Gender and Work within the Maritime Sector

Abstract

Awareness of gender perspectives in the maritime sector has been growing in recent years. The International Maritime Organization (IMO) adopted the World Maritime Day 2019 theme of ‘empowering women in the maritime community’, inspiring maritime stakeholders to respond to this global initiative. The maritime sector has been traditionally characterised as male-dominated and women represented only 1.28 per cent of the total seafaring population in 2021. The majority of women seafarers work in catering and hotel sections on cruise ships and ferries, where women are stereotypically considered to be more suited than working in technical and operational sections on board ships. Despite the political and legal will to promote women in the maritime sector, this figure has not changed over the last 30 years. This chapter provides an overview of gender ratios in various maritime jobs which are based at sea, in ports, and on shore. The chapter also offers an account of how various barriers impede the attraction, recruitment and retention, and leadership of women in the maritime sector. Women working in the maritime sector may face sexual harassment and discrimination at training as well as in the workplace. Some shipping companies are hesitant to employ women as they perceive women as risk factors in a man’s world. In addition to cultural and legal barriers, there are structural barriers that de-value women as human capital through unequal investment and training opportunities. The chapter discusses the future of the maritime sector, in relation to automation, smart and green shipping, digitalisation and energy efficiency, and the challenges and opportunities this presents for women. Furthermore, the COVID-19 pandemic has significantly affected the sector and its workers. In order to build a transformative and resilient maritime industry, gender equality is the key to driving success in this transition and it is necessary to mainstream gender in every step of designing and implementing new processes for the future maritime sector.