During a Port State Control (PSC) inspection on August 15, officers from the Panjin Maritime Safety Administration detected and confirmed a significant maritime labor deficiency involving 21 crew members on an international vessel who had not received their full wages for two consecutive months.
Through coordinated negotiations and enforcement efforts by the PSC inspectors, the full amount of overdue wages—exceeding one million yuan—was successfully recovered for the crew in just five hours, transforming their financial distress into a reassuring resolution.
"Something felt off the moment we boarded. The crew appeared noticeably low-spirited and mentally fatigued," recalled PSC inspector Xiu Tong, who participated in the inspection. As the investigation deepened, the full picture emerged.
A meticulous review of Seafarer Employment Agreements (SEA), monthly payroll vouchers, and bank statements confirmed that all 21 crew members had gone without their rightful pay for two months, totaling more than one million yuan. The shipowner attributed the delay to sluggish cash flow in the shipping market, while no effective wage arrears contingency plan was in place aboard the vessel—a direct violation of the core requirement under the Maritime Labour Convention, 2006, mandating monthly wage payments.
In response to this serious deficiency, the Panjin Maritime Safety Administration quickly assessed the risks and placed the issue under prioritized closed-loop management to resolve the dispute at its earliest stage. On one front, maritime law enforcement officers presented the shipowner and management company with the legal boundaries, detailing relevant crew rights protection regulations and clarifying legal liabilities and operational risks, urging the company to confront the issue and rectify it immediately.
On the other, they documented each crew member's claims, established a communication channel without delay, and facilitated thorough negotiations among the ship management company, the shipowner's representatives, and the crew. This ultimately led to an agreement for a one-time full payment plan with a clear deadline.
To ensure the resolution went beyond mere verbal commitment, the maritime authorities closely monitored the entire wage disbursement process. From finalizing the plan to the last payment entering crew accounts, the entire operation took just five hours. Afterwards, law enforcement officers conducted individual follow-up calls with all 21 crew members to confirm that the back wages had been fully and promptly received.