International Journal

on Marine Navigation

and Safety of Sea Transportation

Volume 6

Number 3

September 2012

397

1 INTRODUCTION

Throughout history, women have always aimed for a

recognized place in society. Society has prescribed

that a woman’s place is usually at home, taking care

of the children. Many feminist movement forced the

issue of women’s rights to come into people’s

awareness These frontrunners have helped redefine

and consolidate the nature of women’s contributions

to society shows that progress has been made.

In today’s society women have access to educa-

tion and can promote themselves much more easily

than in the seventies. Women’s changing role is

happening because women nowadays are educated.

For centuries, maritime history and literature have

treated seafaring as a solely male domain. Although

women have now begun to appear in maritime

scholarships, they are mostly on the periphery. A

few women have been recorded as having travelled

as stewardesses , explorers, or companions to cap-

tains, but on the whole, women did not take part in

the actual running of ships( Creighton and Norling,

1996; Stanley, 1987 in P. Belcher, 2003)

Women on boardships either served as children’s

nurses, stewardesses for women passengers and as

laundresses.

It was only after 1945 when women were regular-

ly recruited as stewardesses, cooks and radio offic-

ers. The first women cadets were recruited only in

the late 60s.

Since the late 1990s there has been a growing in-

terest in training and recruiting women seafarers.

This is largely connected to perceived shortages of

officers in the world fleet.

The latest Baltic and International Maritime

Council (BIMCO) and the International Shipping

Federation (ISF) report suggests that the current

shortfall of officers corresponds to 4 percent of the

total (16,000 officers) and predicts a 12 percent

shortfall by 2010, an estimated 46,000 officers.

As of 2006, the European Commission reported

an estimated 36,000 officers shortfall from the

13,000 officers in 2001( P. Belcher, et. al, 2004).

Owing to the fact that there is big shortage for of-

ficers to man the world’s fleet, the focus now is on

the possibility of recruiting more women into the

maritime profession.

The United Nations promoting women’s em-

ployment and the integration of women into all lev-

els of political, economic, and social development

the IMO produced a strategy for integrating women

Women Seafarers: Solution to Shortage of

Competent Officers?

M. Magramo & G. Eler

John B. Lacson Foundation Maritime University, Iloilo City, Philippines

ABSTRACT: This study aimed to determine the participation of women in the seafaring profession. It also

looked into the hiring practices of the different manning and shipping companies in the country. It also tack-

led the hindrances or obstacles a woman seafarer faces in a male dominated world like seafaring. This re-

search utilized the interview approach in data-gathering among the crew managers, and an in-depth interview

with a lone woman seafarer participant.

398

into the maritime sector in 1988 , when it began to

implement its Women in Development (WID) pro-

gramme concentrating on equal access to maritime

training through both mainstream programmes and

gender specific projects. One of the immediate im-

pacts of the programme has been the rise in the per-

centage of women students taking part in the highest

level of maritime training.

The SIRC/ILO survey in 1995 revealed that

women made up of less than 8 percent in the total

umber of students at the World Maritime University.

Overall, the participation rate of women in seafaring

remains low. Only about 1 to 2 percent of the

world’s 1.25 million seafarers and that most of these

women are form developed countries. The study by

Belcher, et al.(2003) found out that women continue

to constitute a very small part of labor force of sea-

farers. It is in this context that this study was con-

ducted.

2 STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM

This study aims to determine the participation of

women in the seafaring profession in the Philip-

pines. Specifically, it aims to determine the follow-

ing:

1 The number of Filipino women currently em-

ployed on board vessels;

2 Hiring practices and policies of the shipping

companies in recruiting women for seafaring;

3 Reasons why some ship owners refuse to hire

women on board ships

3 METHOD

This study employed the qualitative method of re-

search utilizing the interview approach in gathering

data. It aimed to determine the participation of

women in the maritime profession. Likewise, it

looked into hiring practices of the ship owners and it

also intended to determine the reasons why many

ship owners refuse to take or hire women in their

company. The participants in this study are the ship-

ping and manning companies and a woman seafarer

who had been at sea and is now an officer.

4 RESULTS

4.1 Modes of analysis

On December 9-13, 2007 these group of researchers

proceeded to Manila to conduct interviews with the

different stakeholders in the maritime profession.

The interview focused on different issues confront-

ing the maritime profession. In the light of the many

issues on the shortage of officers, the women remain

untapped as a possible source of the qualified sea-

farers. The first interviewee was Mrs. Virginia Line-

sis, the lady president of K-Line. She was quick in

saying that as far as her company is concerned, they

are not hiring women as seafarers in their company.

She also told the group that Japanese culture does

not allow women to work on board their vessels.

Capt. Jose De la Peña also shares the opinion of

Mrs. Linesis and other ship manning managers with

Japanese principals do not hire women seafarers.

C/M Erickson Pedrosa said his company, the

Walllem Maritime Services are employing women

in the company. He further said: “We have five (5)

women cadets. This company is giving fair treat-

ment to men and women. The entry of women in the

profession will help in the shortage. However, wom-

en are weak emotionally and physically. They must

be trained just like the men and be prepared for the

job.

Capt. Jimmy Milano, the General Operations

Manager of Inter-Orient Maritime Enterprises, Inc.

said they don’t employ women on cargo vessels, but

they have at least two (2) women stewards in the

company’s pleasure yacht numbering about 14. Per-

sonally, though, he is against women employment

on cargo vessels with mixed crew because it could

sometimes spell trouble. But he is also in favor of

hiring women on passenger vessels.

Capt. Rolando Ramos of Unisea, Philippines be-

lieved that women are capable of becoming officers

and doing the work on board vessels, however be-

cause of our culture, women are easily tempted. The

company does not discriminate women as a matter

of fact, the company employs women.

3/M Glena Juarez, a graduate of JBLFMU is now

a licensed Third Officer. She sits as the Assistant

Technical Marine Superintendent at UNISEA, Phil-

ippines, Inc. She believes that women are good in

planning procedures and office work. Women are

different in handling work on board. She adds “all

the things we do are arranged. We have a system of

doing things.”

Asked if she would still continue life at sea de-

spite the fact that she now holds a very comfortable

and a very important position in the office, she

smiled and said “Yes, for me it’s not fulfilling that I

have the 3

Mate license but I did not have the

chance to practice.” The owner’s representative

made her choose between a land based and a sea-

based position. The owners plan to put a junior third

officer on board is a bit longer and for a while she

opted to stay in the office because she also needs to

know how the office runs, how the shipping is man-

aged ashore. Asked how long does she intend to stay

399

on board. She said: “I don’t want to stay on board all

my life. It’s difficult to stay on board.

When asked what makes life on board difficult

for someone like her, she said: “I guess the envi-

ronment, the weather. The bad weather, you cannot

sleep because you are bothered by the rolling and

pitching of the vessel. And also working with people

on board, there are people who are mean! The entire

working environment makes life on board difficult.

She experienced 36 hours of no sleep because they

have to finish the cargo hold cleaning, because after

6 o’clock we cannot discharge the cargoes. She also

said: “There are times I wanted to go home because

of the people on board.” Even the people from the

engine department would ask her why she joined the

profession.”

When asked how she was able to finish the one

year contract on board, she mused: I have to prove

that I can survive. The workload is not a problem, I

guess because it’s part of being a seafarer. To her,

one must be aware that sleep on board is not the kind

of sleep you are experiencing on land. To her, while

you are sleeping your mind must be awake because

what if there is an emergency. Alertness is always

there. You cannot say that your sleep is a rest, you

are still awake. For her, just one ring of the phone

she is already awake. She needs to be always alert.

There are also times its fun to be on board having

the chance to visit other places. She also said that

she is proud whenever the captain asks her to clean

the bilge, the strum box or rose box.

Asked if she was able to apply what she learned

in school, she was quick to say: “Yes. Especially

navigation, it was more enhanced on board especial-

ly the skills. I guess you have to love your work in

order to survive.”

“During my free time, I just stayed in my room

watching movies or sometimes talking with other

crew members. Every time there are nasty jokes, I

just listen or just ignored it. Sometimes, I simply get

out of the room or cabin to avoid embarrassment or

being offended by the conversation.

Asked what her job now is in the office; she said:

“I am the Assistant Technical Superintendent. To-

gether with the Technical Superintendent, we com-

pose the Ship Management Team. It’s a new team in

the company; we have a counterpart in the main of-

fice in Greece. We visited the main office of

UNISEA in Greece last October 2007. We observed

how the office is run, how the office operates.

Here in the Philippines, 3/M Glena also works in

the administration department of manning. The

Greek Director told her she is being prepared either

as Human Resource Officer or Quality Management

Representative in the office after her training on

board and in the office.

Capt. Martinez believes that Filipino women are

capable of being officers on board vessels. He be-

lieves that if there are Danish or British women of-

ficers, so can there be Filipinos. He believes that

these women must learn to love this job, because it’s

a tough job.

Mrs. Brenda Panganiban, President of Bouvet

Shipping Management, said she is in favor of wom-

en seafarers in the profession but only for a very

limited time. This is because she will be getting mar-

ried. European principals accept women in the pro-

fession but not in Japanese owned vessels. She also

mentioned that women have different disposition

when it comes to decision making. This opinion is

also shared by the training manager of Maritime

Corporation, Capt.Lexington Calumpang. According

to him “women are for light work only. For the deck

there is no problem because they are on the bridge,

but in the engine their strength must be like that of

the men. For theory women are good. In this compa-

ny, hiring women is preparatory to office job after

their training on board is completed. We have a

woman superintendent from MAAP. She is now the

safety environmental superintendent with a 4

engi-

neer license. We have employed two women who

just disembark; they were taken by the company two

weeks after they have disembarked.” He further

stressed that on deck women are slow in decision

making. They rattle. One woman was given penalty

for a year; she is assigned at the office of the princi-

pal’s representative in the training department for

the meantime.

When asked if they have any policy requirement

for women, they too, like men have to pass the ad-

mission exam, interview and the medical examina-

tions. They also have to undergo training both in-

house and in other training centers.

Women on board vessels are usually visited by

the fleet manager to see to it that they are not victims

of any form of harassment from the other crew.

Women seafarers must perform just like the men,

when they become a master mariner they can be as-

signed in the office.

When asked what her opinions are on women

seafarers, Mrs.Carla Limcaoco, Executive Director

and Vice- Chairman of Philippine Transmarine Car-

rier said: “First of all, these are issues of physical

demands. Second, women will eventually fall in

love, get married and get pregnant. But if they are

focused and determined enough then there is no

problem.”

5 FINDINGS

1 Women seafarers in the seafaring profession are

comprised of only 1-2 percent.

400

Most of these women are in the steward depart-

ment although there are a few ship owners who

are now hiring women as officers.

2 Not too many of the companies in the country to-

day are hiring women to become officers. The

companies hiring these women are actually pre-

paring them for office positions. Women are

more organized; hence they are more appropriate

to work in the office after they have acquired the

necessary training and knowledge of running a

ship.

3 The women who are now taken as cadets and be-

ing prepared to become officers on board ships

must be physically, emotionally and spiritually

tough in order to overcome all kinds of hindranc-

es, obstacles and challenges that may come their

way. They need to think and act properly in a pro-

fession that is male-dominated.

REFERENCES

Belcher P. Sampson H., Thomas M. Viega J. Zhao M., 2004.

Women Seafarers: Global employment policies, ILO, ISBN

92-2-113491-1, UK

BIMCO/ISF, 2005, Manpower Update: The Worldwide De-

mand of and Supply for Seafarers Institute fro Employment

Research, University of Warwick.

Seafarer’s International Research Centre (SIRC 1999). Seafar-

ers. Cardiff University, Wales UK

Skei, O. M. (The growing shortage on qualified officers), a pa-

per delivered at the 8

Asia-pacific Manning and Training

conference, November 14-15, 2007. Manila Philippines.