Global industry leaders, including Pole Star, have signed The Neptune Declaration on Seafarer Wellbeing and Crew Change in a worldwide call to action to end the unprecedented crew change crisis caused by Covid-19.
Hundreds of thousands of seafarers worldwide have been affected by the pandemic, with many being left stranded on ships long past their contract end dates. Despite best industry efforts, this crisis is far from over, causing severe consequences to the physical and mental wellbeing of these key workers. Seafarer fatigue and extended periods at sea increase the risk of maritime accidents and environmental disasters that, in turn, threaten the security and reliability of our global supply chains.
At Pole Star, we understand the importance of our supply chains to the movement of goods, including medical supplies and hospital equipment, across our oceans. Additionally, as a longstanding member of the maritime industry, Pole Star recognises the debt we owe to our seafaring colleagues for enabling business continuity throughout the past year.
As such, we have joined over 350 companies and organisations in signing The Neptune Declaration, in a bid to raise awareness and achieve a resolution as soon as possible by:
- Recognising seafarers as key workers and giving them priority access to vaccines.
- Establishing and implementing gold health protocols based on existing best practice.
- Increasing collaboration between ship operators and charterers to facilitate crew changes.
- Ensuring air connectivity between key maritime hubs for seafarers.
We, the signatories to The Neptune Declaration on Seafarer Wellbeing and Crew Change, recognise that we have a shared responsibility to ensure that the current crew change crisis is resolved as soon as possible and to use the learnings from the crisis as an opportunity to build a more resilient maritime supply chain.