Two Women Sue Maersk for Turning a Blind Eye to Rape and Harassment

Midshipman-X

Via: DR.DK, The National Broadcasting Corporation of Denmark

June 14, 2022

By: Astrid Ildor, Jakob Ussing, & Jacob Munch

Translated from Danish to English via Google Translate

Two women are now suing Maersk, accusing the Danish shipping group of not taking responsibility and doing enough to prevent more cases of rape and sexual harassment .

The cases, which are to be brought as civil damages lawsuits in New York, come after several days of stories about over the line and harassing behavior on board several of Maersk's ships .

“What these two women were exposed to was to be expected and could have been eliminated if Maersk had taken responsibility,” says the women's defense lawyer Steven J. Kelly, who is a partner in the law firm Sanford Heisler Sharp.

A review of the current lawsuits paints a picture of extremely serious allegations.

Forced to drink and raped

One of the women-Hope Hicks-told anonymously about her experiences last year, but now she stands out with her name and picture.

“I am no longer afraid of the reactions from the industry or my education, now I just want to bring these cases to light,” Hope Hicks says to DR News. “For far too long, it has been far too difficult for victims to stand up and I hope my case will inspire others to do the same.”

She is training as a mechanical engineer at the United States Merchant Marine Academy (USMMA), and as part of the study, she was in 2019 an intern on board one of Maersk's cargo ships.

According to the lawsuit, the then 19-year-old Hope Hicks was the only woman on board, and her 1st Assistant Engineer—her immediate boss—repeatedly came up with sexual jokes and comments about Hope Hicks’ appearance. This allegedly also happened in front of other employees in the engine room.

After about 50 days on board the cargo ship, the 1st Engineer held a small gathering in his cabin, where he and others drank alcohol, even though this is contrary to Maersk's alcohol policy.

Hope Hicks was persuaded to participate and, according to the lawsuit, was forced to drink 8-10 shots, after which she was given a short-lived black out.

The next day she woke up naked in her bed.

The lawsuit further states that there was blood on her sheets, marks on her body, and that she was sore especially around her abdomen.

Hope Hicks clearly remembers parts of the rape; among other things, how the 1st Engineer forced his penis into her mouth and that he raped her vaginally.

The next morning, she got a call from another colleague announcing that the 1st Engineer had given her time off and that she did not need a meeting in the engine room that day.

Later that day, Hope Hicks was summoned to a meeting in the 1st Engineer’s cabin, according to the lawsuit. Here he made it clear that he had simply helped her to bed the day before and that it would have serious consequences if Hope Hicks told anything else to the ship's captain or others in the shipping company.

Hope Hicks looked after her work on board for another 50 days. According to the lawsuit, she did not think it would be helpful to complain to the ship's captain, and she was not aware of any other complaints or advice options.

“It was my immediate boss who did these things to me. He was good friends with his boss and the ship's captain, so I did not feel I had anyone I could turn to,” says Hope Hicks.

Only in October last year did she tell the public about the episode, after which Maersk conducted an internal investigation, and as a consequence fired five employees.

Sexual harassment was a known issue

The other woman in the case was also in training when, in 2021, she experienced “extreme sexual harassment, unwanted touch and discrimination” from a colleague on board the same ship on which Hope Hicks was an intern.

According to the lawsuit, she was so insecure on board the ship that she slept with a kitchen knife by her bed.

When she told about the episodes to Maersk's Designated Person Ashore (DPA)—a specially appointed person who is to help employees who feel in trouble at sea—the DPA replied according to the lawsuit:

“This can’t keep happening,” which according to the women's defense lawyer indicates that the DPA has previously received the same types of complaints about the colleague in question.

In the lawsuit, it is also emphasized that the USMMA's “Sea Year Program” was already discontinued in 2016 due to several complaints about sexual harassment. When the program was reintroduced in 2017, Maersk and other shipping companies were required to take care to prevent and protect trainees from sexual harassment and other over-the-line behavior .

According to the current lawsuits, the women were not at any time introduced to a code of violation, nor do they believe that the other members of the crew have received the courses on abusive behavior that are otherwise required.

“I'm far from the only one this has happened to, I later found out. I do not believe for a moment that Maersk has not known about the problems before,” says Hope Hicks.

Maersk will not comment on the specific cases, but has sent a written comment to DR News:

“We are deeply touched by the cases that have come to light. We need to put an end to every unacceptable culture, and we need to get to the bottom of the problem. When the case came up last year, we started talking to all our female sailors to get their first-hand accounts of the culture on the ships. The talks show that a comprehensive cultural change is needed. We are working on this, which is why we, for example, have set up a team that only works with this, and we will continue to do so.”