Unpaid wage saga ends

The crews from MV Torrent and MV Independent were arrested in Rye and Shoreham-by-Sea in Sussex, England, in January 2013.

Seafarer charity, Apostleship of the Seas (AoS) stepped in to assist the men by raising emergency funds for the crew to send home and by providing food, internet access and phone cards so they could contact their anxious families.

Reverend Roger Stone, AoS port chaplain for Shoreham-by-Sea, said: “At last this long-running saga has been brought to an end and the seafarers have received the money that was rightfully theirs.”

His team of ship visiting volunteers provided practical and pastoral support to the seafarers who were unpaid and left in limbo after the shipping company they worked for fell into financial difficulties.

The charity was able to offer the seafarers hope as they were left vulnerable and worried about their futures and that of their families during a very stressful time.

AoS is a Catholic charity that provides both practical and pastoral support to seafarers in more than 40 ports around the UK and 250 ports worldwide.