Captain George receives SAFETY4SEA Crew Welfare Award

Caption George Vasilakis, Managing Director of Optimum Ship Services, was recognized for his long-time commitment to supporting crew by receiving the 2023 Leadership Award at the SAFETY4SEA Crew Welfare Awards Ceremony.

For many years, Captain George has been promoting a culture of not just physical, but also psychological safety in the shipping industry.

“Supporting seafarers at work should be something you think about and work on every day” Captain Vasilakis believes.  Captain Vasilakis comments upon receiving the award are worth highlighting here, as they exemplify all that we strive to do within Scorpio.

“There is a history behind our holistic approach towards Wellbeing, and to be honest, it didn’t come easy” noted Captain Vasilakis.  While he and his colleagues were completing all their official requirements in this area, they realized after a few worrying incidents that something was amiss, so began reevaluating their programs.

Captain Vasilakis continued “To do that, you need space and support.  You need principals that trust you.  Scorpio cares for its people and this is very helpful”.

To change the attitude onboard and create an environment where seafarers felt secure to discuss their psychological wellbeing took time, resources, and effort.  Thankfully the industry as a whole is evolving so additional resources and a broader supportive environment now exist.

Captain Vasilakis noted “a change is much easier to implement in a supportive environment.  A ship manager cannot do much alone.  You need a framework of thinking about wellbeing. You need people that care, people that have passion to deliver.  I am very lucky that I have good people around me.  They are working very hard.  Nothing comes easy.  We have tried a lot of initiatives.  Some of them worked well, some others, not.  But all of them were contributing to the feeling that the company was trying hard and cares for its seafarers”.

After much trial and error, Captain George and his team put in place an ombudsman who worked closely with a well-loved and respected retired master.  Due to the persistent stigma around formal mental heath channels, this has been an excellent solution.  He listens to the concerns and worries of the seafarers and then guides them to the necessary type of support required.  Added to this, Optimum has brought in Wellbeing Ambassadors, onboard colleagues who listen and direct their colleagues to the appropriate helplines.

Captain Vasilakis adds “[This combination has] started to being some results.  We have made good progress but there is a lot of room for improvement in many areas.  We are still trying new things. We have newcomers.  We have the generation gap.  We have conditions that we cannot control, like the pandemic.  The wars.   So, we cannot allow ourselves to relax.  This is very dynamic.  Efforts cannot stop. And yes, I do believe, that healthier and happier seafarers can run safer ships”.

Thank you, Captain George Vasilakis, and Congratulations on this well-deserved award.