Committee notes the Government’s indication that following a legislative amendment in 2005, there is at present no provision limiting the validity of medical certificates for young persons below 21 years of age to one year. The Government indicates, however, that it is currently examining the implications of the ratification of Convention No. 188 and it might therefore decide to align its legislation with Article 12(2) of Convention No. 188, which requires a maximum period of validity not exceeding one year for fishers under the age of 18. The Committee requests the Government to keep the Office informed of any further developments in this regard.

Part V of the report form. Application in practice. The Committee requests the Government to provide information on the practical application of the Convention, including, for instance, statistical data on the number of fishers covered by the relevant legislation and inspection results showing the number and nature of contraventions reported.

Direct Request (CEACR) - adopted 2006, published 96th ILC session (2007)

The Committee notes the observations made by the Netherlands Council of Employers’ Federation (VNO-NCW) and the Federation of Shipping Employees (FWZ) concerning the application of the Convention as well as the Government’s reply.

In almost identical terms, the VNO-NCW and the FWZ object to the Government’s interpretation of Article 2 of the Convention as if it applied only to crew members in charge of a ship’s navigation and safety. They also state that such narrow interpretation risks to have undesirable and unjustified consequences since it would lead to differential treatment of crew members in case of medical problems. In its reply, the Government explains that the combined reading of sections 40 and 33 of the new Ships’ Manning Act (ZBW), which entered into force on 1 February 2002, leaves no doubt that each crew member on the muster roll, performing duties mentioned in the manning certificate or those assigned by the ship’s manager or master, must have a valid medical certificate attesting his/her fitness. The Government adds that this was already the case before the ZBW came into effect, i.e. every person mentioned on the muster roll is a crew member and as such must hold a valid medical certificate. The Committee considers that the Government, the VNO-NCW and the FWZ share essentially the same understanding of the scope of the obligation arising from this Article of the Convention. It therefore hopes that medical examination will continue to be a compulsory precondition for the employment of any person and in any capacity on a fishing vessel.

In addition, the VNO-NCW and the FWZ consider that the scope of medical examination should vary according to the duties carried out on board. In its reply, the Government fully concurs with the view of the two organizations on this point, and expresses the hope that the possibility of having different examination requirements for different duties could be incorporated in the proposed ILO Convention on work in the fishing sector to be discussed in June 2007. While recalling that, under Article 3, paragraph 2, of the Convention, due regard must be had to the nature of the duties to be performed when prescribing the nature of the examination, the Committee trusts that the Government and its social partners will pursue their constructive engagement to ensure the full application of the Convention in this regard.

The Committee understands that medical examination requirements are now part of the Ship’s Manning Act and the Ship’s Manning Order of 2002. The Committee also understands that, following an amendment adopted in 2004, the period of validity of a medical certificate is now set at two years. The Committee requests the Government to clarify whether the Merchant Shipping (Medical Examination) Regulations, 1990, are still in force, and also specify how it is ensured under the new Ship’s Manning Act that the validity of the medical certificate of young persons of less than 21 years of age may not exceed one year, as set out in Article 4, paragraph 1, of the Convention. Finally, the Committee would be grateful if the Government could provide, in accordance with Part V of the report form, practical information on the application of the Convention, including, for instance, the number of professional fishers covered by the Convention, any available statistics on the number of medical examinations performed and medical certificates delivered to fishers annually, extracts from reports of the inspection services containing information on the number and nature of any contraventions observed, etc.