26.2.2 Responsibilities of Owners and Operators: General Principles

 In fulfilling their responsibility to ensure that vessels are safely and sufficiently manned, owners and operators should:

• .1 make an assessment of the tasks, duties and responsibilities of the vessel's complement required for its safe operation, for the protection of the marine environment and dealing with emergency situations;

• .2 assess the numbers and grades/capacities in the vessel's complement required for the safe operation and for the protection of the environment, and for dealing with emergency situations, including the evacuation of passengers where applicable;

• .3 ensure that the manning level is adequate at all times and in all respects, including meeting peak workloads;

• .4 in case of changes in the nature of the operation, operational area, construction, machinery, equipment or maintenance of the vessel, which may affect the manning level, review the manning level.

In conjunction with these factors the owner or operator should:

• .5 identify all the functions to be undertaken on board during a representative voyage or operational period, including determination of the number of crew required to undertake the relevant tasks and duties under both peak and routine work load conditions. Due consideration should also be given to the number of hotel staff required;

• .6 identify those functions that constitute a normal operation and determine the numbers of crew required to undertake the concurrent tasks and duties safely;

• .7 identify the skills and experience required to perform those functions;

• .8 establish working arrangements to ensure that the master and crew are capable of undertaking concurrent and continuing operations at the appropriate level(s) of responsibility, as specified, with respect to their skills and training; and

• .9 ensure that the working arrangements allow for sufficient rest periods to avoid fatigue.