Shipowners are experiencing increasing labor costs as COVID-19 restrictions impose limit movement of seafarers, making crew swaps more expensive.
According to Blooberg, considering the fact that relieving and replacing ship workers has become difficult during the pandemic, daily crew costs have increased 10% from January to mid-July. This translates to $3,144 for capesize dry-bulk carriers, says the Baltic Exchange.
In addition, border and flight restrictions to tackel the spread of COVID-19 have caused a worrying humanitarian crisis among seafarers, many of whom are stuck onboard ships beyond their employment contracts or even the limits allowed under maritime law.
In fact, the International Chamber of Shipping reports that there are about 400,000 seafarers stranded at sea, with the industry urging governments to consider seafarers as “key workers” and facilitate their transfer.
In addition, some companies are sending ships to a narrow number of ports that allow changes. However, this is a process that can add hundreds of thousands of dollars in costs. Other companies have chartered flights to relieve and repatriate seafarers.
If the global crew-change crisis continues, owners may urge for the extra expenses to be shared by other parties including charterers, Bloomberg cites management firm Executive Ship Management as saying.
