The Canadian Marine Careers Foundation (CMCF) has released the Canadian Seafarers Pathway Study, highlighting a critical shortage of labour and skills in the country’s marine transportation sector.
The study identifies a pressing need to attract and train new talent, with domestic vessel operators needing to hire 8,300 new workers to meet industry demand and replace retirees by 2029, the equivalent of more than 30% of its current workforce. It warns that Canada’s current marine training system cannot meet these growing needs without significant reform.
Prepared by R.A. Malatest & Associates, the report delivers a detailed analysis of workforce trends, recruitment barriers, and training capacity across Canada, focusing on marine occupations onboard domestic vessels and related shore-based roles. It calls for a coordinated effort involving government investment, industry support, and better student pathways to build a resilient and inclusive marine workforce.
Key Findings and recommendations:
- 86% of employers report difficulty recruiting, with over 3,600 seafaring positions unfilled in 2024. The overall sector job vacancy rate of 11% was more than three times higher than the national average for the transportation and warehouse sector.
- More than 8,300 new workers will be needed in the next five years; with more than half (56%) of those required for key marine positions onboard vessels such as navigation and engineering officers and ratings deck and engine crew. At current enrolment and graduation rates, marine training institutions will only meet 40% of the demand for those key marine positions.
- Sector-coordinated initiatives are needed to increase public awareness of marine careers and training pathways, including deepening connections with educators and youth and more targeted outreach to underrepresented groups and geographic locations. Initiatives should include experiential opportunities, debunking seafaring misperceptions and emphasizing the value of mariner expertise for multiple career pathways.
- Some marine training institutions and programs currently operate below capacity, but even full enrollment and 100% graduation would not meet industry needs. Federal and provincial governments should increase support for marine education, including enhancing student financial support to reduce barriers to entry, but also funding to help marine institutions increase capacity and expand remote, hybrid and intensive training delivery models.
- Bottlenecks in obtaining sea-time experience (required for mariner certification by Transport Canada) must be addressed. The federal government should work with marine stakeholders to develop pilot projects to increase opportunities for onboard training to gain practical experience while accounting for the necessary sea time.
- Industry stakeholders—including professional/industry associations, employers, and unions — should increase funding for scholarships, and bursaries for marine officer cadets, as well as allocate more resources to pathways that assist and incentivize marine officers and ratings seafarers to upskill and progress their careers
- Employers should continue to build a more positive and inclusive onboard culture through improving work-life balance and the onboard living experience. Employers should also be encouraged and supported to develop, implement, and evaluate both top-down and bottom-up initiatives aimed at fostering inclusion and equity at work. This includes, for example, establishing employee resource groups, implementing anonymous feedback systems, dialogue groups or creating peer mentorship programs.
- A clearer career progression pathway is needed for ratings (unlicensed) seafarers, with more opportunities to advance and upskill. The study recommends the marine sector conduct a research project to evaluate the feasibility and process required to obtain Skilled Trades recognition for specific mariner positions.
- Marine training programs must keep pace with technological change. The federal government should work with marine stakeholders to develop and implement effective training to prepare the workforce for new technological developments on vessels. (i.e. related to decarbonization, digitalization, automation, safety).
