Terrifying conditions for female sailors

In a new report from the All Aboard Alliance, 115 female sailors in various positions talk about the everyday life of abuse of power, sexual abuse, and fear. Behind the alliance are the Global Maritime Forum and 35 companies within the maritime industry that want to change the culture.

The new report with the many qualitative interviews from female seafarers maps four general issues within the maritime industry, writes Berlingske.

They are discriminated against on the basis of gender and therefore find it difficult to pursue a career. Their employment conditions make it difficult to start a family, the physical conditions on board are adapted to men and many are exposed to sexual harassment.

Susanne Justesen, project manager in the Global Maritime Forum and co-author of the report, highlights the sexual harassment:

"Either they have experienced it themselves. Or they know someone who has experienced it. So the fear of being on board and being assaulted takes a lot of space: 'What if it happens and there is no one to look after me'," says Susanne Justesen to Berlingske.

Maersk has experienced several cases of sexual abuse and has launched a major investigation into the conditions of female employees and will try to change the culture.

The case of former Maersk employee Hope Hicks, who came forward and told about sexual abuse, also led to the Danish Maritime Authority launching an investigation into the entire industry.

The new report by the All Aboard Alliance is far from the first study to describe the harassment or bullying that women at sea can be exposed to.

A global survey by the Women's International Shipping & Trading Association, published in June last year, showed that 66 percent of the 1,128 female seafarers in the study had witnessed harassment or bullying.

25 percent of them described experiences of physical and sexual harassment, writes Berlingske.

The tanker shipping company Hafnia, which has CEO Mikael Skov as
co-chair of the All Aboard Alliance will now make an active effort to create better conditions for women on board.

At the end of the year, the shipping company will have four ships where the gender distribution is equal.

"We must ensure that everyone on board a ship is treated equally," says Mikael Skov to the newspaper.