Today is International Women’s Day – the perfect day to reflect about the struggles faced by women in the historically male-dominated sea freight industries, and to celebrate the small wins.
According to Spinnaker and the Maritime HR Association, the gender salary gap between men and women in the industry is sitting at about 40%.
Furthermore, the International Maritime Organisation found that women made up 29% of the sea freight industries’ workforce, however only 2% of women were seafarers.
The Diversity Study Group published its 2022 Annual Review in December, revealing that, of the 17% of women respondents, the number of women in positions such as heads of departments increased from 12.3% in 2021 to 23.8%, and women in positions such as team leaders increased by 9.3% to 38.3%. Lastly, women in junior or trainee levels remained at 56.7% and at 48% for mid-level positions.
Although these can be considered minor improvements, the number of respondents from sea freight industries who received Diversity, Equity and Inclusivity (DEI) training was only 36.2%.
Furthermore, as an industry notorious for discriminatory and sexual abuse, the review found that 35.8% of women in the industry felt they could not reveal circumstances of discrimination and would “prefer not to say”.
“This year’s results reveal some fascinating insights on the state of DEI in shipping. Whilst there is still a lack of diversity at the senior level, there are signs of a growing ‘waiting room’ of more diverse talent below the C-suite. The onus is on employers to provide the development, support and opportunities that help them to fulfil their potential, in order to see real diversity in leadership positions,” said Founder of the Diversity Study Group, Heidi Heseltine.
