Deck officer Sophia Walker is battling to change the law to ensure UK seafarers are protected against discrimination on non-UK-flagged ships operating overseas.
As TradeWinds has reported, Walker was rejected for an interview in 2016 by a former executive at shipmanager Wallem because she was a woman.
A UK Employment Appeal Tribunal (EAT) found she had been the victim of sex discrimination, but was powerless to impose a penalty because of a legal loophole that meant the law did not apply to foreign-flagged vessels operating outside the UK.
Walker has now started a petition to have the law changed.
"I am still here fighting Wallem, but in a different way. I recently started the petition and it is supported by Nautilus International," she told TradeWinds.
"I have sent it to many organisations and will continue to do so. I have gathered 80 signatures to date — each one of which I really appreciate and value."
If Walker manages to collect 10,000 signatures, the government will respond to the petition. With 100,000 signatures, it will be considered for debate in parliament.
The loophole excludes protection to seafarers working on foreign vessels outside UK waters, and the applicants for such jobs, even when the recruitment procedure is carried out in the UK.
Nautilus alerted the International Maritime Employers' Council to Wallem's behaviour, with a view to ending its discriminatory recruitment practices, it said.
Government committed to review
In a letter to UK transport secretary Grant Shapps and then-shipping minister Nusrat Ghani, Nautilus general secretary Mark Dickinson said Walker’s case was “likely to cause considerable concern within the British maritime community, which has recently seen many campaigns and events aimed at promoting the entry of women into seafaring careers”.
Ghani subsequently committed to review existing employment legislation for UK seafarers.
"The EAT's ruling not only affected myself but moreover it has the serious potential to affect all job applicants on England and Wales soil who apply to work as a seafarer on vessels under non-UK-flags which sail in international waters," she said.
"This abhorrent loophole in the law gives the 'green light' to shipping companies like Wallem to openly discriminate against job applicants — for example, racist or otherwise discriminatory recruitment criteria [eg 'no Jews or Muslims', 'no gays'] could be used with impunity."
Wallem has said the actions of its former employee were not then and are not now its values.
"This incident does not equate to the Wallem values on equality and diversity in employment," the company said in a statement earlier this year.
The case dates back to 2016 when Wallem sent Brian Phipps to interview graduates of Blackpool and The Fylde College.
After some correspondence between Wallem and a Mr Ward, a senior tutor at the college, Phipps emailed Ward saying that Wallem was "an equal opportunity company" but "will not offer places for the female cadets because we can’t offer the appropriate on-board environment".
He went on to give his opinion that "girls have a place and a chance to succeed" but suggested the cruise industry would be better for them.
