Dutch seafarers facing job cuts at Maersk Line sent a letter to Maersk stakeholders, asking for support and intervention, so that the company ends the forced redundancies.
To remind, AP Moller Maersk recently sold its five remaining ships which sail under the Dutch flag. Following the sale, Maersk announced that although Dutch Captains and Chief Engineers will remain in service, 24 Dutch seafarers on the fleet were put out of service.
Following this move, the 24 seafarers sent an open letter to the Maersk shareholders appealing for intervention with Maersk management, imploring the highly profitable company to stick to its own principles and end the forced redundancies.
The letter calls the stakeholders to advise the Maersk management to “stick to its own principles, so we can go back to work again,” as Maersk’s core value states that “The basic principle is that people can trust us.”
The 24 seafarers feel let down by the company, due to facing lack of support.
The letter adds that “Many colleagues at sea are eagerly waiting for relief and we are more than willing to relieve them.”
Nautilus International senior national secretary Marcel van Dam concluded that
It is incomprehensible to us and our members that a profitable company like Maersk, with over 300 ships in service, would not be able to find jobs for all 24 Dutch seafarers on their fleet in addition to the Dutch captains and chief engineers. Our members do not accept this and demand that Maersk will withdraw all announced layoffs.
