Supply Chain Risk Grows as Weary Crews Halt Ships and Clog Ports - Bloomberg
▻https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2020-08-07/supply-chain-risk-grows-as-weary-crews-halt-ships-and-clog-ports
MV Conti Stockholm sits idle in Fremantle Port.
Photo: ITF Global
• Three idled vessels had blocked berths at Australian ports
• Coronavirus restrictions make crew changes more complicated
A new risk to global supply chains is emerging as exhausted seafarers stuck offshore for months halt work, a breaking point caused by restrictions on crew changes amid coronavirus precautions.
Three vessels are idled in Australia after crews who worked beyond their contracts demanded to be repatriated, according to the International Transport Workers’ Federation. The organization’s national coordinator in Australia, Dean Summers, said he is discussing options for about four other ships, without elaborating.
The Conti Stockholm, Ben Rinnes and_ Unison Jasper_ vessels are idle at the ports of Fremantle, Geelong and Newcastle, respectively, the union said in a statement Thursday. The three ships are “just the tip of the iceberg,” Summers said in the statement, adding that crews are within their rights to refuse to sail.