Table 1

Summary of challenges of the pandemic to seafarers

Challenges to seafarersMain findingsSources
Crew change crisisLong pandemic and border/port closures cause serious challenges on crew changeoversShan (2021), Galani (2021), Doumbia-Henry (2020), UNCTAD (2021), De Beukelaer (2021) 
Being stranded on board for long time heightened the tensions among the crews, increase workload and anxietyPauksztat et al. (2020), UNCTAD (2021) 
Being stranded onboard denied seafarers' human rights from many aspectsUNCTAD (2021), UNCTAD (2022), Slišković (2020), Pauksztat et al. (2022), Chua et al. (2022), Kaptan and Olgun-Kaptan (2021), Junus and Munandar (2020) 
Healthcare shortageLimited heath facilities onboard, and seafarers are not able to reach health institutions to treat symptomsThe Lancet (2021), WHO (2020), Sagaro et al. (2020), Kaptan and Olgun-Kaptan (2021), UNCTAD (2021), UNCTAD (2022), Hebbar and Mukesh (2020) 
Low vaccination rate for seafarers, especially in developing countriesUNCTAD (2021), Han et al. (2023) 
Certification issuesSeafarer training centers were closed, disallowing seafarers from renewing certifications and joining shipsDe Beukelaer (2021), Chua et al. (2022) 
Seafarers stocked and stranded onboard were prevented from renewing certificates, and attending training coursesSilverio (2022), De Beukelaer (2021), UNCTAD (2021) 
Introduction of a thorough certification attuned to mental health evaluation is importantFaremi and Heirs (2022) 
Derived issues-financial and mental health challengesPandemic hampered the seafarer’s recruitment process which influenced their job opportunitiesTang (2022) 
Financial uncertainties have had a substantial impact on seafarers; Infected seafarers stayed for a longer period at home causing income drop; Seafarers were not compensated for long-overdue/beyond contracts agreement termsCiceri (2020), Slišković (2020), UNCTAD (2022) 
High prevalence of mental health problem cases and associated risks among seafarers were reported, as being without shore leaves and stranded onboardWong (2021), Baygi et al. (2021), Battineni et al. (2021), Pauksztat et al. (2022), Tang et al. (2022), Qin et al. (2021), Lucas et al. (2021), Pesel et al. (2020), Macapagal (2020), Abila and Acejo (2021), Slišković (2020), Carrera-Arce et al. (2022), Devereux and Wadsworth (2022), Brooks and Greenberg (2022), Radic et al. (2020) 
Seafarers' anxiety about getting infected onboard influenced their perception of job leading them to quitBaygi et al. (2022), Erdem and Tutar (2022) 
The crew change crisis impacted seafarers’ working performance, and increased the risk of accidentsWong (2021), Shan (2021), UNCTAD (2021) 

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