Abuse of Power, Sexual Assault and Fear: New report Reveals Terrifying Conditions for Female Sailors
Abuse of power, sexual assault and fear: New report reveals terrifying conditions for female sailors
April 27, 2023
Via: Berlingske (Translated from Danish to English via Google Translate)
By: Sidsel Lyhne Jensen & Lisa Maria Bilgrav
After serious cases from Maersk that sent tremors through the shipping industry, a new global report reveals how a large number of women have been subjected to coercive assault and harassment.
“The captain said he would demote my position if I didn't have sex with him.”
The words come from a female ship employee. The situation took place in the middle of the open sea.
She had no opportunity to seek help or escape from the scene. All she could do was wait. Wait for the ship to come into port several months later, and in the meantime hope that she would not have to succumb to the captain's threat.
Her experience is not unique. It is a nightmare that many women have faced.
This is shown by a new global report from the All Aboard Alliance, which maps the working conditions of female seafarers.
Susanne Justesen, project manager at the NGO Global Maritime Forum and co-author of the report, says that there are large dark figures associated with sexual harassment and abuse at sea.
But the new report is one of the first interview studies with so many informants that clearly identifies where action is needed.
No less than 115 women talk – independently of each other and in different positions – about an everyday life of abuse of power, sexual abuse and fear.
With the many qualitative interviews, four general issues within the maritime industry have been mapped:
They experience being discriminated against on the basis of gender, and as a result they find it difficult to pursue a career. Their employment conditions make it difficult to start a family. The physical conditions are adapted to men. And more are exposed to sexual violations and harassment.
Susanne Justesen particularly highlights the latter issue.
"Either they have experienced it themselves. Or they know someone who has experienced it. So the fear of being on board and being subjected to abuse takes up a lot: 'What if it happens and there is no one to look after me',' says Justesen, who has written a Ph.D. in management of companies with great diversity.
It is not more than two years ago that a number of cases of sexual abuse came to light at Mærsk. In particular , the story of 19-year-old Hope Hicks made an impression. As the only woman on board a Maersk ship, she was subjected to sexual harassment, drunk and raped by her boss. A 40-year-old man.
It is precisely the kind of stories that are now beginning to take up more of the big picture, and which can have consequences for the maritime industry.
"If nothing changes, the women who work at sea will turn their backs on the industry. We have a reputation that could result in even fewer women applying for the maritime sector, and then we could miss the opportunity to attract a lot of young people,' says Susanne Justesen.
It can quickly escalate
The report, which has been published on Thursday, is part of the All Aboard Alliance initiative, which was established in May 2022.
It is the NGO Global Maritime Forum and 35 other companies that work within the maritime industry that are behind the initiative.
Here, in close collaboration, they try to map the structural challenges in the maritime industry with a view to solving the problems.
"We can see that it is difficult to attract women. There are some major limitations, and we need to understand where the problems arise if we are to make a serious effort to attract more women to the industry,' says Susanne Justesen.
At the time of writing, women make up less than two percent of the total gender composition at sea. This means that many experience being the only woman on board when they are out on the ships.
It also means that they feel more exposed. The women from the report say that it creates loneliness, isolation and fear.
And in the worst case, the abuses happen.
That is why they want to have more female colleagues, says Susanne Justesen.
"We need to have more eyes on us, and in particular we need to have more female officers on board who can speak up. What starts as a bit of sexualizing irony can quickly escalate – and end up in an assault – if action is not taken quickly.'
In the report, a female ship employee tells, among other things, how a male boss used his position to force women to perform sexual services for him. And how there was no help to be had.
"When it was mentioned to a senior male officer, it was quickly dismissed," she says.
Should women even be in the industry?
Solutions must be found, says Susanne Justesen.
As she herself points out, the report is just one of many studies that show that women at sea experience harassment or bullying.
In October 2022, a global study was published by the Women's International Shipping & Trading Association (WISTA). Among 1,128 female sailors, 66 percent of them had witnessed harassment or bullying.
25 percent of women describe experiences of physical and sexual harassment.
Mikael Skov, who is co-chair of the All Aboard Alliance and managing director of the Danish tanker shipping company Hafnia, also emphasizes that it is important that the challenges are reduced.
'“We need a larger recruitment base where the best candidates are attracted - regardless of gender. Right now we run the risk of the women opting out of the jobs because of poor working conditions,' says Mikael Skov, who explains that it must reflect society.
But why should there be women in the industry?
"For me, it's more a question of everyone having the opportunity and that we want to attract a larger talent base. What is important to us is that there are no circumstances in the workplace that prevent people from applying for a position. If people opt out, it must be because they don't want to. It shouldn't be because they feel there are some risks associated with their gender.'
The next step in the All Abroad Alliance is to investigate initiatives that solve the problems.
Among other things, at the end of the year Hafnia will have four ships, where the gender distribution is 50/50. They are also in the process of investigating the physical conditions, so that it will be adapted to all genders and the possibility of maternity for women.
In addition, they have initiated a management training course with a focus on management responsibility and something as basic as good behaviour.
"We must ensure that everyone on board a ship is treated equally," says Mikael Skov.
Maersk: We have a big task ahead of us
Both Justesen and Skov point out that this is a trial scheme. They must investigate what works, after which they will try to implement it.
But one thing is certain: a cultural change must take place.
"And it's not something that can be solved in a month," says Susanne Justesen.
At Mærsk, they are also trying to change the culture after the case of Hope Hicks sent shock waves through Mærsk and the industry.
Here, Mærsk initiated an investigation into the conditions of the female employees and a wide range of measures to ensure that the women could move about safely in their workplaces.
Since then, more cases have come to light .
Berlingske has therefore asked Mærsk how things are going with the measures, and how many cases there are in concrete terms since Hope Hicks came forward.
It has not been possible to get an interview, but in a written comment Amalie Grevsen, spokesperson for Mærsk, writes the following:
"It is a long way to create a cultural transformation, and although we have now completed several initiatives, we still have a big task ahead of us."
She writes that since the autumn of 2022, 2,500 seagoing leaders have had to complete the anti-violation training. A management program has also been launched, which will take place over two years.
"These are just examples of a large number of initiatives that Mærsk will run over the next few years to create a common culture where all employees feel respected, safe and included," writes Amalie Grevsen.