Report Tracks The Spread Of Cabotage Laws

Cabotage laws, or laws restricting a certain percentage of shipping to a nation’s flagged vessels—of which America’s Jones Act is a prime example —have spread from 91 countries in 2018 to 105 countries around the world today, according to the latest report from the International Transport Workers’ Federation and Seafarers Rights International (SRI), which conducts research on maritime issues.

This is just one finding in the second edition of Cabotage Laws of the World, published October 22 and co-authored by Deirdre Fitzpatrick, CEO of SRI and emeritus professor Hilton Staniland. The authors found that cabotage laws have spread in West Africa, East Africa, the Horn of Africa, the Middle East, Central America, the Pacific Ocean and the Caribbean Sea and that some form of cabotage now exists along the coastlines of approximately 85 percent of the world and extends into more offshore zones.

“The United States must take the lead in securing our own maritime border and domestic supply chain and not let foreign governments or foreign carriers decide our fate,” said Jennifer Carpenter, president of the American Maritime Partnership and president and CEO of The American Waterways Operators. “Just as we wouldn’t allow foreign airlines to transport passengers between U.S. cities or foreign trucks to ply U.S. highways, the same principle has long applied for maritime. We are grateful that President Trump and a strong bipartisan majority in Congress understand the importance of putting America first and preserving U.S. control over our waterways.”

The Jones Act supports an estimated 650,000 jobs and contributes $150 billion to the U.S. economy annually. The law also contributes to the strategic sealift capacity needed for America’s armed forces and is a core component of the current push to revive U.S. shipbuilding capacity.

It’s a dynamic that an increasing number of countries understand.

Staniland said, “No single reason explains the spread of cabotage, but it does appear that when states decide to introduce cabotage, they pay particular attention to the number of states that already have cabotage.”

Staniland said he anticipates more cabotage changes

“There have been momentous changes since the first edition of Cabotage Laws of the World in 2018,” he said. “These include COVID-19, geopolitical tensions disrupting shipping, changing trading tariffs and the emergence of new cabotage trades, routes and activities. Cabotage changes are now occurring almost constantly, driven hard, it appears, by a collection of complex geopolitical issues.”

David Heindel, president of the Seafarers International Union (SIU) of North America and chairman of the Seafarers’ Section of the International Transport Federation (ITF), said, “When the first edition of this report was released in 2018 with its headline finding that cabotage [existed] in 91 countries, it stood as one of the most comprehensive examinations of global cabotage policies and laws ever undertaken. It quickly became a key reference point in national debates. It is hugely significant that, only seven years later, the number of countries found to have cabotage laws has now increased to 105.”

That’s a 15 percent increase in only seven years.

“Good policy,” Heindel said, “depends on facts, and this publication provides an objective, independent and fact-based account of global cabotage today. It is my hope that this second edition will serve as a valuable resource to policymakers, industry stakeholders and unions alike as we work together to strengthen protections for seafarers worldwide.”

Jacqueline Smith, maritime coordinator of the ITF, said the publication demonstrates that “a majority of states regulate the employment of seafarers in their cabotage voyages and trades and that the reservation of jobs for national seafarers is a very common requirement, sometimes requiring that national vessels are wholly crewed by national seafarers. Cabotage laws may also provide for minimum wages, and minimum wages may also be required in offshore zones, even though this requirement may not be part of traditional cabotage laws. All this helps to ensure that seafarers get treated decently and shipowners compete fairly.”

The updated report is attracting further international interest and comment. Stephen Cotton, general secretary of the ITF, has welcomed the findings, saying, “There are multiple reasons why more states are now seeing the benefits of cabotage laws, and just a few of these benefits include increasing the resilience of their international supply chains, the security of their coastlines, the establishment of strategic fleets and the recruitment, training and reskilling of national seafarers. In times of crisis, if there is no cabotage, there is no resilience, and in times of war, if there is no cabotage, there are no merchant ships to assist naval assets. So states should ask themselves whether they can afford to run the risk of not having cabotage.”

“This report provides a compelling and independent affirmation of what the maritime community has long recognized.” Heindel said. “The Jones Act serves the best interests of the United States, its mariners and our economic and national security. The United States remains the global benchmark for strong cabotage and maritime policy, and it is no surprise that nations confronting today’s geopolitical challenges are reinforcing their own cabotage frameworks to preserve sovereignty and safeguard critical maritime infrastructure.”