Sailors Stuck at Sea, Supply Threatened During Pandemic
2021-07-26
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1Captain Tejinder Singh has not set foot on dry land in more than seven months.
2He is not sure when he will go home.
3Singh is among tens of thousands of ship workers stuck at sea as the coronavirus spreads on land.
4He said sailors like him are not valued.
5He added, "We are forgotten..."
6Singh and most of his 20-person crew have traveled from India to the United States then on to China.
7He spoke to the Reuters news service from the Pacific Ocean as his ship now heads to Australia.
8They are among about 100,000 ship workers stuck at sea, says the International Chamber of Shipping, or ICS.
9Many sailors have been on their boats much longer than their usual 3 to 9 month work periods.
10Another 100,000 workers are stuck on land and unable to work and earn a living.
11The Delta variant of the coronavirus is spreading very quickly in parts of Asia- home to many of the world's 1.7 million ship workers.
12That has led many countries to restrict land access to visiting workers.
13Some workers have even been barred from medical treatment.
14The ICS estimates that just 2.5 percent of ship workers have been vaccinated.
15The United Nations calls the situation a crisis at sea.
16The organization says governments should consider commercial sailors essential workers.
17Ships deliver around 90 percent of the world's trade.
18The crisis threatens worldwide supply for everything from oil and metal to food and electronics.
19Guy Platten is the head of the ICS.
20He said more than one-third of the world's ship workers are from India and the Philippines.
21Those countries are recovering from terrible waves of COVID-19.
22In normal times, around 50,000 sailors get on and 50,000 get off ships per month on average.
23The numbers are now much less than that.
24Industry experts say that is largely because of virus restrictions put in place by countries with major ports in Asia.
25Nations like South Korea, Taiwan and China require testing for workers who come from or have visited certain countries.
26Some nations ban crew changes.
27Rajesh Unni is head of Synergy Marine Group which represents 14,000 ship workers.
28He said the only countries that permit regular crew changes are Japan and Singapore.
29"The issue is that we have one set of people who desperately want to go home because they have finished their tenure, and another set of people onshore that are desperate to get back onboard to earn a living."
30The crisis has led to almost half of ship workers considering leaving the industry, says the International Transport Workers' Federation, or ITF.
31A labor shortage would threaten the industry which has already faced delays at many of the world's ports.
32It has also increased the cost of shipping products.
33And, in turn, the prices people pay for goods.
34Stephen Cotton leads the ITF.
35He said many vessels have lost up to 25 percent of their workforce during the pandemic.
36And the remaining sailors are now being pushed to their physical and mental limits.
37Most sailors come from developing nations that have low vaccination supplies.
38That has left many ship workers unable to get shots.
39A total of 55 member countries of the U.N. shipping agency, the International Maritime Organization or IMO, have named ship workers essential.
40David Hammond is the head of the organization Human Rights at Sea.
41He said being considered essential permits the workers to travel more easily and return to their homes.
42It also gives them better access to vaccines.
43The ICF's Platten said governments with large vaccine supplies have a "moral responsibility" towards ship workers.
44"They must follow the lead of the U.S. and the Netherlands and vaccinate non-native crews delivering goods to their ports," he added.
45I'm Dan Novak.
1Captain Tejinder Singh has not set foot on dry land in more than seven months. He is not sure when he will go home. 2Singh is among tens of thousands of ship workers stuck at sea as the coronavirus spreads on land. He said sailors like him are not valued. He added, "We are forgotten..." 3Singh and most of his 20-person crew have traveled from India to the United States then on to China. He spoke to the Reuters news service from the Pacific Ocean as his ship now heads to Australia. 4They are among about 100,000 ship workers stuck at sea, says the International Chamber of Shipping, or ICS. Many sailors have been on their boats much longer than their usual 3 to 9 month work periods. Another 100,000 workers are stuck on land and unable to work and earn a living. 5The Delta variant of the coronavirus is spreading very quickly in parts of Asia- home to many of the world's 1.7 million ship workers. That has led many countries to restrict land access to visiting workers. Some workers have even been barred from medical treatment. The ICS estimates that just 2.5 percent of ship workers have been vaccinated. 6The United Nations calls the situation a crisis at sea. The organization says governments should consider commercial sailors essential workers. 7Ships deliver around 90 percent of the world's trade. The crisis threatens worldwide supply for everything from oil and metal to food and electronics. 8Guy Platten is the head of the ICS. He said more than one-third of the world's ship workers are from India and the Philippines. Those countries are recovering from terrible waves of COVID-19. 9In normal times, around 50,000 sailors get on and 50,000 get off ships per month on average. The numbers are now much less than that. Industry experts say that is largely because of virus restrictions put in place by countries with major ports in Asia. Nations like South Korea, Taiwan and China require testing for workers who come from or have visited certain countries. Some nations ban crew changes. 10Rajesh Unni is head of Synergy Marine Group which represents 14,000 ship workers. He said the only countries that permit regular crew changes are Japan and Singapore. 11"The issue is that we have one set of people who desperately want to go home because they have finished their tenure, and another set of people onshore that are desperate to get back onboard to earn a living." 12Threats to supply of goods 13The crisis has led to almost half of ship workers considering leaving the industry, says the International Transport Workers' Federation, or ITF. 14A labor shortage would threaten the industry which has already faced delays at many of the world's ports. It has also increased the cost of shipping products. And, in turn, the prices people pay for goods. 15Stephen Cotton leads the ITF. He said many vessels have lost up to 25 percent of their workforce during the pandemic. And the remaining sailors are now being pushed to their physical and mental limits. 16Shots for sailors 17Most sailors come from developing nations that have low vaccination supplies. That has left many ship workers unable to get shots. 18A total of 55 member countries of the U.N. shipping agency, the International Maritime Organization or IMO, have named ship workers essential. 19David Hammond is the head of the organization Human Rights at Sea. He said being considered essential permits the workers to travel more easily and return to their homes. It also gives them better access to vaccines. 20The ICF's Platten said governments with large vaccine supplies have a "moral responsibility" towards ship workers. 21"They must follow the lead of the U.S. and the Netherlands and vaccinate non-native crews delivering goods to their ports," he added. 22I'm Dan Novak. 23Jonathan Saul and Roslan Khasawneh reported this story for Reuters. Dan Novak adapted for VOA Learning English. Hai Do was the editor. 24____________________________________________________ 25Words in This Story 26variant - n. something that is different in some way from others of the same kind 27access - n. a way of being able to use or get something 28essential- adj. a way of being able to use or get something 29desperate - adj. a way of being able to use or get something 30tenure - n. a way of being able to use or get something