The International Transport Workers’ Federation (ITF) has cautiously welcomed the emerging peace framework between the United States and Iran, describing it as a potential step towards ending a conflict that has severely affected transport workers across the maritime, aviation, port, logistics and road transport sectors.
In a statement issued Monday, ITF General Secretary,, Stephen Cotten said while the framework offers hope for a sustainable peace, it remains too early to determine its full implications because neither government has officially released the complete text of the agreement.
Cotton noted that transport workers have borne significant consequences of the conflict over the past 100 days, with seafarers, aviation personnel, port workers and other transport employees reportedly killed, injured, detained or stranded despite having no direct involvement in the hostilities.
“We welcome this framework as a potential turning point towards a sustainable peace, but a signature on June 19 is not the end. It is, at best, the beginning,” he said.
The ITF warned that shipping operations through the strategically important Strait of Homuz are unlikely to return to normal immediately, even if the reported 30-day reopening timeline is implemented.
According to the federation, the large number of stranded vessels, coupled with the need for crew changes and rest periods for exhausted seafarers, means a full restoration of normal shipping patterns could take weeks or even months.
Cotton said the ITF would continue working with shipowners, industry stakeholders and the (IMO) to facilitate the evacuation of thousands of seafarers stranded in the region while ensuring that their safety remains the top priority.
The federation stressed that any de-escalation arrangement must include binding, verifiable guarantees that civilian transport workers, vessels, aircraft and infrastructure will not be targeted.
It further insisted that transport workers should not be required to resume operations until authorities certify that routes, ports, airspace and transport corridors are free from mines, military threats and other hazards.
The ITF also called for transport workers, including ship masters and pilots, to retain the authority to suspend, refuse or reroute operations where credible safety concerns exist, without facing retaliation, financial penalties or commercial pressure.
Among its key demands, the federation urged governments and stakeholders to facilitate crew changes and repatriation of stranded workers, secure the release of detained civilian transport workers and vessels, provide humanitarian assistance to affected workers and their families, and address operational backlogs, worker fatigue and staffing shortages caused by the conflict.
The organisation also advocated the inclusion of transport unions in all recovery and reopening plans at national, regional and international levels.
Beyond the immediate security concerns, the ITF pledged to work with governments, employers, unions and international partners across the Gulf region to support a just recovery for migrant transport workers whose livelihoods have been disrupted by the conflict.
The federation said recovery efforts must protect labour rights, guarantee access to wages and social protections, restore freedom of movement, facilitate documentation and visa processes, and ensure that no worker suffers dismissal, detention, discrimination or recruitment-related debt as a result of the conflict.
“Recovery cannot be measured only by reopened ports, restored airspace or resumed trade flows. It must also be measured by whether the workers who keep transport moving emerge safer, more protected and with stronger rights than before,” Cotton stated.
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