Section 126: Forms and contents of agreement

126. Forms and contents of agreement.—(1) An agreement with the crew made under section 125 shall be in the form approved by the Federal Government, and shall be dated at the time of the first signature thereof, and shall be signed.–– (a) where the ship is at the port or place of engagement. by the master before any seaman signs the same; and (b) where the ship is not at the port or place of engagement, by the owner or the owner’s agent before the master signs it and by the master before the seaman is on board. (2) An agreement with the crew made under section 125 shall contain as terms thereof the following particulars, namely :–– (a) the name of the ship or ships with the official number or numbers in which each seaman undertakes to serve; (b) either the nature and, as far as practicable, the duration of the intended voyage or engagement, or maximum period of the voyage or engagement and the places or ports of the world, if any, to which the voyage or engagement is not to extend; (c) the time at which each seaman is to be on board or to being work; (d) the capacity in which each seaman is to serve; (e) the amount of wages which each seaman is to receive; (f) a scale of the provisions which are to be furnished to each seaman, such scale being not less than the prescribed scale; (g) any regulations as to conduct on board and as to fines, short allowance, or pro- vision or other lawful punishments for misconduct, which have been sanctioned by the Federal Government as regulations proper to be adopted, and which the parties agree to adopt; (h) payment of compensation for personal injury or death caused by accident arising out of or in course of employment; (i) where it is agreed that the services of any Pakistani seaman shall end at any port or place outside Pakistan, a stipulation to provide him either fit employment on board some other ship bound to the port or place at which he was engaged or to such other port or place in Pakistan as may be mutually agreed upon, or a passage free of charge to any such port or place; and (j) stipulations relating to such other matters as may be prescribed. (3) The agreement with the crew made under section 125 shall provide that in the event of a dispute arising outside Pakistan in respect of any matter touching the agreement, such dispute shall be referred to the Pakistan consular officer whose decision thereon shall be binding on the parties until the return of the ship to the port or place in Pakistan at which the seaman is to be discharged. (4) the agreement with the crew made under section 125 shall be so framed as to admit of such stipulations, to be adopted at the will of the master and seamen in each case respecting the advance of wages or supply of warm clothing and similar other matters, as are not inconsistent with the provisions of any law for the time being in force relating to merchant shipping. (5) If a master enters into an agreement with any seaman for a scale of provisions less than the prescribed scale he shall, for each offence, be liable to a fine which may extend to ten thousand rupees.

Effective date: 2001-01-01

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