The World Health Organisation (WHO) and International Labour Organisation (ILO) along with the International Chamber of Shipping (ICS), International Maritime Organization (IMO) and others have agreed to work to find a way through the patchwork of travel restrictions they say are undermining the health and safety of transport workers
’Ongoing immense pressures and difficulties’ facing the world’s transport workers are the impetus for a newly formed joint action committee composed of transport lobby groups and UN special organisations.
WHO and ILO announced the formation of the group after WHO director-general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus and ILO director-general Guy Ryder met with International Air Transport Association director Willie Walsh, ICS secretary general Guy Platten, International Road Transport Union secretary general Umberto de Pretto and International Transport Workers’ Federation general secretary Stephen Cotton.
The groups pointed to new travel bans and a recent retightening of travel restrictions in response to the Omicron coronavirus variant identified in South Africa in late 2021 that is rapidly spreading internationally.
"The most recent travel bans and border closures implemented after the emergence of the Omicron variant are worsening this crisis," a statement from the group said.
"Some of the travel restrictions that have been put in place across countries as a response to the Covid-19 pandemic continue to undermine the health and safety of transport workers and pose a threat to the continuous functioning of the world’s supply chains."
The joint action committee said it will focus on finding ways to facilitate cross-border movement of transport workers, promoting Covid-19 vaccination for transport workers "as per the recommendations of the WHO Strategic Advisory Group of Experts on Immunization", as well as the access of seafarers to medical care and medical evacuation and improving the efficient operation of global supply chains.
Know as the Joint Action Group, the statement from the WHO and ILO said the committee will meet regularly "to discuss the evolving situation, assess the progress made, and agree on future actions to overcome remaining challenges".
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