The Neptune Declaration Crew Change Indicator for the fourth quarter of 2022 shows that 2.7% of seafarers are still stuck onboard vessels beyond contract expiration, a 0.6 percentage point drop compared to the third quarter.
The number of seafarers kept from disembarking is the lowest since the Crew Change Indicator was introduced in May 2021. At the same time, the percentage of seafarers onboard vessels for more than 11 months fell to 0.2%, a decrease of 0.1 percentage points since the October indicator.
The numbers trend in the right direction, but the figures still represent thousands of seafarers, who can’t get to work or journey home, as they were supposed to. The fundamental issues of seafarers not being treated as key workers also hasn’t changed, which will be a global problem if the pandemic resurges or when we face a similar problem in the future
said Susanne Justesen, Ph.D., Project Director Human Sustainability, Global Maritime Forum.
Ship managers report that the recent ease in restrictions in China is simultaneously encouraging and concerning.
While China repeals restrictions, other countries, including India and Japan, implement new test requirements and restrictions for seafarers arriving from specific Asian countries because of the rise in infections.
Furthermore, local and central governments in China are not yet aligned, and crew changes in China are thus very reliant on local agents to ensure compliance with regulations.
Vaccinations continue
The indicator suggests that seafarers are still getting vaccinated, as the number of seafarers vaccinated is up 2.7 percentage points since October, bringing the number of vaccinated seafarers to 95.6%.
Data-providing ship managers report that concerns remain over the possibility of new variants developing and current vaccinations not being sufficiently effective. Some ship managers further note that they opt to replace non-vaccinated crew members with vaccinated crew members when possible.
Source: Safety4sea
