USCLAC-UNCDiM-SMACD, the union of long-distance captains Captains Chief Engineer and General Staff qualified to command or direct the machine, highlighted the extension of the responsibilities of the master of the ship and the consequent risks introduced by Law No. 182 of last 2 December on "Provisions for the simplification and digitalisation of business procedures and services in favor of citizens and businesses" which has been welcomed by the shipowners' associations Italian Confitarma and Assarmatori ( of 13 October and 27 November 2025).

Recalling that the new law has produced an intervention of particular emphasis on the Navigation Code by modifying in a way Articles 328, 331 and 172-bis and repealing Article 329 with the declared aim of overcoming an old plant which was based on the public act of enlistment of the personnel before the Maritime Authority (Harbour Masters of Port), and to make definitive operational methods that were only experienced during the Covid emergency, the noted that as a consequence the role of the Authority, which previously intervened in advance while now it does so only at a later stage, for checks especially documentary. USCLAC-UNCDiM-SMACD highlighted that effects of this shift are particularly significant for the ship's commander and that the core of the reform is the amendment of Article 328 of the Navigation Code, with a new wording that clearly distinguishes between the enlistment of the commander, for which the form of the act remains stipulated before the maritime authority or consular services, and the enlistment contracts of crew members, which must be stipulated in writing by the master or by the shipowner (or by one of their attorneys), under penalty of nullity, in the presence of two witnesses.

The union noted that, in this way, the commander has a central role in the establishment of the relationship of maritime work, which is not limited to the signing of the contract, but also includes its storage among the documents and, in the cases envisaged, to the annotation on the Role of crew or on the license. USCLAC-UNCDiM-SMACD stressed that This broad delegation of powers to the commander, however, entails various problems on the application level. In the opinion of the Union trade union, in fact, the legislator has not precisely defined the minimum content of the seafarers' employment contract, and nor has it prepared uniform contractual models, with the article 328 which only provides that the contract must be in writing, under penalty of nullity, leaving the commander the responsibility of identify and insert all the essential clauses because complies with the Navigation Code, sector collective and labour and social security regulations, both national and international (MLC2006).

"The risk for the commander - denounced the union in a note drawn up in collaboration with the Law Firm by the lawyer Walter Lo Bocchiaro - it is evident: without a national coordination, it is easy for formal errors, omissions or unclear wording of the contract may cause nullity or generate litigation, with inevitable direct consequences on his personal and professional position. I problems increase if we consider that, with the old system, the intervention of the Maritime Authority in the stipulation of the contract acted as a "preventive guarantee", verifying the formal and substantive regularity of the enlistment. With this reform, as noted at the beginning, this function, on the other hand, disappears because the control of the Authority takes place only at a later stage, that of registration and documentary verification. In practice - he observed USCLAC-UNCDiM-SMACD – this noticeable change will cause significant differences in application between the various Harbour Masters of Porto, with requests for additions or clarifications not always uniforms".

The union also noted that "a further criticality concerns the expansion of responsibilities substantial of the commander, which derive not only from Article 328, but also by the overall structure of the Navigation Code. The in fact, the commander is required to verify the possession of the professional requirements of the seafarer, the validity of the compulsory certifications, health suitability and coherence between the tasks assigned and his qualifications, practice of "filter" between seafarers and Authorities, but with direct legal relevance. This function is located in a context in which Article 331, amended by the reform, allows the use of digital tools for formalization the enlistment of the commander himself (and the crew), introducing a method of finalizing the contract in electronic format. Even this innovation, which is also consistent with the goal of digitization - underlines the note - reinforces the idea of a system in which responsibility is increasingly focused (or offloaded?) on subjects operating "in the field", without adequate regulatory and organizational support apparatus".

"The reform of Article 172-bis of the Tax Code Finally, - continues the note - Navigazione expands the scope of application of the exemption from embarkation and disembarkation notation, and strengthens the use of digital communications, by giving to the Maritime Authority which issued the authorization a central role in the coordination of information. Even in this case, however, the effectiveness of simplification depends on the System ability to ensure uniformity in the application and platforms that are truly operational. Even the management of information flows in fact falls on the organization and therefore, once again, on the captain, who must ensure proper record keeping and timely communication of the requested data".

"In summary," concluded USCLAC-UNCDiM-SMACD, "the whole amendments to Articles 328, 331 and 172-bis cause a profound change in the role of the commander. Historically, the role is of a "hybrid" type: the commander operates in a formally private sector but produces public effects affecting official registers, contribution obligations, insurance and disciplinary regulations. This "singularity" of his role, however, now sees the burden of operational and legal responsibilities without a corresponding Preventive guarantees system: this is because the changes were not accompanied by a clear demarcation of its responsibilities nor by a formal recognition of his new function legal-administrative. The commander could therefore be called to answer for problems arising not from his negligence, but by a regulatory framework that is currently incomplete and in the process of settling. Coordination is therefore urgently needed effective national legislation, which gives concrete implementation to the reform of the Articles 328, 331 and 172-bis of the Navigation Code with models uniform contractual frameworks, shared interpretative criteria and guidelines clear guidance on the role and responsibilities of the commander. Without These tools The reform risks having an effect distorting, transforming "simplification" into legal uncertainty and aggravating the position of the commander, with significant consequences on the balance of the labour system maritime and on the function of the command".