The hotel will be able to take in such crew members from 2 July 2020.
The 101-room hotel is owned by Seacare Co-operative Limited (Seacare), a cooperative founded by the Singapore Organisation of Seamen (SOS). It is the first hotel in Singapore that is owned by a co-operative.
The Seacare Hotel meets the stringent requirements to ensure safe accommodation criteria is met for the seafarers and the hotel staff. Located at Chin Swee Road as an annexe of the Seacare Building, the hotel was officially opened on 30 January 2013.
To support safe crew changes and the shipping companies during the COVID19 pandemic, SOS will be setting aside more than S$1.5million to help defray the cost of accommodation and meals for seafarers staying at the Seacare Hotel.
Shipping companies participating in the Seacare Sailors’ Home Scheme (SSS)* can utilise the SSS e-vouchers to redeem full board accommodation at the Seacare Hotel. SOS will double the e-voucher entitlements of each qualified shipping company during this period.
For shipping companies that do not have collective bargaining agreements with SOS, SOS will sponsor three meals daily for their crew housed at the Seacare Hotel.
Mr Kam Soon Huat, SOS President, said: “Seacare, as a co-operative set up by a seafarers’ union, knows what it takes to look after the welfare of seafarers. Seacare Hotel is a natural choice because the maritime industry knows that the hotel is for seafarers. We want to show our appreciation to seafarers who are Page 2 of 4 the essential frontline workers and encourage the shipping companies during these challenging times. The enhancement of the Seacare Sailors Home Scheme is our way of saying that we are in this together.”
As of 17 June 2020, there are more than 100 shipping companies with valid SOS Collective Bargaining Agreements and the majority of them participate in the Seacare Sailors’ Home Scheme.
“As many seafarers serving onboard vessels have worked several months beyond their contracts, we strongly encourage shipping companies to expedite crew changes and to take this opportunity to utilise the SSS e-vouchers at the Seacare Hotel to accommodate the seafarers,” Mr Kam urged.
* SSS is a scheme that provides accommodation and services for the benefit of SOS members, international seafarers and the shipping community. For qualified shipping companies, the SSS e-vouchers can be utilised to redeem for hotel accommodation at The Seacare Hotel, Staff Gathering Packages at Club@52 and Seminar Packages at the Maritime Hall.