Zes Pilot
5 seafarers abandoned on the Zes Pilot (IMO 8906212, flag Finland) in Rotterdam, Netherlands (Kingdom of the), 8 August 2025. ILO case 1478, status: Resolved.
- Status
- Resolved
- Abandonment ID
- 1478
- IMO Number
- 8906212
- Flag
- Finland
- Port of Abandonment
- Rotterdam, Netherlands (Kingdom of the)
- Abandonment Date
- 8 August 2025
- Notification Date
- 6 October 2025
- Seafarers
- 5
- Reporting Org.
- International Transport Workers' Federation
Circumstances
The Estonian seafarer has outstanding wages for August and September 2025
Seafarers applied to insurer?: Yes
Insurance certificate dates: 6th February 2025 to 6th February 2026
Updates
6 July 2026: International Transport Workers' Federation
Seafarer paid their outstanding wages.
Resolved.
12 March 2026: International Transport Workers' Federation
(From the ITF Inspector the Netherlands)
I am pleased to inform you that the seafarers who contacted us and were considered abandoned have now received their outstanding wages through the P&I Club.
I would like to express my sincere appreciation to everyone who contributed to bringing this case to a resolution for the seafarers. These situations are never easy, and it required the involvement and persistence of several parties to ensure that the crew ultimately received what they were entitled to.
In particular, I would like to thank Betül for her continued efforts and cooperation. While the process took longer than we would normally hope to see, the most important matter for the crew has now been resolved.
At this stage, the wage claims for the affected seafarers can be considered settled.
The only remaining matter concerns the costs incurred by third parties during the period of abandonment. As previously mentioned, various organisations and parties provided support to ensure the basic welfare of the crew while they remained in port. Clarification will still be required on how these expenses will be addressed.
Once again, thank you to everyone involved for helping to bring this case to a proper conclusion for the seafarers.
7 November 2025: Finland
(From the Finnish Transport and Communications Agency Traficom)
Thank you. Finland appreciates the opportunity to comment. The Finnish Flag State authorities are aware of the case, and the matter is currently under investigation.
Finland expresses deep concern over this unfortunate event, and we have begun investigating the matter in cooperation among competent authorities without undue delay.
- Legislative basis
In Finland, the financial security required under MLC Standard A2.5.2 is implemented through two partially overlapping mechanisms: primarily via an insurance arrangement, and secondarily through the national wage guarantee system for seafarers. In this particular case, which is the first of its kind in Finland, the designated insurance provider has regrettably remained inactive.
Consequently, affected seafarers may submit their wage claims through the wage guarantee system.
Finnish authorities are actively working to ensure that seafarers are informed of their rights under national legislation, and are able to access the appropriate procedures for securing their outstanding wages.
- Competent authorities
Regional State Administrative Agency (AVI) as an occupational safety and health authority is responsible in Finland for the supervision of compliance with the MLC (Chapter 13, Section 22 of the Seafarers’ Employment Contracts Act, and MLC Regulation 5.1.3). The Finnish Transport and Communications Agency (Traficom) is responsible for issuing MLC certificates and for oversight related to vessel manning and the ISM Safety Management System.
Finnish Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Finland, Embassy of Finland in the Hague and Finnish KEHA Centre (competent authority in wage quarantee matters) also actively participate in cooperation in investigating the case.
- Current situation
At the time being, all remaining seafarers are repatriated with the assistance of the Finnish Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Embassy of Finland in the Hague. Seafarers are also guided by the Regional State Administrative Agency on how to apply for payment of wages under the wage guarantee system. The matter will be handled by competent authority in accordance with existing Finnish legislation, which ensures uniform treatment of all employees.
The Finnish Transport and Communications Agency (Traficom) has submitted a request for investigation to the Finnish Coast Guard to examine the matter from a criminal law perspective.
- Next steps
Competent Finnish authorities will continue to address this issue. Since no such cases have previously occurred under the Finnish Flag, Finnish administration will review its internal procedures and evaluate whether any adjustments are required.
6 November 2025: International Maritime Organisation
I herewith would like to draw the attention of the maritime authorities of Finland, and the insurer Hydor , to the attached request to take urgent action, as appropriate.
6 November 2025: International Transport Workers' Federation
I would like to express my deep disappointment in the way the responsible parties have handled the abandonment situation onboard the M/V Zes Pilot. In particular, the response and conduct by the Finnish Flag State is extremely concerning, especially given that Finland has ratified the Maritime Labour Convention (MLC 2006) and a wide range of international human rights instruments, such as the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (ICESCR) and the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR). The current handling of this case is not in line with the spirit nor the obligations of these conventions.
This morning, the abandoned crew members departed The Netherlands and returned home with travel expenses covered by the Finnish Embassy. However, this does not mean that the abandonment has ended. The crew remains abandoned until every seafarer has received all outstanding salary payments in full into their personal bank accounts. The PSC detention will also remain in place, and will not be lifted, until the full outstanding wages have been paid.
In addition, during the time this crew remained onboard the vessel, multiple parties have incurred costs for food, transport, welfare support and other essential needs — including shore power costs to provide electricity and heating for the crew. None of the responsible parties contributed to or supported these essential humanitarian expenses in any way. These costs have previously been shared with the parties in copy. I would therefore like to receive clarification on how the P&I Club or the Flag State intends to reimburse these costs.
This case has clearly demonstrated a serious failure of responsibility by the employer, the P&I insurer and the Flag State. There must now be clarity and accountability. I expect a response and a concrete plan of action from the responsible parties on how they intend to settle this immediately. Furthermore, I believe it is appropriate that the Finnish State now investigates whether criminal offences have been committed by Valmex Oy, Hydor AS, or by the Finnish Flag State authorities themselves, and that appropriate consequences are applied. This should include placing these parties on a blacklist if necessary, including prohibiting the Finnish flag from being covered in future by insurance companies such as Hydor AS and prohibiting entities such as Valmex Oy from operating under the Finnish flag entirely.
For context, last weekend (Saturday 1st November) I was contacted by a crew onboard a Liberian-flagged vessel who had also not been paid for two months and were therefore also abandoned by their employer. In that case, the Liberian flag and the P&I Club took responsibility immediately. Yesterday this case was resolved: 12 seafarers received their outstanding two months of wages and those who wished to return home were already repatriated at the employer’s cost. Perhaps the Finnish Flag State could consider contacting the Liberian Flag to learn how abandoned seafarer cases should be handled properly. If the Finnish authorities are willing, I can provide contact details.
Finally, I will continue to closely monitor this case and will continue to inform the media until this matter has been fully resolved meaning not only when the crew have received all their outstanding wages, but also when those parties and organisations that financially supported and protected the seafarers during their abandonment have been fully compensated for the costs they were forced to cover.
30 October 2025: International Maritime Organisation
I herewith would like to draw the attention of the maritime authorities of Finland, to the attached information and request to take urgent action, as appropriate.
28 October 2025: International Transport Workers' Federation
I am writing to express my serious concern about the ongoing abandonment of the MV ZES PILOT (IMO 8906212), a vessel registered under the Finnish flag. Despite several messages and formal notifications sent to the shipowner, the employer, Hydor P&I Club and the Finnish authorities, there has been no response or concrete action to resolve the situation or to safeguard the most basic rights of the seafarers.
The crew has now gone without salaries for more than two months. For several weeks they were also left without food, drinking water and electricity for heating. The electricity was only restored temporarily through direct intervention by the ITF, while food and drinking water are currently being supplied by the Port Welfare Committee, the Finnish Seafarers’ Mission and the ITF — not by the responsible parties. It should also be noted that one of the crew members, who is currently at home, has likewise not received any wages from the employer for more than two months.
This situation clearly meets the definition of abandonment under the Maritime Labour Convention (MLC, 2006), Standard A2.5.2.
As the flag State, Finland remains legally responsible under the MLC for ensuring that vessels flying its flag comply with the requirements of the Convention. This includes a clear duty to recognise and report cases of abandonment, to ensure that food, water, medical care and repatriation are provided without delay, and to require immediate action from the P&I insurer, Hydor. The flag State must also inform the joint ILO/IMO abandonment database and guarantee the well-being of the crew until all obligations have been met.
Even if the MLC certificate has been withdrawn, Finland continues to bear responsibility for this case, as the abandonment occurred before the withdrawal. This is clearly stated in MLC Standard A2.5.2, paragraphs 10 and 11.
This case also raises serious human rights concerns under the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (ICESCR), to which Finland is a party. The ongoing situation violates several of the crew’s rights — including the right to fair and timely remuneration, the right to social protection, and the right to adequate food, water, housing, energy and health. It is deeply concerning that a country known for its strong commitment to human rights allows such conditions to persist under its own flag without visible action or communication from the authorities or from Hydor as the insurer.
Despite numerous written attempts to establish contact, the shipowner and employer have stopped responding. Hydor has not provided any reply or plan of action, and neither Traficom nor the Ministry of Transport and Communications have taken visible steps to address the matter. This continued silence leaves the seafarers in a desperate and vulnerable situation and undermines confidence in the Finnish flag.
At this point, the only support provided to the crew comes from the ITF, the Finnish Seafarers’ Mission and the Port Welfare Committee. These organisations have stepped in purely for humanitarian reasons, but the financial responsibility lies with the shipowner, the employer, the P&I Club and ultimately the Finnish flag State. A detailed cost calculation has been prepared for the expenses incurred to sustain the crew, which should be reimbursed by one or more of these responsible parties.
Furthermore, the responsibility of the shipowner and all entities involved in resolving this abandonment also extends to the payment of port dues, mooring fees and any other costs necessary to keep the vessel safely berthed. Since the shipowner and employer have ceased all communication and payments, these costs must now be covered either by the P&I Club (Hydor) or, failing that, by the flag State of Finland, in accordance with MLC Standard A2.5.2, the IMO/ILO joint abandonment guidelines and established principles of maritime law. Ignoring these obligations would constitute an additional violation of Finland’s responsibilities under both the MLC and the ICESCR.
I therefore urge the Finnish authorities to take immediate action — to formally recognise this case as abandonment, to ensure that the crew’s rights are fully protected, and to demand that Hydor and the shipowner meet their obligations without further delay. The Ministry of Transport and Communications should also investigate why no effective response or coordination has taken place from either the flag administration or the insurer.
It is deeply regrettable that such a situation has been allowed to develop under the Finnish flag. I trust that your offices will act swiftly to correct this and to reaffirm Finland’s reputation as a nation that upholds human dignity and responsibility — both at sea and ashore.
6 October 2025: International Transport Workers' Federation
Estonian seafarer already signed off the vessel without his wages