Hours of Rest has long been one of the most contentious topics among seafarers across all sectors of the maritime industry.
Given that many at sea face fatigue from extended periods of work alongside sporadic and often broken sleep, it’s not surprising that they take a keen interest in the regulations governing their hours of work and rest.
Beyond the impact to the individual crew, hours of rest is also a significant factor in human-error related incidents at sea, which itself is estimated to cause around 75% to 95% of all marine accidents.
However despite the clear correlation between fatigue and accidents, and despite the visible impact on crew, hours of rest regulations as set out by the IMO and ILO via their STCW and MLC conventions, are often not adhered to. Which is what we here at workrest aim to prevent via our hours of rest software. Find out more about workrest here.
In this article, we’re going to look at what makes up the hours of rest regulations, when exceptions to them may be granted and who they apply to.
To break the information down, we’ve split the article into the below sections:
- The minimum hours of rest requirement (and how this is impacted by the ‘in any’ rule)
- The rules around rest periods
- Exceptions to the rules
- The scope of application
Minimum hours of rest
The primary element to the hours of rest regulation is the definition of the minimum hours of rest a crew member should receive.
This minimum requirement is split into two time frames, and reads as follows:
The minimum hours of rest shall not be less than:
- 10 hours in any 24-hour period
And
- 77 hours in any 7-day period
I’ve highlighted the ‘in any’ parts of those rules as they’re key to these regulations and are often misunderstood.
As the 24-hour or 7-day periods are not explicitly defined the compliance calculations can be run ‘in any’ 24-hour or 7-day period. The start of the compliance calculation is taken from the start of any work period at any point in the day.
In the below example, looking at a 24-hour period, the compliance calculation can be taken from points A, B or C.
If we start our compliance calculation at point A, we can see that the crew member in this scenario has received 13 hours of rest in that specific 24-hour period.
If no further work was logged on day two, starting the compliance calculation at point B would result in 17.5 hours of rest, and taken at point C would result in 22.5 hours of rest.
Rest periods
So now that we’ve got our heads around the minimum hours of rest required, let’s move on to how rest periods should be structured.
The hours of rest regulation sets out that:
- The hours of rest may be divided into no more than two periods
- One of which must be at least 6 hours long
- The two periods must in total provide at least 10 hours of rest
- The interval between rest periods must be no longer than 14 hours
- Rest periods under one hour long will not count towards the total hours of rest
- Any periods of rest additional to the one or two periods making up the minimum of 10 hours of rest in a 24 hour period may be counted towards the weekly rest total
This complicates things a little, so let’s take a look at some common scenarios which can be impacted by the above requirements.
Firstly, let’s address “The hours of rest may be divided into no more than two periods”.
In the below scenario:
- Crew member starts work at 07:00
- Takes a break from 11:00–13:00
- Finishes the day at 17:00
- Works the same shift the following day
In this scenario:
- (A)The initial compliance calculation starts at 07:00 and looks ahead 24 hours
- (B) 2 hours of rest is given between 11:00–13:00
- (C)A further 14 hours of rest is given from 17:00 until 07:00 the following day
- (B+C) There is a total of 16 hours of qualifying rest within the 24 hour period
- Rest is broken into no more than 2 periods
- The compliance calculation starts again at 13:00 and looks ahead 24 hours.
Both 24 hour periods on day 1 in this scenario result in a compliant day.
Let’s take a look at another scenario impacted by the “hours of rest may be divided into no more than two periods” rule.
In this scenario:
- (A) The compliance calculation will start at 08:00 (the start of the first work period)
- (B & C) Only 2 rest periods can count within this timeframe, so we would take the 2 longest periods of rest
- 19:00–02:00 = 7 hours of rest
- 04:00–06:00 = 2 hours of rest
- (B + C)Only 9 hours of rest can be recorded for this 24 hour period
So you can see in this scenario, whilst the correct amount of total rest was given, the fact that it was split into more than 2 rest periods meant it couldn’t be counted. This then resulted in a non-compliance.
Let’s now clarify the rule “The interval between rest periods must be no longer than 14 hours”
In this scenario:
- We’ll start the compliance calculation at 07:00 and look ahead 24 hours
- We’re looking specifically for the maximum number of unbroken work hours between rest periods
- The total number of hours between rest periods is 13
- 07:00–20:00 = 13 hours
This scenario just about fulfills the requirements for the maximum interval between rest periods rule and so would be a compliant day.
In the below scenario, the rest period on day 1 doesn’t begin until 22:00 which would exceed the maximum interval between rest periods and result in a non-compliance.
That summarises the bulk of the hours of rest regulations, but if you have any scenarios you’d like us to run through, just send us an email to support@workrest.co
Once a schedule for crew’s working hours has been created, the vessel is then required to:
- Post up a table of watchkeeping duties and hours of rest for all crew members in the working language of the ship in a prominent and easily accessible place on the ship
- Keep a log recording the number of hours of work and rest for every crew member (maintained at all times)
- These logs must be retained and available for inspection for at least one year.
Exceptions
Now given that the above regulations can be restrictive in certain scenarios, there is guidance on when exceptions to the limits of hours of rest can be granted.
Exceptions may be authorized provided that there is an agreement between employers and seafarers, there is due regard to the general principles of health and safety of workers, and that the hours of rest comply with certain limits.
These limits include:
- The 10 hours rest required in any 24 hour period are divided into no more than three periods
- One of those periods must be at least 6 hours long
- Neither of the others is less than one hour long
- Intervals between consecutive rest periods are no more than 14 hours
- The exceptions may not apply to more than two 24 hour periods in a seven day period
- There are at least 70 hours rest in any seven day period
- The exceptions authorized do not apply for a period of more than two consecutive weeks
- Where the exception applies in relation to two periods separated by an interval, the interval shall be at least twice the duration of the longest of the two periods
Exceptions can also be granted in emergencies that threaten the safety of the ship, persons on board or the cargo or where another ship or person in distress requires assistance.
- In these circumstances, hours of rest schedules may be suspended until the normal situation is restored.
With all the above exceptions, the master shall ensure that any affected seafarer is then given an adequate rest period to avoid fatigue.
Who do these rules apply too?
The scope of application of the hours of rest regulations apply to all seafarers, including masters, that are employed in any capacity onboard a seagoing vessel, and whose normal place of work is on a ship.
However, they do not apply to seafarers on fishing vessels, pleasure vessels, warships or vessels which are not ordinarily engaged in commercial activities.
If you’d like to find out more about the hours of rest regulation, simply follow the links below to the appropriate regulatory body or get in touch with us at support@workrest.co
