“During my NINA training in March I learned about the NINA Values and Rules. I have worked in this line of business for 23 years. Safety has always been part of my work. However, I feel NINA adds something extra."

"NINA encourages us to speak up in the interest of safety and to take responsibility, provide feedback and take action, if necessary. We are all human and we can all make mistakes. If I ended up in an unsafe situation I would be grateful to be warned by a co-worker, just as my co-worker would be grateful to be warned by me. Because no matter what your rank, in the end we all want the same thing: to return to our families safe and sound. That is why safety is my first priority wherever I go.

People from the Philippines are not used to being as direct as Dutch and Belgian people are. On board I try to be a spokesman for my co-workers if there is a problem. NINA makes it easier to sit down and talk about it. Everybody knows NINA, so you feel more comfortable about it. I think NINA is really good for the atmosphere on board. It is about respect, trust and sharing your concerns. So I am very happy with our new ‘crewmember’ NINA. In the training, I expected some lessons about safety at work, but the program offered a lot more. With NINA, you learn lessons for life!”

By: Ruelito Rossel, Union Sovereign Boatsman