Knowledge

Seafarers and fishers have inequity in health at work, with a higher risk of having metabolic syndrome. They are at increased risk of developing prediabetes, which can be reversed to normoglycemia based on the evidence from other industries. This study aims to educate and activate seafarers and fishermen with the support of coaches to reverse their prediabetes to stop the further development of diabetes type 2.
Methods
Random samples of seafarers and fishermen with newly diagnosed prediabetes and HbA1c levels ranging from 5.7%-6.4% from the maritime medical health examinations constitute the study population in a 16-week prediabetes coaching program. In addition to monthly Zoom meetings, they are asked to provide weekly reports via questionnaires on personal measurements and improvements in physical activity and diets.
Results
The preliminary data from 2 maritime clinics (n=405) show prevalences of prediabetes 18.8%, 36.4%, and 49.2% in the ages 20-29, 30-49, and 50+ years respectively, all p-values < 0.02. Analysis of the clinical data from the maritime health clinics and the questionnaires from the seafarers collected weekly will formulate the effect of the intervention. Summarizing data from various national prediabetes coaching fora will be the evidence base for remission of prediabetes. Conclusions A significant portion of seafarers have prediabetes with the potential to achieve remission of their pre-diabetes by eating healthy and being physically active. The goals are to lose at least 5%–7% of their starting weight, be accustomed to doing at least 150 min. of physical activity weekly, and follow a pre-diabetes-relevant dietary plan.

As the world collectively looks to technology to salvage what is left of our world to sustain a habitat that can accommodate our way of life, users are increasingly exposed to technological solutions, rarely developed with an offset in their practice. This also holds for the maritime sector in Denmark, where the way of developing technology is limited to the applicability of technological artifacts and can reduce the potential efficiency gains that technologies can introduce. This paper applies qualitative research to show that there is a disconnect between, on the one hand, funders, technology developers, and decision-makers and, on the other hand, technology users and practitioners in the Danish maritime sector. It argued that if technology is to replace or assist any human practice and solve for example the climate crises, then knowledge of users’ practices must be key to developing the technological solutions.

This report presents both the quantitative and qualitative results of a study on bullying and harassment in the Danish merchant fleet. The Minister for Industry, Business and Financial Affairs asked the
Danish Maritime Authority to conduct an external study of the extent of bullying and harassment among seafarers on Danish vessels. This task was assigned to the Centre of Maritime Health and Society at the University of Southern Denmark. The Commission for the study (in Danish) may be found on the Ministry of Industry, Business and Financial Affairs website. The report consists of seven chapters, and only the results are presented, by request from the Danish Maritime Authority. An English “Literature review” is made in a separate annex, with an analysis of other international research studies within the area of bullying and harassment. This has been requested by the Danish Maritime Authority. It is permitted to quote the results in the report on the condition that the University of Southern Denmark and the Centre of Maritime Health and Society is credited as the source.

The authors revisit the literature on the use of expatriates and specifically Boyacigiller (1990) and examine whether OW Bunker, a Danish bunker oil trader, filled positions at its foreign units with traders transferred from its other units (expatriates). The authors test the generalizability and robustness of past findings on this topic by using a different dependent variable, sample, and methodology. Design/methodology/approach: By searching the traders' LinkedIn profiles and consulting secondary sources, the authors obtain data on current and previous positions and work location and type of customer handled (global or local). Using qualitative comparative analysis (QCA), the authors analyze 236 hiring decisions made between 1983 and 2014. Findings: The authors find that OW transferred expatriates, principally home-country nationals, to handle global customers in its large foreign subsidiaries located in high-income countries. In another clear pattern, expatriates were used to start new foreign subsidiaries. These results generally confirm those of Boyacigiller. However, and contrary to her findings, none of our scenarios for internal transfers feature expatriates being sent to culturally and institutionally distant subsidiaries unless it is to serve global customers, casting doubt on the idea that a major reason for using expatriates is to remedy a local shortage of skills or to handle political risk. Originality/value: The authors test the generalizability of Boyacigiller’s (1990) findings and confirm a large part of it. They extend her study by demonstrating that MNEs deploy expatriates not only to distant countries but also to close ones.

I december 2019 kommer fiskeriminister Mogens Jensen hjem fra Rådsmøde - de årlige kvoteforhandlinger
for 2020 i Bruxelles - med den besked, at jomfruhummerfiskeriet i Kattegat i fremtiden vil blive underlagt
kameraovervågning for forventeligt at nedbringe bifangst af torsk i dette fiskeri. Torskebestanden i Kattegat
er yderst presset og den generelle kvote er sat til nul. En mindre bifangstkvote på torsk blev således betinget
af denne overvågning, så man kan monitere torskefangsterne og sikre mod et udsmid af mindre torsk i fiskeriet,
en praksis, som myndighederne forudsatte yderligere ville forværre tilstanden i torskebestanden. Denne sidste
kausalsammenhæng er dog tvivlsom.
Torsk er således blevet en ”stop-art” for jomfruhummerfiskeriet og myndighedernes argumentation er, at
alternativet til kameraovervågning er et stop for jomfruhummerfiskeriet i Kattegat, da det ikke kan opretholdes
uden en bifangstkvote af torsk (Bilag 5). Udkommet af forhandlingerne kender vi, men det har ikke været
muligt at få yderligere indblik i selve forhandlingsprocessen; Havde de danske forhandlere alternative
positioner at falde tilbage på? Havde den danske delegation en forventning til reaktionerne i den danske
fiskerisektor? Var forhandlerne indstillet på at lukke jomfruhummerfiskeriet i Kattegat (proportionalitet)? Det
får vi muligvis aldrig indsigt i.

We contribute to theorizing global human resource strategy by analyzing the mobility of workers laid off due to the failure of a MNC employer. The job opportunities of laid-off workers are affected by their industry legitimacy. Focusing on scarce specialized workers, we propose that prospective MNC employers share an interest in retaining such workers' legitimacy. However, in the light of organizational failure, they may suffer from cross-border legitimacy loss conditioned by their former employer's MNC structure—specifically, their former organizational units or geographical locations. We present an illustrative case study of traders laid off by a spectacular bankruptcy in the global bunker industry. This inspires a discussion of how MNC top management can manipulate worker legitimacy following an organizational failure. Managerial Summary: Strategic hiring of globally mobile scarce specialized workers is central to global human resource strategy. We analyze what drives the legitimacy and mobility of such workers after being laid off by a bankruptcy of their former employer. We demonstrate that laid off workers experience comparatively high legitimacy loss when they were previously assigned to an MNC organizational unit or geographical location where other workers were suspected of being responsible for failure. This weakens their bargaining position vis-a-vis a prospective employer. We present an illustrative case study of traders laid off by a spectacular bankruptcy in the global bunker oil industry.

Modern slavery and human trafficking present an inherent risk to workers engaged in operations surrounding shipping activities. One of the first statutes addressing the problem was the UK Modern Slavery Act [MSA], which presents several statutory sanctions for shipping companies in case of non-compliance. The article examines the sanctions available under different provisions of MSA as applied specifically to shipping activities.
As a further step, the article conducts an empirical analysis of the reporting practices of liner shipping operators, eligible for compliance under MSA. In addition to the rates of compliance, it engages in content analysis of the modern slavery statements, seeking to identify the uniform patterns of reporting and industry best practices.
The last part of the article discusses whether corporate undertakings as reported in modern slavery statements may serve as a ground for tort liability, similarly to the supply chain or ‘production liability’ emerging from group policies and codes of conduct.

The safety of people and cargo onboard is a key functionality of a commercial ship.

The health and well-being of seafarers and passengers is protected through an extensive set of technical specifications, standards and norms that govern the design and commissioning of all vessels.

They differ by ship type and size, while the specific services to be provided and the specific geographic regions to be served also play an important role in this respect.

The requirements are of national and international character and vary also with the classification society that will commission the ship. Thus in a broader sense, all competences related to ship design are related one way or another to maritime health.

Much of the design of ships is overseen by a naval architect or marine engineer. It is rare to have the involvement of a medical professional except in the cruise industry.

Purpose and tasks
To ensure that the design of a ship includes the requirements to protect the health and well being of seafarers. More specifically, to identify areas of intervention that go beyond the usual engineering curricula where, nonetheless, the safety dimension is embedded through international standardization.

In this video, Lisa Loloma Froholt (University of Southern Denmark) and Mads Ragnvald Nielsen (Scoutbase) will discuss how the concept of Human Factors in the maritime industry can be understood and what it means in practical terms?

The session was developed in collaboration with MARLOG.