Shocking levels of abuse and harassment faced by female seafarers

A new study has revealed 'alarming' levels of physical and verbal aggression and sexual harassment of women seafarers, and has called for the industry to give improved information on procedures for reporting problems. Andrew Linington reports

The research found that women seafarers experience twice as much physical, verbal and sexual harassment as their male colleagues, with more than two thirds of women seafarers and just over 38% of male seafarers reporting sexual harassment at work at some point in their careers.

The study – which is published in the latest edition of the International Maritime Health journal – notes that workplace aggression experienced by seafarers is at a much high level than workers ashore and warns that it increases the risks of anxiety, depression and burnout amongst maritime professionals.

Carried out by leading French universities, the research was based on feedback from almost 800 seafarers undergoing their annual medical certificate examinations – with almost a third of them considering that their work has a negative impact on their health.

Almost 25% of all seafarers said they had been the victim of verbal or physical aggression in the previous 12 months. Some 41% of women seafarers and 21% of male seafarers said they had been verbally abused by work colleagues in the past year and 5.8% of women and 2.6% of men said they had been the victim of physical aggression during the same period.

Around two thirds of the harassment was reported to have come from higher-ranking seafarers.

Shockingly, five women seafarers and one male seafarer said they had been the victim of rape at one point in their career. Almost 6% of women seafarers said they had experienced sexual assault in the previous 12 months.

Other frequently reported problems included sexist jokes, unwanted sexual advances and touching or groping.

Almost 40% of seafarers said they had experienced or witnessed a traumatic event in the past 12 months – including death, accidents and serious injuries onboard.

The researchers found that only 2.5% of the seafarers had sought professional help following cases of harassment or traumatic incidents at sea. Of these, half had reported problems to their union and a third had gone to the shipping company's HR department or a workplace inspectorate.

The report said more effort needs to be made by the industry and public authorities to address the low levels of awareness among seafarers on the procedures to follow if they are suffering workplace harassment. 'Encouraging the courage of the crew enables employees to recognise worrying situations and to know how to act and respond to a situation,' it noted.

Researchers also highlighted the need for training as a proven method of 'primary prevention', pointing out that 'good leadership is a protective factor against harassment, while conversely, weak leadership is a risk factor for harassment'.

The report recommended a programme to ensure that seafarers can recognise the risks posed by workplace bullying and assault. 'To effectively combat sexual harassment and gender-based harassment, all employees must be able to identify the situations that characterise them, and of which they may be the victim, witness or perpetrator,' it concluded.

Good leadership is a protective factor against harassment, while conversely, weak leadership is a risk factor for harassment French research paper findings published in IMH Journal: Aggression, psychological violence and sexual harassment in seafarers in France