Seafarers Act - Seninho

This law has two purposes: labor protection for seafarers and public law enforcement. It was enacted in 1947. The former is a kind of "maritime labor standard" that stipulates the working conditions of seafarers, including employment contracts (labor contracts), wages and other remuneration, working hours, holidays, paid vacations, manning capacity, food provision, health (allocation of doctors and health officers), accident compensation, and work regulations. The latter stipulates enforcement regulations for the supervision of seafarers' work, which is deeply related to the safe transportation of precious human lives and goods. The captain's official authority includes the right to command and order seafarers (crew members other than the captain), the right to discipline, the obligation to inspect before departure, the obligation to go direct, the obligation to stay on board, the obligation to keep documents on board, the right to command those on board, and the discipline of seafarers on board. The existence of these enforcement regulations is a distinctive feature of this law, but the existence of provisions regarding restrictions on industrial action in particular is a striking difference from labor laws on land.

The history of the Seafarers Law began with the old Seafarers Law enacted in 1899 (Meiji 32), but later the provisions of the International Maritime Labor Convention were incorporated, and provisions related to seafarers were transferred from the Maritime Trade Section of the Commercial Code, and a full revision was made in 1937 (Showa 12). After the Second World War, a full revision was made based on the spirit of the new constitution, and the law was made consistent with the newly enacted labor law system, but due to the unique nature of seafarers' labor, many restrictions on seafarers' labor remain. In 1962 (Showa 37), the law was revised to improve working conditions by newly stipulating the working hours of crew members of ships with a gross tonnage of 700 to 2,000 tons, notice of dismissal of reserve seafarers, and restrictions on dismissal of injured, sick seafarers, and seafarers before and after childbirth, as well as to ensure the safety of ship navigation by newly obligating the captain to report abnormal weather, prepare an emergency maneuver list, and conduct drills for emergencies. In 1970, the provision on the so-called "captain's obligation to turn the ship as far back as possible," which was interpreted as meaning that the captain would share the fate of the ship in the event of an emergency, was deleted. In 1983, the implementation of navigational watchkeeping was made mandatory as a result of the domestication of the 1978 International Convention on Standards of Training, Certification and Watchkeeping for Seafarers (STCW Convention). In 1988, the working hours of crew members on ships under 700 tons were set at 40 hours per week. Furthermore, following the 1995 STCW Convention, the establishment of a new position of Inspector of Foreign Ships was established as an authority to supervise foreign ships entering a country's port. In this way, due to the rapid increase in flag of convenience ships with seafarers from developing countries, international treaties to ensure the improvement of seafarers' skill levels have come into force, and the Seafarers Act has been amended one after another.

[Amano Kazuharu]

Source: Shogakukan Encyclopedia Nipponica About Encyclopedia Nipponica Information | Legend

船員に対する労働保護と公法的取締りの二つの目的をもつ法律。昭和22年法律第100号。前者は、船員の労働条件について規定するいわば「海上労働基準」であり、内容としては雇入れ契約（労働契約）、給料その他の報酬、労働時間、休日、有給休暇、定員、食料の支給、衛生（医師、衛生管理者の配乗）、災害補償、就業規則などを規定する。後者は、船員労働が貴重な人命、財貨の安全輸送に深くかかわるので、その監督のための取締り規定を定めている。船長の職務権限として、海員（船長以外の乗組員）に対する指揮命令権、懲戒権、発航前検査義務、直行義務、在船義務、書類の備置義務、船内にある者に対する命令権、海員の船内紀律（規律）について規定している。これらの取締り規定の存在は本法の特徴であるが、とくに争議行為の制限に関する規定が定められていることは、陸上の労働関係法規と著しく異なる点である。

　船員法の沿革は1899年（明治32）制定の旧船員法に始まるが、その後国際海上労働条約の規定を取り入れ、商法の海商編から船員に関する規定を移し、1937年（昭和12）に全面的改正を行っている。第二次世界大戦後は新憲法の精神に基づき全面的改正が行われ、新しく制定された労働法体系との整合が図られたが、海上労働の特異性から船員労働に対する規制の面がかなり残存している。62年（昭和37）には、総トン数700トン以上2000トン未満船舶の乗組員の労働時間、予備船員の解雇予告、負傷、疾病船員および産前・産後船員の解雇制限などを新たに定めることとした労働条件の改善と、異常気象などの通報、非常配置表の作成、非常の際のための操練の実施などを船長に新たに義務づけた船舶航行の安全確保のための改正が行われた。また70年には、非常の際に船長は船舶と運命をともにするものと解されていた、いわゆる「船長の最後退船義務」規定が削除された。また、83年（昭和58）には、「1978年の船員の訓練及び資格証明並びに当直の基準に関する国際条約（STCW条約）」の国内法化として「航海当直の実施」が義務づけられた。88年には、700トン未満の船舶の乗組員の労働時間が週40時間と定められた。さらに、「1995年のSTCW条約」を受けて、自国内に入港した外国船舶を監督する機関として、外国船舶監督官の新設が定められた。このように、発展途上国の船員が乗り込む便宜置籍船などの急増もあって、船員の技能水準の向上を確保するための国際条約が発効し、それに伴う船員法の改正が相次いで行われている。

［天野和治］

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