The League of Nations

The International Maritime Conference

THE International Maritime Conference held at Geneva in October opened sensationally with a " Shipowners' Strike."

That the Conference was able to continue its work and bring

the strikers back to the fold is proof of the ,strength of the International Labour Organization and of the value which Governments and workers attach to it. • The " strike " arose out of a purely British issue, being in support of the British shipowners, who declined to send a delegate because the British Workers' delegate was not a member of the

National Union of Seamen. It was, of course, regrettable that the British Shipowners' case was stated on their behalf

by foreign delegates, and the tactics employed were un- fortunate ; the resolution which led to the withdrawal of the group was one which the Governments obviously could not

accept, and the suspicion ' of " sabotage " was therefore inevitable. The British Government was able to show that its procedure had been exactly that of its predecessors in 1920 and 1926 ; if the National Confederation of Employers' Organizations chose to transfer its mandate to the Shipping Federation whilst the T.U.C. appointed a member of its General Council as delegate and offered only advisorships to the National' Union of Seamen (which the N.U.S. did not accept), that was not a matter in which the Government could interfere. On the other hand, the T.U.C. were able to make out a strong case, urging, for example, that there were other interests involved besides -those' of the seamen.

MR. TILLETT'S CREDENTIALS.

The discussion of the credentials of Mr. Tillett, the T.U.C. delegate, made clear the shipowners' objection—namely, that the T.U.C. is alleged to be pledged to support " an 8-hour day for seamen by international convention," whilst the Union of Seamen considers that the regulation of hours at sea is a matter for national collective bargaining and not for international regulation. Tactically, the British shipowners gained nothing by their absence ; if they disfranchised Mr. Tillett, they did not prevent him taking part in the discussions, whilst their own views and those of the Union of Seamen were never expressed on the subjects under discussion. That their representatives were in Geneva and very active behind the scenes made an unfortunate impression ; and the way in which the foreign shipowners rallied to their support and embraced their policy of opposition to international regulation of hours at sea, dis- poses of the theory that foreign interests stand to gain by a convention because they would •ignore it, whilst their British competitors faithfully observed it. The compromise resolution which heralded the return of the strikers is little more than a pious hope that such troubles will not recur. The real way to avoid this is for the T.U.C., the National Union of Seamen and the Shipping Federation to adjust their differences before another international conference is held (probably in 1931).

Throughout the Conference, then, there was no British shipowners' delegate. But there is nothing in the Peace Treaty or elsewhere to declare that the Government is incapable of representing the interests of its national industries, and their absence was the less important this year because the Con- ference had not to take final decisions on any of the four sub- jects on its agenda ; it had only to decide whether they should be the subject of a decision at a later session and, if so, the points about which the opinions of Governments should be elicited as a basis for the future decisions.

SUBJECTS OF THE CONFERENCE.

The "Promotion of Welfare of Seamen in Ports "—or, rather, one or two details included in it—attracted a good deal of public attention. Some time ago two members of the Joint Commission which advises the I.L.O. in maritime affairs compiled a report - Which included recommendations for the medical control of women who have ' illicit intercourse with men, - and for the prohibition of the employment of female attendants in places where strong drinks are served. The Conference had not to pass upon these recommendations at all, and in any case the report which the Office submitted considerably modified their bearing. It was not even suggested' that the former should be one of the " Points " to be put to the Governments ; and the Conference itself decided, as regards the second, that the question should

simply be " what do the Governments think about prohibiting the employment at such places of young persons of either sex under a certain age ? "

The other " points " fall into five main groups. The first deals with the co-ordination of measures and the collecting of information ; the second with the regulation of the sale of alcohol in of near dock areas, the supervision of lodging houses and taverns, the lighting of docks, the removal of loafers and the like ; thirdly came what may be termed generally " health propaganda " and hospital aocommodation ; fourthly, the provision of hostels, libraries, recreation rooms and schemes for remittance of wages to the seaman's family. As a whole they represent a bold outline for measures to improve " dock areas," though the Conference leaves it open whether a convention or a recommendation is to be the method adopted to fulfil the purpose of these deliberations.

The " Protection of Seamen against Sickness " was divided into two sections—the shipowner's liability, and the insurance of seamen against sickness. The considerable variety of con- ditions throughout the world in respect of both problems, together with the peculiarities of a seaman's life, which cut across the ordinary boundaries of national responsibility, make international agreements very desirable.

A third subject on the agenda was forbidding in title, though picturesque in origin : " The minimum requirement of professional capacity in the case of captains, navigating and engineer officers in charge of watches on board merchant ships." Who would suspect in this the echo of a collision between a French liner and a Turkish collier off the coast of Mytilene ? One aspect of the affair came before the Per- manent Court of International Justice ; now another— arising from the question whether the master of the collier held a proper certificate—has come before the International Labour Conference in the form of the problem of establishing international rules about the professional qualifications of officers. The Committee suggested and the Conference agreed that a draft convention might ultimately be adopted. HOURS OF WORK.

Finally, there was the vexed question of " Regulation of Hours of Work at Sea," the item on which opinion was most strongly divided, and which lay at the root of the troubles over British representation.

the temporary withdrawal of the shipowners meant that they had been absent from the first sittings of the Committee, and they therefore submitted a minority report on what may be called the " preamble." In this they argued that it was impossible for the industry to " support any interference with the existing recognized hours of work on board ship," basing this view upon economic considerations. They favoured a solution " by voluntary and collective national agreements," and not by legislation.

The majority report, however, held it desirable to consult the Governments as to the possibility of a draft convention and the further possibility of basing it on the principle of the " eight-hour day or forty-eight hour week " (the word " or " for " and " represents the wording of the Treaty, and a concession on the part of the workers), with suitable exceptions. The questionnaire would deal with definitions ; scope (as regards vessels, trades and categories of workers) ; the various methods of regulating hours of work in the case of engine-room staff, deck staff, catering staff in attendance on passengers and on crews ; and the question of overtime.

Almost every point was lengthily discussed in committee, and the Report was again debated by the full Conference, Finally by 71 votes to 20 it was decided to adopt the Report, and by 76 to 17 it was resolved to invite the Governments to consider a draft convention on the subject. The British Government voted with the majority, though on the under standing that it supported the ventilation of the subject, and did not necessarily favour a draft Convention. The ship- owners, of course, voted in the minority, and indeed com- posed it, and were rather severely taken to task by one or two Governments, especially the Dutch, for their attitude of hostility : but the French, Italian and Bulgarian shipowners

voted against the rest of their group. M. K.