In January of this year, NorthStandard published the results of its 2025 SEAFiT Crew Survey which showed how global cruise workers aren’t the happiest employees in the world.
Job satisfaction levels among cruise staff are dropping throughout the world, and many are expressing concern as to their physical and mental wellbeing on board and on shore.
While cruise companies throughout the world are working to safeguard the health and overall safety of their people, it seems like the industry still isn’t doing enough for the thousands who ply the seas every day.
That said, if the people running your cruise aren’t in the best shape, how can you expect them to turn out a stellar performance and give you the sailing of a lifetime?
The issues below deck
To understand why cruise workers responded in such a way to the SEAFiT survey, consider the fact that these are people who spend a protracted period away from friends and loved ones in foreign waters, often with few opportunities for breaks.
Given how the average cruise worker labours for up to 100 hours per week, it isn’t surprising that 90 percent of them globally are suffering from depression and / or anxiety; it has not helped that not all cruise ships have facilities or professionals on board to mitigate the issue.
That said, it is grim but not surprising to note that up to eight percent of crew deaths at sea are attributed to depression-driven suicide.
At the same time, especially for women, spending an extended amount of time at sea can be a nightmare for both their health and safety.
A 2025 study conducted by the faculty of the Romanian Naval Academy noted several disturbing things about the experiences of female cruise workers.
These included:
- 35 percent of women working on board were subjected to sexual harassment in the form of both psychological and physical, even sexual, abuse, especially given that the working culture aboard many ships remains male-centric, often leaning towards chauvinism;
- Women are too often bypassed when it comes to promotions despite getting higher marks on qualifying exams or performing better in assigned tasks. Indeed, many of those who have ended their contracts and opted not to return have complained that they’d been gunning for a promotion for years, but were always turned down for a male colleague who, often as not, was significantly less qualified than they were; and
- Even in the 21st century, women on board are hard-pressed to get the health care they need, specifically reproductive care and the services of a gynaecologist. Often, it is also challenging for women to access basic necessities for menstruation and even birth control.
Your cruise experience depends on the crew
In a piece for Watermark in August of last year, Alex Downes wrote:
“Passenger satisfaction ultimately rests on the people delivering the service. Fatigue, long hours and limited shore time erode performance, safety and retention. If we are serious about sustainable growth, we must translate commercial success into concrete measures that protect seafarers’ rest, health and morale.”
Downes added that staff welfare needs to be a major priority for cruise companies, possibly even more so than technological upgrades and even luxury amenities as a healthy crew pretty much leads to happy passengers.
Global chief human resources officer Bettina A Deynes of Carnival Corporation has also opined that those in her line of work, regardless of whichever cruise line they work for, need to ensure that the health, safety and security, and overall wellness of staff members are properly cared for.
Deynes further pointed out that their safety, and this specifically includes safety of female employees and those who are part of the LGBTQIA+ community on board at all hours, must be woven into the ship’s operational culture.
As she puts it, applying her words to both passengers and crew: “Treating people with dignity and respect, and maybe even care and love, is the highest form of intelligence, and I think that’s what’s needed today.”
Writing in Safety4Sea in February of this year, Meei Wong offered a practical approach to improving the lot of employees on board.
Citing the results of the SEAFiT survey, Wong wrote: “If we want to attract the next generation of seafarers and retain the expertise we currently have, we must move beyond platitudes and start treating crew well-being with the same strategic rigour we apply to decarbonisation or fuel efficiency.”
Likewise, Wong also proposed practical measures like the following:
- High-quality, low-latency internet to enable crew to stay in touch with friends and family back home and reduce homesickness and loneliness;
- Digital tools and wearable technologies to actively monitor the physical wellbeing of employees;
- Psycho-emotional support in the form of on-board professionals specialising in mental health, as well as peer support networks; and
- Gender and cultural sensitivity training throughout the ranks to ensure that everyone feels welcome, thus creating a safer, more resilient working environment on board.
