By Virginia López Valiente
Managing Director of Cruises News Media Group and Editor of CruisesNews magazine
Editorial from CruisesNews magazine no. 48 – March 2019
I'm a businesswoman, but above all, a woman. A woman proud of her company, which, by the way, is mostly owned by women.
There may come a day when the world will no longer have to celebrate International Women's Day with women in the streets, but that moment has not yet arrived and we still need to denounce inequality, the gender gap and the lack of opportunities.
Let me give you a figure: According to Eurostat, in the EU 121.6 women study university degrees for every 100 men, but the employment rate, far from reflecting this reality in the classrooms, shows us a very different one: 69.9% of men have a job compared to 58.5% of women.
There are increasingly more women in leadership positions in the cruise industry, both onboard and ashore, and the gap has narrowed in recent times, but there is still much to be done and inequalities are still palpable.
According to the latest figures from the Women's International Shipping & Trading Association (WISTA), women make up between 18% and 20% of the workforce within the cruise industry, and approximately 13.5% of the ship's chain and bridge officers are women.
The integration and influence of women within the cruise industry, however, has not been an easy journey. It was unthinkable in the 20th century to have women in charge of a bridge. However, today, thanks to perseverance, dedication, talent, and a great deal of courage, there is a firm belief in the business world that women's contributions are significant and noticeable in both executive and operational management.
I don't like to name names, because there are many and they are all excellent, but there are two noteworthy milestones. Since the first woman became a cruise ship captain in 2007, the Swedish Karin Stahre-Janson, whom Royal Caribbean put in command of the Monarch of the Seas that year, many women with impeccable records have joined, not only on the bridge, but in all other areas of cruise line operations.
In management leadership, it was in 2014, where Lisa Lutoff-Perlo, President and CEO of Celebrity Cruises, became one of the first to break the famous glass ceiling that is so often discussed in business schools.
Today, there are several impressive appointments and leadership positions at top publicly traded companies where women are at the helm. Christine Duffy at Carnival, Wybcke Meier at TUI, Eddie Rodriguez at Ponant, and Ellen Bettridge at Uniworld River Cruises are just a few examples, but there are many more.
Another indication of the growing trend. Virgin Voyages has formed an internal team, called "The Scarlet Squad," dedicated to "promoting women's leadership in maritime, technical, and hospitality positions on board." Sir Richard Branson has emphasized that 60% of the shore-based staff should be women, and they have set a goal of achieving at least 50% female crew members on board.
Unfortunately, Spain is at the bottom of the European Union in terms of overall gender equality in the workplace, according to Eurostat.
As far as our industry is concerned, there are some efforts underway to reduce this embarrassing statistic. I think it's important to note that a woman is at the helm of the State Ports Authority and that the Board of Directors of the Port of Barcelona, the most important port in Europe, is chaired and overseen by a woman.
Finally, I wouldn't want to overlook the successful promotion and commercial management of cruises in some Spanish ports, led by women, and the significant influence these women wield in some of the major tour operators and port agents. Thank you to all of them for putting us on the cruise lines' map.
It's true that the number of women in the cruise industry has increased, but the task of achieving equality is far from complete. At this point, I'm convinced that the results could be much better. Let's hope this positive trend isn't just a passing fad, but a tangible reality.
Until that happens, I thank all these women who represent the effort that millions more women make every day to build a more equal world.
