The UK Department for Transport’s (DfT) has released official statistics for seafarers in the UK Shipping Industry estimating that 23,700 UK seafarers were active at sea in 2024.
According to the statistics, after adjusting for non-response, an estimated 23,700 UK seafarers were active at sea in 2024, a decrease of 2% compared to the 2023 figure.
In 2024, the number of UK seafarers active at sea by type was:
- 10,620 Certificated Officers
- 9,880 Ratings
- 1,700 Uncertificated Officers
- 1,500 Officer Cadets
The majority of UK seafarers working for companies within the membership of the UK Chamber of Shipping were male (84%), with larger female representation among uncertificated Officers and Ratings.
In 2024, there were 42,130 valid certificates which were issued by the Maritime and Coastguard Agency to work on UK vessels, 14,550 of these were UK nationals. These figures had been broadly stable between 2010 and 2020 but saw a decline in 2021 and 2022. For 2023 onwards, data provided by MCA has been calculated using a different methodology and is not comparable with previous years.
Officers by nationality, gender and age
There were 14,550 certificated officers from the UK in 2024. The majority of UK nationals with certificates held CoCs (10,620), with 80 holding CEC/FSEs, and a further 3,840 holding other certificates including Yacht, TIC and SV certificates.
Of UK nationals with CoCs, the trends over time in the numbers holding deck and engine certificates have been similar, with generally slightly more deck Officers than engine Officers. Both deck and engine CoCs held by UK nationals saw small decreases in 2024 compared to the previous year (2% for deck and 3% for engine certificates).
In addition, 20,490 non-EEA (European Economic Area) officers held a certificate in 2024 compared to 7,090 EEA officers.
The vast majority (96%) of UK Officers with CoCs were men in 2024. This varied from 94% of deck Officers to 98% of engineering Officers. The proportion of engineers that are men has remained the same as the previous year, whereas the proportion of deck officers that are men fell by 1%.
In 2024, there were more non-UK nationals holding CECs/FSEs than UK nationals holding CoCs in age groups between 30 and 60 years old. There were more UK nationals holding CoCs in age groups under 30 and over 60 years old. The ageing profile of UK seafarers was one of the issues identified in the 2015 Maritime Growth Study.
Seafarers active at sea in the UK industry (CoS members)
In 2024, after adjusting for survey non-response, it is estimated that UK nationals accounted for 11% of the 160,810 seafarers active at sea working for companies within the membership of the UK Chamber of Shipping. Of these UK nationals, 84% were male and 48% were aged 40 to 61.
Furthermore, in 2024, the number of UK certificated Officers has decreased by 3% whereas the number of UK uncertificated Officers has increased by 10% compared to 2023.
Age and sex profiles of UK seafarers active at sea
In 2024, 48% of UK seafarers were aged 40 to 61. However, deck Ratings tended to be older on average than other seafarers with 62% of this group aged 40 to 61. In comparison, 46% of catering, hotel or other Ratings and 36% of uncertificated Officers were aged 40 to 61. While adjustments have been made for non-response, figures may fluctuate depending on CoS membership so trends should be interpreted with caution.
The majority of UK seafarers active at sea in 2024 (CoS members) were male (84%); of certificated Officers, 94% were male, while 60% of uncertificated Officers were male. In 2024, the majority (51%) of uncertificated Officers in the catering/hotel/other department were female for the first time on record.
Overall, 81% of Ratings were male. Male Ratings accounted for an estimated 96% of deck and 98% of engine Ratings, compared with 70% for the hotel, catering or other Ratings group.
Moreover, seafarer nationality was unknown for around 3% of the total recorded in the 2024 survey, with around 7% of uncertificated Officers not having nationality recorded, similar to last year.
In 2024, an estimated 11% of the seafarers active at sea with CoS member companies were UK nationals, with 9% of seafarers being from EEA countries.
An estimated 35% of certificated Officers were from the UK, with 35% from EEA countries. In comparison, 7% of Ratings were UK nationals and a further 85% of this group were from outside the EEA
