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TITLE 3. ACCOMMODATION, RECREATIONAL FACILITIES, FOOD AND CATERING
Regulation 3.1 – Accommodation and recreational facilities
Purpose: To ensure that seafarers have decent accommodation and recreational
facilities on board
- 1. Each Member shall ensure that ships that fly its flag provide and
maintain decent accommodations and recreational facilities for seafarers
working or living on board, or both, consistent with promoting the
seafarers’ health and well-being.
- 2. The requirements in the Code implementing this Regulation which relate to
ship construction and equipment apply only to ships constructed on or after
the date when this Convention comes into force for the Member concerned. For
ships constructed before that date, the requirements relating to ship
construction and equipment that are set out in the Accommodation of Crews
Convention (Revised), 1949 (No. 92), and the Accommodation of Crews
(Supplementary Provisions) Convention, 1970 (No. 133), shall continue to
apply to the extent that they were applicable, prior to that date, under the
law or practice of the Member concerned. A ship shall be deemed to have been
constructed on the date when its keel is laid or when it is at a similar
stage of construction.
- 3. Unless expressly provided otherwise, any requirement under an amendment
to the Code relating to the provision of seafarer accommodation and
recreational facilities shall apply only to ships constructed on or after
the amendment takes effect for the Member concerned.
Standard A3.1 – Accommodation and recreational facilities
- 1. Each Member shall adopt laws and regulations requiring that ships
that fly its flag:
- (a) meet minimum standards to ensure that any accommodation for
seafarers, working or living on board, or both, is safe, decent
and in accordance with the relevant provisions of this Standard;
and
- (b) are inspected to ensure initial and ongoing compliance with
those standards.
- 2. In developing and applying the laws and regulations to implement this
Standard, the competent authority, after consulting the shipowners’ and
seafarers’ organizations concerned, shall:
- (a) take into account Regulation 4.3 and the associated Code
provisions on health and safety protection and accident
prevention, in light of the specific needs of seafarers that
both live and work on board ship, and
- (b) give due consideration to the guidance contained in Part B
of this Code.
- 3. The inspections required under Regulation 5.1.4 shall be carried out
when:
- (a) a ship is registered or re-registered; or
- (b) the seafarer accommodation on a ship has been substantially
altered
- 4. The competent authority shall pay particular attention to ensuring
implementation of the requirements of this Convention relating to:
- (a) the size of rooms and other accommodation spaces;
- (b) heating and ventilation;
- (c) noise and vibration and other ambient factors;
- (d) sanitary facilities;
- (e) lighting; and
- (f) hospital accommodation.
- 5. The competent authority of each Member shall require that ships that
fly its flag meet the minimum standards for on-board accommodation and
recreational facilities that are set out in paragraphs 6 to 17 of this
Standard.
- 6. With respect to general requirements for accommodation:
- (a) there shall be adequate headroom in all seafarer
accommodation; the minimum permitted headroom in all seafarer
accommodation where full and free movement is necessary shall be
not less than 203 centimetres; the competent authority may
permit some limited reduction in headroom in any space, or part
of any space, in such accommodation where it is satisfied that
such reduction:
- (i) is reasonable; and
- (ii) will not result in discomfort to the
seafarers;
- (b) the accommodation shall be adequately insulated;
- (c) in ships other than passenger ships, as defined in
Regulation 2(e) and (f) of the
- International Convention for the Safety of Life at Sea, 1974, as
amended (the “SOLAS Convention”), sleeping rooms shall be
situated above the load line amidships or aft, except that in
exceptional cases, where the size, type or intended service of
the ship renders any other location impracticable, sleeping
rooms may be located in the fore part of the ship, but in no
case forward of the collision bulkhead;
- (d) in passenger ships, and in special ships constructed in
compliance with the IMO Code of Safety for Special Purpose
Ships, 1983, and subsequent versions (hereinafter called
“special purpose ships”), the competent authority may, on
condition that satisfactory arrangements are made for lighting
and ventilation, permit the location of sleeping rooms below the
load line, but in no case shall they be located immediately
beneath working alleyways;
- (e) there shall be no direct openings into sleeping rooms from
cargo and machinery spaces or from galleys, storerooms, drying
rooms or communal sanitary areas; that part of a bulkhead
separating such places from sleeping rooms and external
bulkheads shall be efficiently constructed of steel or other
approved substance and be watertight and gas-tight;
- (f) the materials used to construct internal bulkheads,
panelling and sheeting, floors and joinings shall be suitable
for the purpose and conducive to ensuring a healthy
environment;
- (g) proper lighting and sufficient drainage shall be provided;
and
- (h) accommodation and recreational and catering facilities shall
meet the requirements in Regulation 4.3, and the related
provisions in the Code, on health and safety protection and
accident prevention, with respect to preventing the risk of
exposure to hazardous levels of noise and vibration and other
ambient factors and chemicals on board ships, and to provide an
acceptable occupational and onboard living environment for
seafarers.
- 7. With respect to requirements for ventilation and heating:
- (a) sleeping rooms and mess rooms shall be adequately
ventilated;
- (b) ships, except those regularly engaged in trade where
temperate climatic conditions do not require this, shall be
equipped with air conditioning for seafarer accommodation, for
any separate radio room and for any centralized machinery
control room;
- (c) all sanitary spaces shall have ventilation to the open air,
independently of any other part of the accommodation; and
- (d) adequate heat through an appropriate heating system shall be
provided, except in ships exclusively on voyages in tropical
climates.
- 8. With respect to requirements for lighting, subject to such special
arrangements as may be permitted in passenger ships, sleeping rooms and
mess rooms shall be lit by natural light and provided with adequate
artificial light.
- 9. When sleeping accommodation on board ships is required, the following
requirements for sleeping rooms apply:
- (a) in ships other than passenger ships, an individual sleeping
room shall be provided for each seafarer; in the case of ships
of less than 3,000 gross tonnage or special purpose ships,
exemptions from this requirement may be granted by the competent
authority after consultation with the shipowners’ and seafarers’
organizations concerned;
- (b) separate sleeping rooms shall be provided for men and for
women;
- (c) sleeping rooms shall be of adequate size and properly
equipped so as to ensure reasonable comfort and to facilitate
tidiness;
- (d) a separate berth for each seafarer shall in all
circumstances be provided;
- (e) the minimum inside dimensions of a berth shall be at least
198 centimetres by 80 centimetres;
- (f) in single berth seafarers’ sleeping rooms the floor area
shall not be less than:
- (i) 4.5 square metres in ships of less than 3,000 gross
tonnage;
- (ii) 5.5 square metres in ships of 3,000 gross tonnage
or over but less than 10,000 gross tonnage;
- (iii) 7 square metres in ships of 10,000 gross tonnage
or over;
- (g) however, in order to provide single berth sleeping rooms on
ships of less than 3,000 gross tonnage, passenger ships and
special purpose ships, the competent authority may allow a
reduced floor area;
- (h) in ships of less than 3,000 gross tonnage other than
passenger ships and special purpose ships, sleeping rooms may be
occupied by a maximum of two seafarers; the floor area of such
sleeping rooms shall not be less than 7 square metres;
- (i) on passenger ships and special purpose ships the floor area
of sleeping rooms for seafarers not performing the duties of
ships’ officers shall not be less than:
- (i) 7.5 square metres in rooms accommodating two
persons;
- (ii) 11.5 square metres in rooms accommodating three
persons;
- (iii) 14.5 square metres in rooms accommodating four
persons;
- (j) on special purpose ships sleeping rooms may accommodate more
than four persons; the floor area of such sleeping rooms shall
not be less than 3.6 square metres per person;
- (k) on ships other than passenger ships and special purpose
ships, sleeping rooms for seafarers who perform the duties of
ships’ officers, where no private sitting room or day room is
provided, the floor area per person shall not be less than:
- (i) 7.5 square metres in ships of less than 3,000 gross
tonnage;
- (ii) 8.5 square metres in ships of 3,000 gross tonnage
or over but less than 10,000 gross tonnage;
- (iii) 10 square metres in ships of 10,000 gross tonnage
or over;
- (l) on passenger ships and special purpose ships the floor area
for seafarers performing the duties of ships’ officers where no
private sitting room or day room is provided, the floor area per
person for junior officers shall not be less than 7.5 square
metres and for senior officers not less than 8.5 square metres;
junior officers are understood to be at the operational level,
and senior officers at the management level;
- (m) the master, the chief engineer and the chief navigating
officer shall have, in addition to their sleeping rooms, an
adjoining sitting room, day room or equivalent additional space;
ships of less than 3,000 gross tonnage may be exempted by the
competent authority from this requirement after consultation
with the shipowners’ and seafarers’ organizations
concerned;
- (n) for each occupant, the furniture shall include a clothes
locker of ample space (minimum 475 litres) and a drawer or
equivalent space of not less than 56 litres; if the drawer is
incorporated in the clothes locker then the combined minimum
volume of the clothes locker shall be 500 litres; it shall be
fitted with a shelf and be able to be locked by the occupant so
as to ensure privacy;
- (o) each sleeping room shall be provided with a table or desk,
which may be of the fixed, drop-leaf or slide-out type, and with
comfortable seating accommodation as necessary.
- 10. With respect to requirements for mess rooms:
- (a) mess rooms shall be located apart from the sleeping rooms
and as close as practicable to the galley; ships of less than
3,000 gross tonnage may be exempted by the competent authority
from this requirement after consultation with the shipowners’
and seafarers’ organizations concerned; and
- (b) mess rooms shall be of adequate size and comfort and
properly furnished and equipped (including ongoing facilities
for refreshment), taking account of the number of seafarers
likely to use them at any one time; provision shall be made for
separate or common mess room facilities as appropriate.
- 11. With respect to requirements for sanitary facilities:
- (a) all seafarers shall have convenient access on the ship to
sanitary facilities meeting minimum standards of health and
hygiene and reasonable standards of comfort, with separate
sanitary facilities being provided for men and for women;
- (b) there shall be sanitary facilities within easy access of the
navigating bridge and the machinery space or near the engine
room control centre; ships of less than 3,000 gross tonnage may
be exempted by the competent authority from this requirement
after consultation with the shipowners’ and seafarers’
organizations concerned;
- (c) in all ships a minimum of one toilet, one wash basin and one
tub or shower or both for every six persons or less who do not
have personal facilities shall be provided at a convenient
location;
- (d) with the exception of passenger ships, each sleeping room
shall be provided with a washbasin having hot and cold running
fresh water, except where such a washbasin is situated in the
private bathroom provided;
- (e) in passenger ships normally engaged on voyages of not more
than four hours’ duration, consideration may be given by the
competent authority to special arrangements or to a reduction in
the number of facilities required; and
- (f) hot and cold running fresh water shall be available in all
wash places.
- 12. With respect to requirements for hospital accommodation, ships
carrying 15 or more seafarers and engaged in a voyage of more than three
days’ duration shall provide separate hospital accommodation to be used
exclusively for medical purposes; the competent authority may relax this
requirement for ships engaged in coastal trade; in approving on-board
hospital accommodation, the competent authority shall ensure that the
accommodation will, in all weathers, be easy of access, provide
comfortable housing for the occupants and be conducive to their
receiving prompt and proper attention.
- 13. Appropriately situated and furnished laundry facilities shall be
available.
- 14. All ships shall have a space or spaces on open deck to which the
seafarers
- can have access when off duty, which are of adequate area having regard
to the size of the ship and the number of seafarers on board.
- 15. All ships shall be provided with separate offices or a common ship’s
office for use by deck and engine departments; ships of less than 3,000
gross tonnage may be exempted by the competent authority from this
requirement after consultation with the shipowners’ and seafarers’
organizations concerned.
- 16. Ships regularly trading to mosquito-infested ports shall be fitted
with appropriate devices as required by the competent authority.
- 17. Appropriate seafarers’ recreational facilities, amenities and
services, as adapted to meet the special needs of seafarers who must
live and work on ships, shall be provided on board for the benefit of
all seafarers, taking into account Regulation 4.3 and the associated
Code provisions on health and safety protection and accident
prevention.
- 18. The competent authority shall require frequent inspections to be
carried out on board ships, by or under the authority of the master, to
ensure that seafarer accommodation is clean, decently habitable and
maintained in a good state of repair. The results of each such
inspection shall be recorded and be available for review.
- 19. In the case of ships where there is need to take account, without
discrimination, of the interests of seafarers having differing and
distinctive religious and social practices, the competent authority may,
after consultation with the shipowners’ and seafarers’ organizations
concerned, permit fairly applied variations in respect of this Standard
on condition that such variations do not result in overall facilities
less favourable than those which would result from the application of
this Standard.
- 20. Each Member may, after consultation with the shipowners’ and
seafarers’ organizations concerned, exempt ships of less than 200 gross
tonnage where it is reasonable to do so, taking account of the size of
the ship and the number of persons on board in relation to the
requirements of the following provisions of this Standard:
- (a) paragraphs 7(b), 11(d) and 13; and
- (b) paragraph 9(f) and (h) to (l) inclusive, with respect to
floor area only.
- 21. Any exemptions with respect to the requirements of this Standard may
be made only where they are expressly permitted in this Standard and
only for particular circumstances in which such exemptions can be
clearly justified on strong grounds and subject to protecting the
seafarers’ health and safety.
Guideline B3.1 – Accommodation and recreational facilities
Guideline B3.1.1 – Design and construction
- 1. External bulkheads of sleeping rooms and mess rooms should be
adequately insulated. All machinery casings and all boundary
bulkheads of galleys and other spaces in which heat is produced
should be adequately insulated where there is a possibility of
resulting heat effects in adjoining accommodation or passageways.
Measures should also be taken to provide protection from heat
effects of steam or hot-water service pipes or both.
- 2. Sleeping rooms, mess rooms, recreation rooms and alleyways in the
accommodation space should be adequately insulated to prevent
condensation or overheating.
- 3. The bulkhead surfaces and deckheads should be of material with a
surface easily kept clean. No form of construction likely to harbour
vermin should be used.
- 4. The bulkhead surfaces and deckheads in sleeping rooms and mess
rooms should be capable of being easily kept clean and light in
colour with a durable, non-toxic finish.
- 5. The decks in all seafarer accommodation should be of approved
material and construction and should provide a non-slip surface
impervious to damp and easily kept clean.
- 6. Where the floorings are made of composite materials, the joints
with the sides should be profiled to avoid crevices.
Guideline B3.1.2 – Ventilation
- 1. The system of ventilation for sleeping rooms and mess rooms
should be controlled so as to maintain the air in a satisfactory
condition and to ensure a sufficiency of air movement in all
conditions of weather and climate.
- 2. Air-conditioning systems, whether of a centralized or individual
unit type, should be designed to:
- (a) maintain the air at a satisfactory temperature and
relative humidity as compared to outside air conditions,
ensure a sufficiency of air changes in all air-conditioned
spaces, take account of the particular characteristics of
operations at sea and not produce excessive noises or
vibrations; and
- (b) facilitate easy cleaning and disinfection to prevent or
control the spread of disease.
- 3. Power for the operation of the air conditioning and other aids to
ventilation required by the preceding paragraphs of this Guideline
should be available at all times when seafarers are living or
working on board and conditions so require. However, this power need
not be provided from an emergency source.
Guideline B3.1.3 – Heating
- 1. The system of heating the seafarer accommodation should be in
operation at all times when seafarers are living or working on board
and conditions require its use.
- 2. In all ships in which a heating system is required, the heating
should be by means of hot water, warm air, electricity, steam or
equivalent. However, within the accommodation area, steam should not
be used as a medium for heat transmission. The heating system should
be capable of maintaining the temperature in seafarer accommodation
at a satisfactory level under normal conditions of weather and
climate likely to be met within the trade in which the ship is
engaged. The competent authority should prescribe the standard to be
provided.
- 3. Radiators and other heating apparatus should be placed and, where
necessary, shielded so as to avoid risk of fire or danger or
discomfort to the occupants.
Guideline B3.1.4 – Lighting
- 1. In all ships, electric light should be provided in the seafarer
accommodation. If there are not two independent sources of
electricity for lighting, additional lighting should be provided by
properly constructed lamps or lighting apparatus for emergency
use.
- 2. In sleeping rooms an electric reading lamp should be installed at
the head of each berth.
- 3. Suitable standards of natural and artificial lighting should be
fixed by the competent authority.
Guideline B3.1.5 – Sleeping rooms
- 1. There should be adequate berth arrangements on board, making it
as comfortable as possible for the seafarer and any partner who may
accompany the seafarer.
- 2. Where the size of the ship, the activity in which it is to be
engaged and its layout make it reasonable and practicable, sleeping
rooms should be planned and equipped with a private bathroom,
including a toilet, so as to provide reasonable comfort for the
occupants and to facilitate tidiness.
- 3. As far as practicable, sleeping rooms of seafarers should be so
arranged that watches are separated and that no seafarers working
during the day share a room with watchkeepers.
- 4. In the case of seafarers performing the duty of petty officers
there should be no more than two persons per sleeping room.
- 5. Consideration should be given to extending the facility referred
to in Standard A3.1, paragraph 9(m), to the second engineer officer
when practicable.
- 6. Space occupied by berths and lockers, chests of drawers and seats
should be included in the measurement of the floor area. Small or
irregularly shaped spaces which do not add effectively to the space
available for free movement and cannot be used for installing
furniture should be excluded.
- 7. Berths should not be arranged in tiers of more than two; in the
case of berths placed along the ship’s side, there should be only a
single tier where a sidelight is situated above a berth.
- 8. The lower berth in a double tier should be not less than 30
centimetres above the floor; the upper berth should be placed
approximately midway between the bottom of the lower berth and the
lower side of the deckhead beams.
- 9. The framework and the lee-board, if any, of a berth should be of
approved material, hard, smooth, and not likely to corrode or to
harbour vermin.
- 10. If tubular frames are used for the construction of berths, they
should be completely sealed and without perforations which would
give access to vermin.
- 11. Each berth should be fitted with a comfortable mattress with
cushioning bottom or a combined cushioning mattress, including a
spring bottom or a spring mattress. The mattress and cushioning
material used should be made of approved material. Stuffing of
material likely to harbour vermin should not be used.
- 12. When one berth is placed over another, a dust-proof bottom
should be fitted beneath the bottom mattress or spring bottom of the
upper berth.
- 13. The furniture should be of smooth, hard material not liable to
warp or corrode.
- 14. Sleeping rooms should be fitted with curtains or equivalent for
the sidelights.
- 15. Sleeping rooms should be fitted with a mirror, small cabinets
for toilet requisites, a book rack and a sufficient number of coat
hooks.
Guideline B3.1.6 – Mess rooms
- 1. Mess room facilities may be either common or separate. The
decision in this respect should be taken after consultation with
seafarers’ and shipowners’ representatives and subject to the
approval of the competent authority. Account should be taken of
factors such as the size of the ship and the distinctive cultural,
religious and social needs of the seafarers.
- 2. Where separate mess room facilities are to be provided to
seafarers, then separate mess rooms should be provided for:
- (a) master and officers; and
- (b) petty officers and other seafarers.
- 3. On ships other than passenger ships, the floor area of mess rooms
for seafarers should be not less than 1.5 square metres per person
of the planned seating capacity.
- 4. In all ships, mess rooms should be equipped with tables and
appropriate seats, fixed or movable, sufficient to accommodate the
greatest number of seafarers likely to use them at any one
time.
- 5. There should be available at all times when seafarers are on
board:
- (a) a refrigerator, which should be conveniently situated
and of sufficient capacity for the number of persons using
the mess room or mess rooms;
- (b) facilities for hot beverages; and
- (c) cool water facilities.
- 6. Where available pantries are not accessible to mess rooms,
adequate lockers for mess utensils and proper facilities for washing
utensils should be provided.
- 7. The tops of tables and seats should be of damp-resistant
material.
Guideline B3.1.7 – Sanitary accommodation
- 1. Washbasins and tub baths should be of adequate size and
constructed of approved material with a smooth surface not liable to
crack, flake or corrode.
- 2. All toilets should be of an approved pattern and provided with an
ample flush of water or with some other suitable flushing means,
such as air, which are available at all times and independently
controllable.
- 3. Sanitary accommodation intended for the use of more than one
person should comply with the following:
- (a) floors should be of approved durable material,
impervious to damp, and should be properly drained;
- (b) bulkheads should be of steel or other approved material
and should be watertight up to at least 23 centimetres above
the level of the deck;
- (c) the accommodation should be sufficiently lit, heated and
ventilated;
- (d) toilets should be situated convenient to, but separate
from, sleeping rooms and wash rooms, without direct access
from the sleeping rooms or from a passage between sleeping
rooms and toilets to which there is no other access; this
requirement does not apply where a toilet is located in a
compartment between two sleeping rooms having a total of not
more than four seafarers; and
- (e) where there is more than one toilet in a compartment,
they should be sufficiently screened to ensure privacy.
- 4. The laundry facilities provided for seafarers’ use should
include:
- (a) washing machines;
- (b) drying machines or adequately heated and ventilated
drying rooms; and
- (c) irons and ironing boards or their equivalent.
Guideline B3.1.8 – Hospital accommodation
- 1. The hospital accommodation should be designed so as to facilitate
consultation and the giving of medical first aid and to help prevent
the spread of infectious diseases.
- 2. The arrangement of the entrance, berths, lighting, ventilation,
heating and water supply should be designed to ensure the comfort
and facilitate the treatment of the occupants.
- 3. The number of hospital berths required should be prescribed by
the competent authority.
- 4. Sanitary accommodation should be provided for the exclusive use
of the occupants of the hospital accommodation, either as part of
the accommodation or in close proximity thereto. Such sanitary
accommodation should comprise a minimum of one toilet, one washbasin
and one tub or shower.
Guideline B3.1.9 – Other facilities
- 1. Where separate facilities for engine department personnel to
change their clothes are provided, they should be:
- (a) located outside the machinery space but with easy access
to it; and
- (b) fitted with individual clothes lockers as well as with
tubs or showers or both and washbasins having hot and cold
running fresh water.
Guideline B3.1.10 – Bedding, mess utensils and miscellaneous provisions
- 1. Each Member should consider applying the following principles:
- (a) clean bedding and mess utensils should be supplied by
the shipowner to all seafarers for use on board during
service on the ship, and such seafarers should be
responsible for their return at times specified by the
master and on completion of service in the ship;
- (b) bedding should be of good quality, and plates, cups and
other mess utensils should be of approved material which can
be easily cleaned; and
- (c) towels, soap and toilet paper for all seafarers should
be provided by the shipowner.
Guideline B3.1.11 – Recreational facilities, mail and ship visit arrangements
- 1. Recreational facilities and services should be reviewed
frequently to ensure that they are appropriate in the light of
changes in the needs of seafarers resulting from technical,
operational and other developments in the shipping industry.
- 2. Furnishings for recreational facilities should as a minimum
include a bookcase and facilities for reading, writing and, where
practicable, games.
- 3. In connection with the planning of recreation facilities, the
competent authority should give consideration to the provision of a
canteen.
- 4. Consideration should also be given to including the following
facilities at no cost to the seafarer, where practicable:
- (a) a smoking room;
- (b) television viewing and the reception of radio
broadcasts;
- (c) showing of films, the stock of which should be adequate
for the duration of the
- voyage and, where necessary, changed at reasonable
intervals;
- (d) sports equipment including exercise equipment, table
games and deck games;
- (e) where possible, facilities for swimming;
- (f) a library containing vocational and other books, the
stock of which should be adequate for the duration of the
voyage and changed at reasonable intervals;
- (g) facilities for recreational handicrafts;
- (h) electronic equipment such as a radio, television, video
recorders, DVD/CD player, personal computer and software and
cassette recorder/player;
- (i) where appropriate, the provision of bars on board for
seafarers unless these are contrary to national, religious
or social customs; and
- (j) reasonable access to ship-to-shore telephone
communications, and email and Internet facilities, where
available, with any charges for the use of these services
being reasonable in amount.
- 5. Every effort should be given to ensuring that the forwarding of
seafarers’ mail is as reliable and expeditious as possible. Efforts
should also be considered for avoiding seafarers being required to
pay additional postage when mail has to be readdressed owing to
circumstances beyond their control.
- 6. Measures should be considered to ensure, subject to any
applicable national or international laws or regulations, that
whenever possible and reasonable seafarers are expeditiously granted
permission to have their partners, relatives and friends as visitors
on board their ship when in port. Such measures should meet any
concerns for security clearances.
- 7. Consideration should be given to the possibility of allowing
seafarers to be accompanied by their partners on occasional voyages
where this is practicable and reasonable. Such partners should carry
adequate insurance cover against accident and illness; the
shipowners should give every assistance to the seafarer to effect
such insurance.
Guideline B3.1.12 – Prevention of noise and vibration
- 1. Accommodation and recreational and catering facilities should be
located as far as practicable from the engines, steering gear rooms,
deck winches, ventilation, heating and air-conditioning equipment
and other noisy machinery and apparatus.
- 2. Acoustic insulation or other appropriate sound-absorbing
materials should be used in the construction and finishing of
bulkheads, deckheads and decks within the sound-producing spaces as
well as self-closing noise-isolating doors for machinery
spaces.
- 3. Engine rooms and other machinery spaces should be provided,
wherever practicable, with soundproof centralized control rooms for
engine-room personnel. Working spaces, such as the machine shop,
should be insulated, as far as practicable, from the general
engine-room noise and measures should be taken to reduce noise in
the operation of machinery.
- 4. The limits for noise levels for working and living spaces should
be in conformity with the ILO international guidelines on exposure
levels, including those in the ILO code of practice entitled Ambient
factors in the workplace, 2001, and, where applicable, the specific
protection recommended by the International Maritime Organization,
and with any subsequent amending and supplementary instruments for
acceptable noise levels on board ships. A copy of the applicable
instruments in English or the working language of the ship should be
carried on board and should be accessible to seafarers.
- 5. No accommodation or recreational or catering facilities should be
exposed to excessive vibration.
Regulation 3.2 – Food and catering
Purpose: To ensure that seafarers have access to good quality food and drinking
water provided under regulated hygienic conditions
- 1. Each Member shall ensure that ships that fly its flag carry on board and
serve food and drinking water of appropriate quality, nutritional value and
quantity that adequately covers the requirements of the ship and takes into
account the differing cultural and religious backgrounds.
- 2. Seafarers on board a ship shall be provided with food free of charge
during the period of engagement.
- 3. Seafarers employed as ships’ cooks with responsibility for food
preparation must be trained and qualified for their position on board
ship.
Standard A3.2 – Food and catering
- 1. Each Member shall adopt laws and regulations or other measures to
provide minimum standards for the quantity and quality of food and
drinking water and for the catering standards that apply to meals
provided to seafarers on ships that fly its flag, and shall undertake
educational activities to promote awareness and implementation of the
standards referred to in this paragraph.
- 2. Each Member shall ensure that ships that fly its flag meet the
following minimum standards:
- (a) food and drinking water supplies, having regard to the
number of seafarers on board, their religious requirements and
cultural practices as they pertain to food, and the duration and
nature of the voyage, shall be suitable in respect of quantity,
nutritional value, quality and variety;
- (b) the organization and equipment of the catering department
shall be such as to permit the provision to the seafarers of
adequate, varied and nutritious meals prepared and served in
hygienic conditions; and
- (c) catering staff shall be properly trained or instructed for
their positions.
- 3. Shipowners shall ensure that seafarers who are engaged as ships’
cooks are trained, qualified and found competent for the position in
accordance with requirements set out in the laws and regulations of the
Member concerned.
- 4. The requirements under paragraph 3 of this Standard shall include a
completion of a training course approved or recognized by the competent
authority, which covers practical cookery, food and personal hygiene,
food storage, stock control, and environmental protection and catering
health and safety.
- 5. On ships operating with a prescribed manning of less than ten which,
by virtue of the size of the crew or the trading pattern, may not be
required by the competent authority to carry a fully qualified cook,
anyone processing food in the galley shall be trained or instructed in
areas including food and personal hygiene as well as handling and
storage of food on board ship.
- 6. In circumstances of exceptional necessity, the competent authority
may issue a dispensation permitting a non-fully qualified cook to serve
in a specified ship for a specified limited period, until the next
convenient port of call or for a period not exceeding one month,
provided that the person to whom the dispensation is issued is trained
or instructed in areas including food and personal hygene as well as
handling and storage of food on board ship.
- 7. In accordance with the ongoing compliance procedures under Title 5,
the competent authority shall require that frequent documented
inspections be carried out on board ships, by or under the authority of
the master, with respect to:
- (a) supplies of food and drinking water;
- (b) all spaces and equipment used for the storage and handling
of food and drinking water; and
- (c) galley and other equipment for the preparation and service
of meals.
- 8. No seafarer under the age of 18 shall be employed or engaged or work
as a ship’s cook
Guideline B3.2 – Food and catering
Guideline B3.2.1 – Inspection, education, research and publication
- 1. The competent authority should, in cooperation with other
relevant agencies and organizations, collect up-to-date information
on nutrition and on methods of purchasing, storing, preserving,
cooking and serving food, with special reference to the requirements
of catering on board a ship. This information should be made
available, free of charge or at reasonable cost, to manufacturers of
and traders in ships’ food supplies and equipment, masters, stewards
and cooks, and to shipowners’ and seafarers’ organizations
concerned. Appropriate forms of publicity, such as manuals,
brochures, posters, charts or advertisements in trade journals,
should be used for this purpose.
- 2. The competent authority should issue recommendations to avoid
wastage of food, facilitate the maintenance of a proper standard of
hygiene, and ensure the maximum practicable convenience in working
arrangements.
- 3. The competent authority should work with relevant agencies and
organizations to develop educational materials and on-board
information concerning methods of ensuring proper food supply and
catering services.
- 4. The competent authority should work in close cooperation with the
shipowners’ and seafarers’ organizations concerned and with national
or local authorities dealing with questions of food and health, and
may where necessary utilize the services of such authorities.
Guideline B3.2.2 – Ships' cooks
- 1. Seafarers should only be qualified as ships’ cooks if they have:
- (a) served at sea for a minimum period to be prescribed by
the competent authority, which could be varied to take into
account existing relevant qualifications or experience;
- (b) passed an examination prescribed by the competent
authority or passed an equivalent examination at an approved
training course for cooks.
- 2. The prescribed examination may be conducted and certificates
granted either directly by the competent authority or, subject to
its control, by an approved school for the training of cooks.
- 3. The competent authority should provide for the recognition, where
appropriate, of certificates of qualification as ships’ cooks issued
by other Members, which have ratified this Convention or the
Certification of Ships’ Cooks Convention, 1946 (No. 69), or other
approved body.