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ISWAN works hard to promote and support the welfare of seafarers all over the world – and that’s including superyacht crew. Recently, they’ve been busy supplying consistent, reliable aid to those in need of valuable guidance in difficult scenarios, and are currently launching new efforts to maximise the support available to everyone in the maritime industry.
In this article, we cover exactly what ISWAN has been up to and how they can help you.
Yacht Crew Help
A readily available helpline for crew. Signposting you to the help you need.
What is it?
Yacht Crew Help is a free, confidential, multilingual helpline operated by ISWAN for yacht crew of any nationality, gender-identity, age, and regardless of whether you currently have a role or not. Yacht Crew Help forms part of ISWAN’s long-term Welfare of Yacht Crew project, which is seeking to increase understanding of the challenges faced by crew working in the industry and to develop effective solutions.
- The service is available 24 hours a day, 365 days a year and provides emotional, wellbeing and practical support to yacht crew of any nationality
- All contact details and live chat are available at www.yachtcrewhelp.org
What ISWAN found out in 2023
- The number of new calls and messages to Yacht Crew Help increased by 34.3% compared to the previous year
- 13.5% y-o-y increase in contacts relating to mental health (mental health-related cases comprised 15.3% of issues raised)
- The proportion of issues relating to mental health concerns was 3.8 times higher on Yacht Crew Help (15.3%) than on ISWAN’s SeafarerHelp helpline for the wider maritime sector (4.0% of issues raised)
- Women were 5.3 times more likely than their men colleagues to report an incident of abuse, bullying, harassment, discrimination and violence (ABHDV) – ABHDV accounted for 14.2% of issues raised by women, as opposed to 2.7% of issues raised by men
- The proportion of issues relating to ABHDV was 2.4 times higher on Yacht Crew Help (7.3% of issues raised) compared to SeafarerHelp (3.1% of issues raised)
In what circumstances can the helpline help you?
Case study #1:
A crew member sought support from Yacht Crew Help in relation to verbal abuse from a senior officer. The senior officer would at times be complementary towards them but would suddenly switch, becoming angry, verbally abusive and attacking their work. He also threatened to give them a bad reference, so they were afraid to leave their job. The situation was having a negative impact on the crew member’s mental health and self-esteem. Yacht Crew Help provided them with emotional support, resources and signposts to unions. As a result, they were able to develop a plan to leave the damaging environment.
Case study #2
A former crew member contacted Yacht Crew Help in relation to an experience a number of years ago of sexual assault onboard a yacht. She lost her job as a result and was offered a financial settlement not to report the assault. She told us that other crew members covered up the assault due to fear of speaking out. The assault had continued to have very significant, long-term impacts on her mental health. She was also experiencing financial hardship as she felt unable to continue working in the industry and was devastated at the loss of her career in yachting. She sought assistance from Yacht Crew Help to understand how she could seek redress for the assault and begin to build a new life away from yachting. She was provided with emotional support and resources, as well as signposting to organisations who may be able to assist her.
Case study #3
A captain sought support from Yacht Crew Help as he felt bullied by the yacht owners in relation to the yacht’s finances and running costs. The situation was having a severe impact on his mental health and wellbeing, particularly as financial issues began to negatively impact conditions for his crew. He was provided emotional support as well as signposting to unions.
Read more about ISWAN: Yacht Crew Help: Providing 24/7 Support For Superyacht Crew
‘Safe at Sea – it takes all of us!‘
A new sector-wide campaign. Promoting allyship for inclusive environments.
A new sector-wide campaign to be launched soon by ISWAN, co-funded by The Seafarers’ Charity and UK P&I Club.
Last year, ISWAN found that women seafarers were more than three times more likely than men to contact their helplines (including Yacht Crew Help) about an issue of abuse, bullying, harassment, discrimination or violence. They were also more than twice as likely as men to report a mental health issue.
This campaign aims to promote crew allyship and encourage seafarers and the industry to work together to create environments which are truly safe and inclusive for all.
Anyone interested in getting involved in this campaign can sign up to their campaign mailing list at eepurl.com/iLDxCs.
Last year, ISWAN found that women seafarers were more than three times more likely than men to contact their helplines (including Yacht Crew Help) about an issue of abuse, bullying, harassment, discrimination or violence. They were also more than twice as likely as men to report a mental health issue.
A reason as to why ISWAN is setting up their new campaign ‘Safe at Sea – it takes all of us!’
Personal Safety Precautions
For job-seeking yacht crew. Raising awareness.
This is a resource providing guidance to support crew in safely finding paid or voluntary work and increase their awareness of the potential risks associated with job-hunting in the yachting industry.
It aims to empower crew by providing the guidance and tools necessary to make informed, aware, boundaried, and safe decisions about their next role.
This resource is for all crew, no matter what gender, nationality or level of experience within the yachting industry.
You can download the resource on the Yacht Crew Help website: www.yachtcrewhelp.org/resources/personal-safety-precautions-for-job-seeking-yacht-crew-2
This resource [Personal Safety Precautions] is for all crew, no matter what gender, nationality or level of experience within the yachting industry.
Get In Touch
ISWAN’s long-term Welfare of Yacht Crew project is constantly developing and uses aggregated data and insights from the Yacht Crew Help service to inform new projects and workstreams which seek to address the key issues which crew are facing. ISWAN are always keen to hear from industry stakeholders, potential project sponsors, and crew themselves to explore opportunities for collaboration, fundraising, or ideas for new initiatives. To get in touch, please contact georgia.allen@iswan.org.uk
Financial help goes a long way.
At ISWAN, it is paramount to meet their budget target for ensuring uninterrupted delivery of the helpline service. To help them continue their work to the best quality they can, please kindly donate here: https://donate.justgiving.com/charity/iswan/donation-amount or contact georgia.allen@iswan.org.uk to discuss sponsorship or fundraising opportunities.
For more information, check out the ISWAN website here: https://www.seafarerswelfare.org/
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