So, why a new union?

Only 8% of insured seafarers in the maritime sector are unionized. This rate is extremely insufficient to defend the rights of employees. The effectiveness of unions depends on seafarers coming together to create a common voice. However, the low rate of employees joining unions also causes existing unions to become weak.

Uninsured employees and seafarers working on foreign-flagged ships are also an inseparable part of this picture. We know that these employees also have union rights and we have to act to defend their rights. The International Maritime Workers’ Union was founded to eliminate all these deficiencies and to create a strong voice that seafarers really need.

And we, as seafarers, know that we need an impartial and independent voice to defend our interests. This is exactly where the International Maritime Workers’ Union comes into play. We aim to carry the interests of seafarers to the global level with a transnational perspective, while also protecting individual rights.

We are not only a union of interests; we are also a solidarity movement. Every seafarer’s voice, regardless of their rank, is valuable to us. This union was founded to voice the seafarers’ problems and fight for their solutions on national and international platforms.