Charter for More Women in Shipping
Danish Shipping is working to strengthen a more competitive and sustainable shipping industry that fully utilises the available talent pool. As part of this effort, we have established the Charter for More Women in Shipping—a joint industry initiative aimed at improving the recruitment, retention, and development of women, both at sea and ashore.
How to Join the Charter
The Charter brings together member companies committed to translating ambition into action and actively contributing to a more attractive and future-proof industry.
The Future of Shipping Requires the Full Talent Pool
For Danish shipping to remain among the world’s leading maritime industries, access to the full talent pool is essential.
Today, women represent only 17% of employees in shipping companies. Among seafarers on Danish-flagged vessels, the share is 8%, and even lower when excluding ferries.
This highlights a significant opportunity to attract more skilled professionals and build a more balanced industry.
More Women Strengthen the Industry
Achieving a more balanced gender representation is not only a matter of equality—it is also a strategic advantage.
Companies with broader representation are often better positioned in terms of:
- recruitment and access to qualified talent
- employee well-being and retention
- innovation and development
- improved decision-making processes
- competitiveness and corporate reputation
Actively working with diversity is therefore an investment in the company’s long-term performance.
What It Means to Join the Charter
Companies that sign up to the Charter commit to a structured and strategic approach to increasing the representation of women and ensuring equal opportunities internally.
This includes, for example:
- setting measurable targets
- working strategically with recruitment and retention
- strengthening talent development and career pathways
- promoting an inclusive organisational culture
- monitoring progress and outcomes
The Charter allows each company to tailor its efforts to its specific context, resources, and level of ambition.
Why Companies Choose the Charter
As a participant, your company becomes part of a collective industry effort.
You will gain:
- access to a strong network of like-minded companies
- professional sparring and knowledge sharing
- inspiration for concrete initiatives
- increased visibility as an employer committed to diversity
- opportunities to share best practices and results
10 Industry Recommendations
As part of this initiative, the industry has developed 10 recommendations to support companies in creating better conditions for increasing the number of women in shipping.
The recommendations are applicable both onboard and ashore and focus on areas such as:
- inclusive recruitment practices
- talent development and career pathways
- leadership and organisational culture
- well-being and psychological safety
- flexibility and retention
- visible role models and employer branding
These recommendations provide practical tools that can be directly implemented.
View the 10 industry recommendations here
Increasing the number of women in shipping is about safeguarding the industry’s continued strength, innovation, and access to skilled labour. The more companies that engage, the greater the impact we can achieve together.