MLC & Our Commitment

It is our commitment to promote and protect the employment rights of the seafarers we work with and to give both our candidates and clients the best service we can. In doing so we act on the obligations imposed on Recruitment & Placement services as detailed in the Maritime Labour Convention 2006. As part of this we have implemented the following guidelines policies & procedures:

1) All applicants that register through our agency will be extensively interviewed regardless of their age, race, nationality and gender. We will also endeavour to consider all candidates and not exclude any opportunities for a particular candidate for which they are qualified by the means of a blacklist. It is however illegal to engage a person less than 16 years of age on a yacht (or 18 years of age as a Chef).

2) It is our commitment to you as a seafarer applicant that you will not be charged any fees or other charges for providing employment with our clients either directly or indirectly. The seafarer candidate is expected to fund their own qualifications to enable them to be employable for a suitable role and therefore basic mandatory qualifications include STCW10, Medical Certificate (ENG1) or equivalent, Passport or similar personal travel documents. However, the cost of visas will be borne by the client/ shipowner to which the MLC applies to.

3) We keep candidates’ personal documents including CV, passport and certificates confidentially and securely and will only send their CV to a third party with their prior consent. Candidates’ personal details will be kept on a secure database and will be retained for a minimum of 1 year after we have found you a position and or you have registered with our agency. We will also ask applicants for details of a next of kin in case of an emergency. Therefore, candidates are requested to keep us updated with up-to-date personal contact details and that of their next to kin. You can contact us at any time to inform us if you wish for your details to be removed from our database. You can either email us at [email protected] and or call us on 0207 581 5739. We will maintain an up-to-date register of all seafarers recruited or placed through us which will be available to the MCA by giving access to our database.

4) We will ensure that the clients seafarers’ employment agreements (SEA’s) are in accordance with flag state laws and regulations, as is any Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA) that forms part of the employment agreement. This will involve informing seafarers of their rights and duties under their employment agreements prior to engagement.

5) We will ensure that all seafarers recruited or placed are qualified for the job concerned. This will involve, checking their identity and we will undertake confidential reference checks to provide assurance. We will also keep up to date records of relevant documents & qualifications including their expiry dates and will inform the client/ shipowner on presentation of a CV.

6) We will make sure, as far as reasonably practicable, that the owner/management company/Captain has the means to protect seafarers from being stranded in a foreign port. As part of our Financial System of protection we have an insurance policy in place to ensure that the seafarer is compensated if the shipowner fails to meet its’ statuary or contractual obligations. You should also determine that you have adequate personal insurance cover provided for you by the Client during the period of your employment.

7) We will investigate and respond to any complaints if you feel our services and activities have fallen short of the high standards that we set ourselves. We will also advise the competent authority (flag state) of any unresolved complaint. If you have a complaint about Goldenkeys Recruitment, then please write to Oliver Holland (Director)

Lower Hill Recruitment & Consultancy Ltd T/a Goldenkeys Recruitment
Company Number: 5729085
Cavalier Court,
Unit 8,
Chippenham,
Wiltshire,
SN14 6LH

Alternatively, you can email: [email protected] Mobile: 07966 487 939

We will aim to acknowledge, investigate and resolve all complaints within 21 days of receipt.
If you still feel your complaint has been unresolved then you should contact a competent authority for further guidance. This could be the management company of the vessel, DPA or person responsible for crew welfare ashore.
We would advise you to bring the complaint to the attention of the MCA UK. Their contact details are: [email protected]
If you are unhappy with any way in which your personal data is processed, then please contact [email protected]
This does not affect your right to make a complaint to the Information Commissioner’s office. https://ico.org.uk
This document was created in October 2021. Should we make any substantial amendments then we will let you know via email.