Seafarers, at the mercy of inspections and without substantial support from the shipping industry, endure suffocating work scrutiny that peaked during the coronavirus period.
Shipping, and more specifically seafarers, are going through a very difficult and strange period, culminating of course during the coronavirus period and beyond.
Not that the period before the coronavirus wasn’t strange for seafarers, but I believe there was a peak, which continues from a different basis.
Seafarers have been under intense pressure for about 20 years from the shipping industry, subjected to inspections on every vessel where they are constantly required to take exams and justify themselves.
Inspections that are often excessive, while we must not overlook the character and unpleasant behavior of the inspectors themselves toward seafarers, whether we’re talking about vetting inspectors, port authorities, or anything else.
In all this, of course, the seafarer—especially the captain—is often forced to completely sacrifice their dignity to “clear” the ship and move forward. Naturally, the shipping industry, and mainly the shipping companies, are entirely absent.
No real support for seafarers. The main concern is to “clear” the ship, at any cost…
This entire system of inspections arrived and irreparably exposed during the coronavirus period a system that seems rotten. It was exposed because while the entire planet lived under the rhythms of the pandemic, and no inspector came aboard ships for inspections, they not only continued loading and unloading but perhaps it was also a time when the fewest accidents were reported!
I searched for statistics but unfortunately couldn’t find them. I’m not saying there were no maritime accidents, but I am saying there weren’t as many as now, constantly occupying public opinion and the shipping industry. One glaring example I remember was the blocking of the Suez by the Ever Given. But that was a very unique maritime incident that could happen at any time.
The coronavirus period, then, was what exposed the entire industry, its rotten system, and its inspectors along with it. All seafarers’ rights were violated. Safety went out the window. Everything was sacrificed on the altar of getting the job done at any cost. No one spoke about expired contracts, resting hours, or the fact that seafarers had no access to medical care, or that entire crews disembarked and changes were made on the gangway—nothing.
And of course, as if by magic, after this period, not only did everything return to “factory settings,” but things became—and continue to become—even worse. Inspections at full throttle, demands at their peak, and seafarers at the mercy of inspectors.
At one point, I believed this whole situation would “explode” somewhere. Now I simply think the most likely outcome is that the seafarers will be the ones to explode.
Especially captains have become hostages of inspectors, as they are the ones called to explain the inexplicable…
