GHOST SHIPS A worldwide fleet of rusting hulks can be found beached at ports in Asia and Turkey, ready to be scrapped by an unprotected workforce.

All images: NA Kippenbroeck

Hazards issue 88 contents

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SHIPBREAKING, UNION BUILDING

Union mettle

When not being shipped to the UK for disposal, the toxics-laden "ghost ships" of the sea are more usually beached, ready for scrapping at ports in Asia and Turkey.

In shipbreaking yards, in one of the world's most hazardous occupations, workers strip and recycle old ships. With growing environmental concerns about the aging global fleet, the shipbreaking industry is expanding. Many of its workers are contracted within an informal economy and have little or no protection from the risks of this dangerous work.

Anita Gardner of the International Metalworkers' Federation (IMF) describes the global union's campaign to protect shipbreaking workers.

Union mettle Hazards 88 Oct-Dec 2004 Order the photospread

Find out more: IMF website