Sea Besieged: Crew Turnover Is A Worldwide Problem.

The crew members who had been wandering for more than ten months at sea and were looking forward to their home leave were outside the door.

Recently, a number of shipowners and Ship Management Companies insiders reported to the twenty-first Century economic report reporters that the port crew could not normally carry out the crew shift process under the influence of the new crown pneumonia epidemic prevention and control.

"Although the Ministry of transport has issued documents for the protection of crew turnover, in practice, different ports have different regulations, and some ports are unable to operate. Some even if they can, and because of multi department jurisdiction, they are faced with difficulties in actual implementation." The head of a large foreign ship management company in China said to reporters.

The shift problem in special times affects the physical and mental health and livelihood of thousands of sailors. On the other hand, the crew of the ship overextended their services and wanted to return home. On the other hand, the crew of the crew on the ship had not been able to return to work and the income had been reduced suddenly.

According to the data of the Ministry of transport, there are more than 8 Chinese sailors working on international ships, and by the end of May, 10 thousand Chinese crew members will be on holiday. According to the twenty-first Century economic report, only a few crew members are able to shift normally. Another South ship management company official said that the industry estimated that about 10000 crew members could not shift normally, and the number would increase as time went on.

The overdue service originally banned is exempt from the special period. According to the requirements of the relevant international conventions, the longest time for the crew to ship is 12 months, but due to long periods of time, the overdue service is already strange.

The risk is over the shipping industry. Frank Coles, chief executive officer of Wallem Group, one of the world's ten largest Ship Management Companies, has publicly stated that if a crew can not be replaced in time, potential maritime accidents caused by fatigue and pressure may occur, which will bring great risks to ship safety. At the same time, it will further threaten global food and drug supply chain safety. "

The crew members who had been wandering for more than ten months at sea and were looking forward to their home leave were outside the door. - Xinhua News Agency

A distant home

"Which port in China can be changed? Do you have any idea?" Someone is asking questions on the social networking platform. The new crown disease prevention and control work, let the crew shift work routine work blocked.

Most ports directly refuse crew turnover, and there are no written documents. "Before we arrive at the port, we ask agents. We can say that one port and one government." The director of the South shipping and management company told reporters, "although the Ministry of communications clearly provides for the replacement of Chinese seafarers, the reality is that only a few ports can be exchanged at present, such as Shanghai."

The reporter learned from various sources that some ports in Shanghai, Jiangsu, Shandong and other places could change crew. But unfortunately, some port regulations are constantly changing, and shipowners, ship management companies and agencies need to keep a close eye on them.

One crew member said that he and his colleagues returned home from abroad for twenty days at sea, and then repaired ships for more than ten days at the Zhoushan shipyard, and carried out nucleic acid testing. The normal procedures had gone through most of them, but they were stuck in the final step, "being stopped by a sudden telephone order."

The head of the foreign shipping and management company in China also said that the decision of the port was affected to some extent by its peers.

In many industry circles, the reason behind this is the multi sector jurisdiction under the epidemic. Even if there are no ports to ban crew shifts, the procedures and work involved are cumbersome and may "jam you at any node".

A replacement crew member in Shanghai said that since February, the crew had been changing around. "Crew members who have been sailing for 14 days can go home directly after nucleic acid testing, but the customs will be isolated for another 14 days. There are three separate points for crew members in Shanghai. They are wrapped up by central enterprises and shipping companies. They are not enough for themselves. How can they be given to other retail investors?

Helpless overdue service

Domestic sailors had great expectations for recent shifts. In February, when the domestic epidemic was more severe, many sailors delayed the shift plan actively or passively. Now that the domestic epidemic is under control, they thought they could take a vacation, but I did not expect it to be very difficult.

Due to the outbreak of the new crown outbreak in the world, apart from Europe, Southeast Asia and other important trade hub, there are many countries and regions outside the port blockade, crew turnover has become a worldwide problem. In order to support the normal operation of the shipping companies during the epidemic, the Ministry of Communications issued a notice in March 12th to ensure the crew scheduling of Chinese international ships.

The above announcement clearly states that "shipping companies should immediately arrange crew shifts for 12 consecutive months of crew service." The 12 month is the International Convention for the longest time in ship service, but this rule has been broken down under the epidemic.

The crew at the Zhoushan shipyard said that their 13 crew members had been on board for more than a year, and two crew members had been in the ship for more than 15 months, and four or five other crew members had been on board for more than 14 months. Most shipping companies and ship management companies are using the expired crew members.

The overdue service made the crew and operators feel crumbling. There was a foreign trade crew who had been in the boat for 11 months. He said his body had not allowed him to work in the ship. "He was very helpless and mentally depressed." he suspected he had depression and wanted to check for treatment.

Those who have long been concerned about shipping have told reporters that extended service is a great test to the seaman's physical and mental quality. He said that the general contract period of the ship's chief engineer, chief officer and chief engineer is about 6 months, and the other crew members usually have 9 months or so. Over the past ten months, they are working on ships continuously.

The health of the crew will affect the safety of the ship, which is just like the driver can not drive for a long time. This brings more risks to the shipping industry itself, which is at risk.

Possibility of navigation

A crew member released a short video on the jitter. In the video, more than ten men shouted for the resumption of slogans, behind which was written "I am a crew member, I want to go on board, I have health code, I want to return to work" scroll.

"On the one hand, the boat is not going to come down. On the other hand, the crew on land is not going to get there. Now the domestic industry has gone back to work on a large scale, and the crew members are also trying to get back to work, but they can't get on." "Many of them have no wages at home," said the South shipping management company.

"Everything on the ship must go down, even if the ship is postponed, and the land calls every day to ask when to leave, and it is urgent to repay the loan." The replacement crew agent said helplessly that the ship at sea seemed to have become a besieged city.

It should be pointed out that before most ports in the country are unimpeded, it is also a solution to shift to other conditionally ports such as Shanghai and Hongkong, but it is understood that this is not practical.

It's possible, but troublesome. The above mentioned persons from the southern shipping management company said that the first thing is that the port may not be allowed to enter, and the two is the cost, including fuel consumption, time loss, port charges and so on, which will be borne by the shipowner. "In reality, unless the crew is sick, first aid is not needed.

Delays caused by the epidemic are challenging everyone's limits. With the spread of the epidemic across the globe, many multinational shipping companies have issued a ban on shift, shipping magnate Maersk has issued two announcements of delayed shifts, the latest shift ban has been held until May 12th.

Shipping companies take the initiative to ban shifts is a helpless way to reduce the risk of crew infection. But if there are no complementary measures, business management will be difficult to keep on track after the extended shift. Entering the April, the voice of the industry is even louder.

?