In the last decade the shipping industry has on several occasions warned against an impending shortage of qualified labour on board EU-flagged ships. The relative attractiveness of the seafaring profession has steadily decreased over the years, partly due to the specificities of the profession itself (such as long periods of time away from home) and partly due to common misperceptions and a general lack of information.

To address this downward trend, the European Community Shipowners’ Association (ECSA) and the European Transport Workers’ Federation (ETF) have jointly produced a study, funded by the European Commission, which maps the various available career paths in the seafaring profession.

The overall objectives of this project are to increase the attractiveness of maritime careers as well as to provide possible tools to seafarers to facilitate their career progression at sea and from sea to shore.

“ECSA welcomes the final report, whose findings and recommendations will undoubtedly be a fruitful basis for further consideration by EU-decision-makers as well as the social partners for maritime transport” said Patrick Verhoeven, Secretary General of the European Community Shipowners’ Associations during the final conference of the project in Brussels on 30 January.

This study updates a similar 2004 study and provides updated career path maps for several EU Member States. It identifies the reasons why people have chosen a seafaring career, the expectations they have from it, the reasons why they decide to switch to a land-based career and the type of career they will opt for when transferring to shore.

More importantly, the new report identifies barriers that limit mobility and career progression at sea and between sea and shore jobs, for all seafarers. The project however goes further than that and proposes practical measures to address these barriers.

The study is available here.