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Maersk to require office staff to be vaccinated against Covid-19 

Danish transport giant Maersk is to introduce a requirement for its staff to be vaccinated against Covid-19 to be able to work from the company's offices, according to a Danish media report.

Published: 4 November 2021 17:04 CET
Maersk headquarters in Copenhagen. The Danish shipping company says it will require staff working at its offices to be vaccinated against Covid-19.
Maersk headquarters in Copenhagen. The Danish shipping company says it will require staff working at its offices to be vaccinated against Covid-19. Photo: Niels Christian Vilmann/Ritzau Scanpix

Maersk CEO Søren Skou told newspaper Berlingske that Maersk will introduce the requirement “within the next three months”.

The firm is the first major Danish company to apply such a rule relating to vaccination against the coronavirus. It will also apply the policy in some of its offices in other countries but will exempt those where vaccine supply is short, according to the report.

“We have to make it as difficult as possible for those who are not vaccinated and require tests all the time. But we can’t make a global rule on this,” Skou told Berlingske.

The company, Denmark’s largest, decided to implement the requirement because the effectiveness and safety of the Covid-19 vaccines is now well known, according to Skou.

The CEO also said that Maersk would be keen to help in locations where it is harder to get staff to accept vaccination.

The decision will be implemented in compliance with local laws and trade union agreements, Maersk said in a statement given to Berlingske.

The company has over 80,000 staff in 130 countries according to its website.

Danish engineers’ trade union IDA said it does not support companies requiring on-site staff to be vaccinated.

“It’s not reasonable to demand you must be vaccinated to be able to come to work. It’s reasonable to demand you are healthy,” IDA’s chairperson Thomas Damkjær Petersen told news wire Ritzau.

“Therefore, our recommendation is that you look after yourself and your colleagues.

“And if you have symptoms of corona, you should stay home and get tested,” Petersen added.

Another trade union, Djøf, also told Ritzau it could “not accept either a test or vaccination requirement” for members and noted that Denmark does not have a law which enables employers to demand staff are vaccinated.

READ ALSO: Denmark records highest number of daily Covid-19 infections this year

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BUSINESS

Maersk profits plummet as Yemeni attacks close off Red Sea route

Danish shipping giant Maersk posted a huge drop in net profit for the first quarter on Thursday as Yemeni rebel attacks are forcing it to avoid the vital Red Sea route.

Published: 2 May 2024 10:06 CEST
Maersk profits plummet as Yemeni attacks close off Red Sea route

Maersk reported a net profit of $177 million in the first three months of the year, a 13-fold drop from the same period last year. Turnover fell 13 percent to $12.4 billion, slightly lower than forecast by analysts surveyed by financial data firm FactSet.

The company, however, raised its outlook for the full year, citing higher demand and increased rates and costs due to the supply chain disruptions in the Red Sea.

It now expects an underlying core profit ranging between $4 billion and $6 billion, up from $1 billion-$6 billion previously.

“We had a positive start to the year with a first quarter developing precisely as we expected,” Maersk chief executive Vincent Clerc said in a statement.

“Demand is trending towards the higher end of our market growth guidance and conditions in the Red Sea remain entrenched,” he said.

“This not only supported a recovery in the first quarter compared to the previous quarter, but also provide an improved outlook for the coming quarters, as we now expect these conditions to stay with us for most of the year.”

Iran-backed Huthi rebels, who control the Yemeni capital Sanaa and much of the country’s Red Sea coast, have launched dozens of attacks on ships since November, claiming solidarity with Palestinians caught up in the Israel-Hamas war.

The United States in December announced a maritime security initiative to protect Red Sea shipping from the attacks, which have forced commercial vessels to divert from the route that normally carries 12 percent of global trade.

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