NMWM06205 - Specific occupations and special groups: offshore workers from 1 October 2020

Relevant legislation

The legislation that applies to this page is as follows:

  • National Minimum Wage Act 1998, section 42 and National Minimum Wage (Offshore Employment) Order 1999 (SI1128)

This page describes the rules relating to offshore workers from 1 October 2020. For information on the rules before 1 October 2020 see NMWM06200.

Offshore workers are covered by the NMW (Offshore Employment) Order 1999, which came into force on 1 May 1999 and was amended from 1 October 2020 by The National Minimum Wage (Offshore Employment) (Amendment) Order 2020. This extends the operation of the Act to workers who work or ordinarily work:

  • in the territorial waters of the United Kingdom, or
  • in connection with the exploration of the sea bed or its subsoil or exploiting the natural resources in
  • the United Kingdom sector of the continental shelf, or
  • a foreign sector of the continental shelf of a cross-boundary petroleum field.

Except for:

  • any individual employed for the purposes of activities on a ship exercising the right of innocent passage or the right of transit passage.

The Order can apply to activities outside the United Kingdom and regardless of whether the worker is a United Kingdom national or resident. It also applies to companies and businesses, regardless of whether or not they are incorporated under United Kingdom legislation.

For specific guidance on how the NMW (Offshore Employment) (Amendment) Order 2020 impacts on seafarers see NMWM06185 and Share Fishermen NMWM06230.

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Right of innocent passage

The expression 바카라 사이트渞ight of innocent passage바카라 사이트� is interpreted in line with the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea 1982 (UNCLOS). It is defined in Article 19 which describes a vessel바카라 사이트檚 passage as being innocent if it is not prejudicial to the peace, good order, or security of the coastal state.

Innocent passage means navigation through the territorial sea or the purpose of:

  • Traversing that sea without entering internal waters or calling at a roadstead or port facility outside internal waters, or
  • Proceeding to or from internal waters or a call at such roadstead or port facility.

Vessels entering UK territorial waters as part of an international voyage, are considered to be under innocent passage, and will not therefore be covered by National Minimum Wage, examples include: ferry services operating between the UK and mainland Europe (including the Republic of Ireland), and vessels calling at a British port as part of a longer international, multi-port voyage.

Right of transit passage

The expression 바카라 사이트渞ight of transit passage바카라 사이트� should be interpreted in line with the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea 1982 (UNCLOS). It is defined in Article 38 which describes transit passage as navigation through a strait between one part of the high seas or an exclusive economic zone and another part of the high seas or an exclusive economic zone.

Offshore workers include workers on offshore installations, such as oil rigs and platforms. These installations are not ships. They do not typically move around and are not used in navigation. Regardless of their duties, workers on offshore installations are not mariners (NMWM06180). Workers on dredgers can also be offshore workers, but only where the dredger is excavating the sea bed or its subsoil in the course or pipe laying.

Some vessels, such as accommodation barges, light ships, weather ships, semi-submersible oil rigs and similar vessels may be regarded as ships depending on the use made of them. This use-based approach was followed by the Court of Appeal in Perks v Clark (2001) which held that a semi-submersible drilling rig could be considered as a ship in certain circumstances.

A simplified definition of the 바카라 사이트渃ontinental shelf바카라 사이트� is the submerged sea bed and its subsoil extending 200 nautical miles underwater from the coast or to the point it joins the ocean floor (whichever is the greater).

In National Minimum Wage legislation, the following terms are defined as:

  • 바카라 사이트淯nited Kingdom sector of the continental shelf바카라 사이트� means the area designated under section 1(7) of the Continental Shelf Act 1964,
  • 바카라 사이트渇oreign sector of the continental shelf바카라 사이트� means an area outside the territorial waters of any state, within which rights with respect to the sea bed and subsoil and their natural resources are exercisable by a state other than the United Kingdom,
  • 바카라 사이트減etroleum field바카라 사이트� means a geological structure identified as an oil or gas field by the Order in Council concerned,
  • 바카라 사이트渃ross-boundary petroleum field바카라 사이트� means a petroleum field that extends across the boundary between the United Kingdom sector of the continental shelf and a foreign sector of the continental shelf.