On Friday, 1 May, international Labor Day, the International Chamber of Shipping is calling upon all ships around the globe that are in port at 12PM local time to sound the ship’s horns in recognition of the significant contribution made by all maritime workers during this global crisis.
Over 1.2 million seafarers are currently working hard to ensure that food, fuel and supplies continue to move between the different countries despite the global lock-down and many restrictions in place worldwide.
During the last month and a half, almost half of Tallink Grupp’s fleet has also played a crucial role in securing the continuing movement of vital supplies and goods between Estonia and Finland, Finland and Sweden, Estonia and Sweden and Estonia and Germany. The Group’s vessels have transported over 60, 000 units of cargo in the last few months, the peak of the crisis, alone, including food supplies, medicine, electronics, construction materials and so much more.
On Friday, 1 May, the following vessels will participate in the global action and sound their horns in the following ports: Silja Europa, Baltic Queen and Victoria I at the Port of Tallinn at 12PM local Estonian time; Romantika and Isabelle at the Port of Riga at 12PM local Latvian time; Silja Serenade and Star at the Port of Helsinki at 12PM local Finnish time; Silja Symphony at the Port of Stockholm at 12PM local Swedish time.
Commenting on the action, Tallink Grupp’s Head of Ship Management, Captain Tarvi-Carlos Tuulik, said:
„The current crisis has presented us with many challenges over the last few months, but as always, I have seen our crew members rise to every challenge we have faced and they have all continued to do their jobs flexibly, efficiently and professionally every step of the way. Many of them have had to be separated from their families for weeks at a time during this difficult time to ensure that we play our part in keeping our economies going.
„Some others, who are not able to work in their usual jobs onboard our vessels, have decided to support local communities during the lay-offs and are volunteering in our different countries. I personally feel very proud of the work – both paid and voluntary work - every single one of our crew members has done and this is why we are happy to take part in this activity to pay tribute also to this sector’s employees and their work during this crisis.“
AS Tallink Grupp is one of the leading providers of passenger transport and cargo transport services in the northern part of the Baltic Sea region. The company owns 14 vessels and operates seven ferry routes under the brand names of Tallink and Silja Line. AS Tallink Grupp employs over 7,000 people in Estonia, Finland, Sweden, Latvia, Russia and Germany. In 2019, Tallink Grupp provided services to 9.8 million travellers and transported approximately 380,000 freight units of goods. The shares of Tallink Grupp are listed on the Tallinn Stock Exchange and Nasdaq Helsinki Stock Exchange.