Brussels, 03/10/2014 (Agence Europe) - Shipowners and trade unions have been able to find common ground through social dialogue over excluding seafarers from a raft of EU directives. They have reached a non-binding agreement to exempt seafarers from the amendments drawn up by the European Commission in November 2013 to directives on insolvency, European company agreements, information and consultation, collective redundancies and the transfer of companies. The new rules generated confusion and would have led to seafarers being treated differently from people based on land. On Friday 3 October, the European Federation of Transport and the European Community of Ship-builders announced that a solution had been found in constructive social dialogue to restore balance between the interests of both sides. (MD)