All seafarers shall be provided with a minimum of 10 hours of rest in any 24 hour period and 77 hours rest in any 7 day period.
The hours of rest may be divided into no more than two periods, one of which shall be at least 6 hours in length, and the intervals between consecutive periods of rest shall not exceed 14 hours.
STCW, as amended, permits parties to allow two exceptions from the required hours of rest.
As per the provisions of MANILA exceptions, the minimum hours of rest in any 7 day period may be reduced from 77 hours to 70 hours for not more than 2 consecutive weeks. However, this exception cannot be used again until twice the period of exception has been used.
Also the 10 hours minimum rest in any 24 hours period may be divided in to three periods rather than two. However one of the rest periods must still be at least 6 consecutive hours, and each of the other two periods must be at least of 1 hour in length. This exemption can only be used for two 24 hour periods in any 7 day period. A minimum of 10 hours rest must always be provided in any 24 hour period (Except in genuine emergencies).
Note:
Exceptions can only be used if permitted by flag state regulations or same incorporated in the vessel’s CBA (collective bargaining agreement).
US waters: Work hours should not exceed more than 15 hours in any 24 hour period and not more than 36 hours in any 72 hours period.
