Nearly 200 delegates, comprising young dockers and seafarers, from 64 countries came together in Cyprus last week for the ITF Maritime Roundtable. Young maritime trade unionists participated in workshops and looked into pressing issues – data and artificial intelligence (AI), equality, role of women in the industry, and safety and sustainability – facing maritime workers.
The ITF Maritime Roundtable is part of the federation’s commitment to empower young transport workers across all sectors, ensuring they have the skills, confidence, and connections to carry the movement forward.
Lorena Pintor Silva, ITF Seafarers’ Section Women Transport Workers’ Representative and member of SINDMAR, Brazil, said the Maritime Roundtable proves the power of bringing together young workers. “We don’t just learn skills like campaigning, organising, and negotiating – we build a collective spirit that makes us stronger as a movement.” She underlined the importance of giving young workers the tools to lead change.
“The challenges we face, from unsafe conditions to digital disruption, are global. That means our solidarity must be global too. Young workers are not waiting for tomorrow to lead. We are already leading today.” Silva added that the next generation of maritime leaders return home, going back with new knowledge, strategies, and determination to strengthen their unions.
Nick Loridan, ITF Young Transport Workers’ Committee Co-Chair and ITF Dockworkers’ Section Youth Co-Representative from Belgian dockers’ union BTB ABVV, highlighted that the message coming out of MRT was clear – young workers must be heard and empowered in the unions. “That means demanding seats at negotiation tables, shaping how AI, automation, and decarbonisation affect us, and building unions that truly work for young workers.”
He said strong youth structures, formal committees, leadership roles, decision-making bodies in the unions are essential not just as training grounds, but as engines that deliver real change on the issues young workers face, as well as in next generation to lead on campaigning and collective bargaining.
