David Dearsley, who served as Deputy Secretary General of the International Shipping Federation (ISF) prior to its merger with the International Chamber of Shipping (ICS), has passed away at the age of 79, ICS said on Friday, February 13.
Having started his career at sea, Dearsley was one of those who crafted the ILO Maritime Labour Convention, 2006.
He was also involved in the negotiations at IMO that led to the radical rewrite of the STCW Convention, which ISF had persuaded IMO to undertake in the early 1990s.
"David was also very much responsible for the evolution of the International Maritime Employers’ Council – which he originally ran in the 1980s when it was the 'London Committee-Asian Seamen' – into the important employers’ body [that] now engages in global collective bargaining negotiations directly with the ITF, positively impacting the wages and conditions enjoyed by the majority of the world’s seafarers who live in developing countries," ICS said in a statement following his passing.
"As the world’s leading expert and practitioner of maritime industrial relations, David was always a staunch advocate for the best interests of maritime employers, to which he dedicated his entire career ashore."