The Fair Shipping Company Culture pilot project, launched in 2024 by the Seafarers' Pension Fund, CoHumans and the Finnish Shipowners' Association, explores how a fair and sustainable operating culture can be built in shipping companies and how it affects well-being at work.
The project is based on research on psychological safety, a key factor in the well-being and functioning of a work community. Psychological safety is not the responsibility of individuals alone; it is built through cooperation between all parties. On board, where work communities are often hierarchical, it is particularly important to create space for open discussion about both challenges and successes. The project emphasises that a sense of fairness grows from understanding: when employees know about each other's work and the reasons behind decisions, they experience their work community as fairer and safer.
The project uses a research-based approach in which seafarers' experiences are gathered through surveys and interviews. The aim is to develop practical operating models for creating a fair and sustainable working environment. According to research, fair leadership and organisational justice can reduce stress and sickness absence by up to 30%, while also strengthening shipping companies' capacity for renewal and their appeal as employers. Several shipping companies are involved in the project.
The pilot project has produced practical tools for developing a fair operating culture on Finnish ships, and the work continues.