Natalie Shaw, Director of Employment Affairs at the International Chamber of Shipping (ICS), received her MBE from the Princess Royal during an investiture ceremony at Windsor Castle last week.
In January 2022, it was announced that Natalie was being awarded the MBE ‘for services to seafarers during the Covid-19 pandemic’. The award recognises Shaw’s contribution to the shipping industry. In particular, Shaw’s monumental efforts in driving the global repatriation of stranded seafarers and ensuring that shipping could continue to operate safely during the pandemic.
Other highlights from Shaw’s career include her instrumental role in the development and adoption of the International Labour Organisation’s Maritime Labour Convention in 2006, giving seafarers the right to decent pay and working conditions.
In addition to her work during the pandemic, Shaw has acted as the shipowner coordinator on issues such as the ILO minimum wage, crew claims and abandonment, fair treatment, piracy, and seafarer medical issues. Most recently, Shaw has worked to ensure that the welfare of seafarers trapped in ports in Ukraine remains a priority.
On receiving her MBE, Natalie Shaw said: “I feel incredibly honoured to receive the MBE for services to seafarers during the Covid-19 pandemic. I extend my gratitude to colleagues from across the industry too. It is thanks to collaboration with each other that we have managed to navigate the crew change crisis, get seafarers rightly identified as key workers, and rollout vaccination programmes for our seafarer workforce.
“As we move forwards we must continue to keep seafarers at the heart of our work, as their welfare is of the utmost importance.”
Guy Platten, Secretary General of the ICS, added: “I congratulate Natalie on this fantastic and well-deserved achievement. Thanks to Natalie’s work and her dedication to seafarer welfare and safety, there have been real-life changes to the way seafarers are treated. This MBE reflects not just Natalie’s work during the pandemic, but also her contributions made to the maritime sector over the past two decades.”
