guest lectures to ensure industry relevant
alignment to the academic field.
2021 was the first year of operating without
in-house technical management, which was
transferred to the joint venture NORDEN
Synergy Ship Management in Q3 2020. While
the technical management of owned vessels
is outsourced, we still set the same high
standards for safety on board and ensure that
external managers meet these standards.
We continuously strive to identify any adverse
COVID-19 developments among crew on
board NORDEN’s vessels and ensure that
appropriate actions are taken to prevent and
mitigate these.
Conducting business in a legal, ethical and
socially responsible manner is integral to
NORDEN and in alignment with our com-
pany values. We are committed to ensuring
that no form of slavery or human trafficking
occurs in any part of our business or supply
chain. In 2021, NORDEN adopted the Mod-
ern Slavery Act for respecting human and
labour rights as operationalised by the UN
Guiding Principles on Business and Human
Rights. In addition, all employees are sub-
ject to NORDEN’s Employee Code of Con-
duct, which outlines the conduct expected
in the company, covering anti-corruption,
environment, safety, social conditions and
compliance matters.
Retention and turnover
Continued growth in activity and required
skill sets demands a focus on attracting,
retaining and developing skilled employ-
ees. In 2021, the retention rate for employ-
ees in NORDEN’s offices was 89%, which is
considered satisfactory, secures continuity
and preserves knowledge and skills in the
organisation. The focus on talent retention
is also reflected in ongoing engagement
surveys, which assess whether employ-
ees feel empowered, have access to the
information needed and understand
their contribution to the overall goals of
NORDEN. In 2021, NORDEN conducted
two employee engagement surveys, which
showed that the level of engagement and
motivation is very high among employees.
As expected, employee turnover was lower
during 2021 compared to 2020 where sev-
eral organisational restructures took place.
Crew changes related to COVID-19 lock-
downs in ports continued to be a challenge
during 2021. As a result, seafarers on board
NORDEN vessels experienced long peri-
ods at sea and difficult working conditions.
Furthermore, employees in several of
NORDEN's global offices have experienced
prolonged local lockdown measures, and
travel between offices has not been as
frequent. We would like to thank all seafarers
on board NORDEN's vessels, as well as our
onshore employee, acknowledging their
extraordinary efforts and patience in this
unprecedented situation.
Operating at sea involves safety and security
risks that must always be managed carefully
to safeguard the vessels, cargo and crew at
sea. NORDEN operates by the principle that
no injury or environmental incident is accept-
able. In 2021, there was a slight increase in
the number of injuries where crew members
were unable to work the next day (primarily
related to fingers, knees and back injuries).
During 2021, NORDEN continued to focus
on how to mitigate sexism and harassment
in the workplace. NORDEN does not toler-
ate any cases of harassment and finds it vital
that employees regard NORDEN as a safe
and inclusive workplace. To support this,
NORDEN conducted a follow-up survey on
harassment, measuring potential harass-
ment incidents in the workplace and during
external company related events (customer
meetings, dinners, courses, etc). The survey
outlined a need for NORDEN to provide
clearer guidance and procedures for report-
ing harassment, thereby ensuring that all
employees know who to reach out to and
how to follow up on any case of experienced
harassment.
Fatalities at sea related to work safety
amounted to 0 in 2021. However, with
ongoing COVID-19 outbreaks presenting
themselves across the various regions in
which NORDEN operates vessels, this led
to a captain on board a NORDEN vessel be-
coming infected with COVID-19 during mid-
2021, which ended with a fatal outcome.
NORDEN together with NORDEN Synergy
Ship Management provided support to the
family throughout this very unfortunate pe-
riod, staying in constant dialogue with local
legal and insurance representatives to help
the family, while ensuring that all logistical
and practical circumstances were handled
in accordance with the family's wishes.
Human rights
Assessing human rights violations is an
important and complex task for a globally
operating company like NORDEN, which is
part of a global supply chain, operating with
hundreds of customers, suppliers and part-
ners in different regions. Implementing the
necessary policies, due diligence processes
and grievance mechanisms, in line with the
requirements set by the UN Guiding Prin-
ciples for Business and Human Rights, is a
continuous process in NORDEN. In 2021,
we updated our Human Rights policy.
Health and safety
NORDEN is committed to fostering the best
possible working environment, where health
and safety are our top priorities. Creating
such a workplace necessitates a level of re-
sponsibility among employees to safeguard
their own and their colleagues’ safety, as well
as follow our Health & Safety policy and for
NORDEN to implement preventive actions
where necessary.
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PEOPLE 53
NORDEN
ANNUAL REPORT 2021
SUSTAINABILITy
