Columbia Shipmanagement and ship-management association Intermanager have both signed up to the new Neptune Declaration on Seafarer Wellbeing and Crew Change.
The declaration has brought together 314 owners, charterers, lenders and industry organisations to pledge action on the changeover crisis and work towards vaccinations for those working on ships during the pandemic.
But Columbia chief executive and Intermanager president Mark O'Neil told TradeWinds that just signing up and then forgetting about the issue is not enough. There has to be positive action.
"We need a government to take a wholly refreshing view and say, 'let's look after the seafarers'," O'Neil said.
"There are 1.7m seafarers; that's not that many people to deal with where this is so critical to world trade and prosperity. It's a massive responsibility for all of us."
A clear voice needed
The Columbia boss does not want the message drowned out by too many voices.
"There are so many of these declarations and movements and bodies tackling the vaccine issue with the best intentions," he said. "Without having a consolidated single voice, you get lost in the bureaucracy.
"All the movements are helpful, but the question is how much do they resonate with one another?"
O'Neil also said he foresaw the vaccine issue becoming "quite febrile as we go forward".
"How does the vaccine filter down through an industry that is, by definition, international?" he asked. "How do we get round that? Who takes responsibility?
"We can't leave it to the individual states that supply seafarers. What interest do they have to prioritise their seafarers?"
Strength in unity
Cargill Ocean Transportation president Jan Dieleman said it is essential that all parties in the supply chain — industry, government and non-governmental organisations — work together.
GasLog chief executive Paul Wogan added: "Through the Neptune Declaration, I am so pleased to see the whole maritime logistics chain coming together to support our seafarers and to recognise them as key workers.
"It is a recognition of the vital role seafarers play in keeping the world economy moving — and never more so than today as we continue to battle through the Covid-19 pandemic."
Guy Platten, secretary general of the International Chamber of Shipping, believes crew members have become unacceptable collateral damage in the war on Covid-19 and that this must stop.
"If we want to maintain global trade, seafarers must not be put to the back of the vaccine queue," he said. "You can’t inject a global population without the shipping industry and most importantly our seafarers."
