Seafarers adrift in currents of virus’ shadow
Immense mental health and financial pressure have plagued unsung heroes in shipping industry amid the pandemic
At noon on June 25, commercial ships around the world will sound their horns to mark International Seafarers’ Day. A symbolic gesture to the estimated 2 million men and women who work the world’s merchant fleet, it will also be a mark of respect recognizing them as the unsung heroes of the COVID-19 pandemic.
While they may not be frontline medical workers, the wheels of the global economy would simply not turn without them.
Since the pandemic began, these men and women have had their lives tipped upside down as borders were closed alongside restrictions imposed on the movement of people.
“There is a crisis that has played out almost invisibly, far out to sea or onboard ship. Their numbers are large enough to populate a city — albeit one where social distancing is impossible and there is no way out,” the Nikkei Asia said in a report released on May 19.
Seafarers bear a tremendous responsibility as more than 90 percent of all material goods are carried by ships, including cars, mobile phones and computers, wood and steel for building, and coffee.
Although the shipping industry has demonstrated resilience throughout the pandemic, it has come at a cost, according to the United Kingdom-based International Chamber of Shipping, or the ICS, the world’s principal shipping organization responsible for some 80 percent of the world’s tonnage.
“Seafarers, who deliver food, fuel, and essential medical supplies have been impacted most by the pandemic,” a spokesperson for the ICS said.
Due to travel restrictions imposed by governments around the world, seafarers have experienced delays to crew change, and have been denied shore leave. Some have spent months onboard their ships, virtually ignored by the rest of the world.
According to the ICS, seafarers have experienced increased rates of mental and physical fatigue from being on ships for extended periods of time, far beyond normal contracts.
This has had an adverse effect on their mental health and crews’ performance.
The ICS has, from the onset of the pandemic, led the call for governments to exempt seafarers from travel restrictions and championed prioritizing them for vaccination.
The shipping industry is concerned that, with the rise of governments reimposing travel bans for crews in response to new virus variants, there could be a return to a significant crew change crisis.
Shipping is seen as a bellwether for the global economy. Beyond the human cost, the global value chain has seen delays and volatile freight rates amid COVID-19.
Shipping companies experienced the initial shocks as the world shut down in early 2020, and later, a sharp rise in demand as economies began to reopen and consumption rebounded, subsidized by government stimulus.
Complex affair
But getting back to business may prove a complex affair.
Seafaring is a highly sought-after and prestigious career, drawing recruits mainly from the Philippines, China and South Asia.
In the short term, however, there has been growing concern over access to crews from key seafarer supply nations like India, amid a rise in crew change bans for seafarers that have traveled through the Indian subcontinent.
At present, China is among a group of 10 countries prioritizing seafarers for the vaccine.
The United States is vaccinating nonnative crews delivering goods in their ports. Belgium has become the first European country to begin vaccinating seafarers, and the Netherlands will launch a vaccination program for all seafarers later this month, regardless of nationality, flying under the Dutch flag. Other European countries are set to follow suit.
Sara Baade, CEO of the UK-based Sailors’ Society, the oldest Christian maritime charity in the world, said seafarers have not only had to face the physical threat of contracting the virus during their travels, but they have also found themselves at the mercy of constantly changing public health rules, which have “significantly disrupted the ability of seafarers to leave their ships”.
“Many haven’t been able to set foot on dry land for months — and a large number haven’t been able to go home when their contracts have ended,” Baade said.
Origin of quarantine
According to the report by Nikkei Asia, sea transport has long been a “vector for infectious diseases”.
“The word ‘quarantine’ originated in 17th century Venice, referring to the 40 days that sickened merchant sailors were required to stay on their ships to prevent the spread of disease into port cities.
“Part of the 1918 Spanish flu pandemic, which killed between 50 million to 100 million people, could be traced to port cities,” the report said.
Captain Rajesh Unni, CEO of Synergy Marine Group, which manages the crewing for over 375 commercial vessels, told the magazine that “seafarers face the same fear, loss and grief brought on a by a deadly pandemic as much of the rest of the world, but contend with it from the extreme isolation of a ship”.
“The frustration is humongous,” he said. “You’re not able to do anything, you’re not able to see (one’s family) for one last time.
“The mental well-being of people has been very, very difficult.”
Unni told the magazine that suicides among seafarers had “ticked up” since the pandemic. “We have picked up seafarers from the water. All that has definitely increased,” he added.
Baade agrees, saying the pandemic has had a “huge impact” on the well-being of seafarers. She said seafarers have found it particularly difficult to get medical care if they fall ill on board.
“If it’s suspected coronavirus, the whole crew has to quarantine, sometimes with very limited medical supplies,” she said.
“Last year, we provided basic medication to 450 seafarers — the majority of whom were showing COVID symptoms, who were stranded off the coast of the remote Andaman Islands and didn’t even have access to painkillers.
“Even if their symptoms aren’t related to the coronavirus, restrictions have meant they often can’t leave the ship if they are ill. And doctors are unable to come on board, which means they could be in considerable pain or suffering from a serious illness and unable to receive treatment.”
She said that mentally, seafarers are suffering the results of an extreme version of lockdown — being stuck on the same ship for months with the same small group of colleagues, unable to see their loved ones or even set foot on dry land.
“Add to this the anxiety about how their families are at home and the pressure caused by months of shift work without a break and there has been a considerable mental toll on crews,” she added.
Increasing depression
“It’s difficult to get accurate statistics because of the global, disjointed nature of the shipping industry, but we’re receiving reports of increasing depression, anxiety and a rise in the number of suicides on board,” she said.
Roger Harris, executive director of the International Seafarers’ Welfare and Assistance Network, told shipping journal Lloyd’s List in a Feb 22 report that the number of reported suicides and instances of seafarers calling the network about suicidal thoughts, had “roughly doubled” from about 12 in a normal year to 25 since March 2020. But because there is no hard data, “no one really knows the extent of the problem”.
Although the figures are constantly changing as restrictions are imposed or lifted in different countries, throughout the pandemic there have been up to 400,000 seafarers stranded aboard ships, many well past the end of their contracts, according to the International Maritime Organization, or IMO, the United Nations agency responsible for regulating shipping.
According to the IMO, many of these seafarers are working 10 or 12 hours a day, every day, some for as long as 17 months.
At the same time, a similar number are stuck at home, unable to physically get to a ship to do their jobs.
Many seafarers are contract workers who only get paid when they are at sea, making this a financially devastating situation for them and causing a dramatic rise in the number of people applying for emergency welfare grants because they’re unable to pay their bills.
Many seafarers have felt let down and forgotten by their governments, and that their sacrifices have been unappreciated by the average consumer.
Ben Bailey, director of advocacy and regional engagement with the UK-based maritime group Mission to Seafarers said the pandemic had created a major humanitarian crisis for seafarers.
“While at sea, in spite of the industry’s continued efforts, seafarers have had no choice but to work extended contracts due to strict border restrictions across the globe, with some in their eighteenth month at sea,” he said.
“Furthermore, crews have been unable to access shore leave while moored in port and have had minimal contact with their families as a result of the limited facilities on board.
“Crews have spoken to our teams to express their frustration as well as seek advice and support. For some, the situation has been so intense they have taken their own lives.”
Bailey said that despite talks of repatriation being sped up and that continued calls to designate seafarers as key workers really picked up last year, new coronavirus variants have halted the potential progress which could have been made.
“Governments need to use their influence to bring an end to the international crisis threatening global shipping and seafarers’ health and well-being. They must be given priority access to vaccines to ensure global trade can continue and they must be allowed to go home to their families, as everyone deserves to do,” he said.
“Governments have completely failed seafarers, and in doing so they have put the world’s critical supply chains in tremendous danger by placing too much pressure on a tired, fatigued workforce who need to get home and rest,” said David Heindel, chair of the International Transport Workers’ Federation Seafarers Section.
“We are calling on governments, particularly those with strong vaccine rollout programs, to be leaders in resolving the crew change crisis,” he said.
Port states can become crew change hubs. They can bring in ‘green lanes’ to get international seafarers to and from ships in ports, and exempt seafarers from travel, transit and border restrictions, he added.
Heindel said the situation in India, where the pandemic has killed thousands and shows no sign of slowing down, “is tragic and desperate” for seafarers and their families on shore.
“But it’s also very hard for Indian seafarers still working on ships and unable to get home to comfort their loved ones during this challenging time,” he said.
“Undoubtedly the second wave ravaging India’s health system and its people will have a significant impact on the crew change crisis, as one in eight of the world’s seafarers are Indian nationals. Right now, they cannot leave or enter their own country.
“National-level COVID outbreaks like the one in India right now will continue to happen until the whole world has this virus under control, worsening the crew change crisis and risking essential supply chains. No one is safe until we are all safe.”
Baade of Sailors’ Society said shipping companies have a responsibility to their employees. The international maritime charity has “worked alongside many companies which are taking this responsibility seriously”.
“Sadly, there are also many companies which aren’t as supportive of their crews’ welfare and in those cases, seafarers will often turn to us directly through our port chaplains or helplines for practical help or mental support,” she said.
“No matter how good an employer is, some of the conditions seafarers have faced during the pandemic are outside the control of shipping companies — such as national restrictions on movement or access to vaccines for seafarers.”
Heindel said the best way to protect seafarers at home, working on ships, and in ports, is to vaccinate everyone.
“That’s why the network of inspectors and our affiliated unions have been assisting visiting seafarers to receive inoculations in ports all over the world, including in the United States,” he said.
“We want countries that rely on maritime trade, such as the US, Australia, the UK, and China, to become ‘vaccination hubs’ for visiting seafarers.
“Let’s cooperate globally to get the 2 million international seafarers vaccinated, so that we can all be confident about a return to normal crew changes, shore leave, and safe ships.”