DoLE grounds June Aster operator’s 6 ships

The Department of Labor and Employment (DoLE) has issued work stoppage orders against six vessels owned by the company that operates MV June Aster, where 77 people died in a fire last month.

The DoLE issued the work stoppage orders against vessels operated by Atienza Interisland Ferries Inc., which is based in Batangas.

The vessels named in the orders are MV Star San Carlos, MV September Tulips, MV December Poinsettia, MV October Lavender, MV Star San Carlos and MV May Lilies. All six vessels are currently docked at the Navotas Fish Port.

The DoLE issued the work stoppage orders following inspections conducted by labor inspectors aboard the six vessels on 10 October.

Prior to this, DoLE Secretary Francis Tolentino held a hearing concerning Atienza Interisland Ferries on 8 October, during which it was determined that the company had committed a number of Occupational Safety and Health Standards (OSHS) violations.

The OSHS violations included missing safety programs, the absence of emergency response plans, and a lack of safety committees and trained officers.

The DoLE also found insufficient personal protective equipment and a failure to submit mandatory OSH reports.

The agency’s investigation also found that the vessel operator had committed multiple General Labor Standards violations amounting to more than P600,000, including unpaid overtime, holiday, rest-day and night-shift differentials, as well as withheld service incentive leave and underpaid wages.

On 9 September, MV June Aster caught fire in Coron, Palawan, while en route to Manila. A total of 77 passengers and crew members died in the fire.