The hidden costs of shore leave neglect

The latest results from the Seafarers Happiness Index (SHI) indicate that crew wellbeing is once more declining. According to Ben Bailey, Director of Programme at the Mission to Seafarers, a key problem driving this downturn – and one that is both symbolic and severely harmful – is the continued reduction of shore leave.

Few people think about the workforce that makes global commerce possible, but nearly two million seafarers operate at the centre of it every single day. These individuals shoulder long hours, hazardous conditions, and profound isolation as they move goods across oceans. Yet the newest findings from the Seafarers Happiness Index (SHI) show that their wellbeing is slipping once again, and one recurring issue stands out as both symbolic and deeply damaging – the ongoing erosion of shore leave, Ben Bailey, Director of Programme, Mission to Seafarers highlights. 

The Q3 2025 SHI results reveal a troubling reversal. After some early-year improvements, the latest quarter shows a steep decline in overall happiness across virtually every dimension of life at sea.

Concerns over workload, rest, training opportunities, food quality, and even wages have intensified. But the steepest and most worrying drop lies in access to time ashore. 

In port after port, seafarers are finding it harder to leave their vessels. Brutally short port stays, ramped-up security protocols, and expensive or non-existent transport options mean that disembarking has become an elusive privilege rather than an expected part of the job. Some mariners went so far as to describe their vessels as “floating prisons”, a metaphor no industry committed to safety and sustainability should ever ignore.

Workloads are rising while crews are stretched thinner than ever. When meaningful rest disappears, fatigue becomes ingrained and morale dips sharply. Without shore leave, these pressures multiply. Living and working in the same confined metal environment for months at a time without reprieve erodes both resilience and identity. Shore leave is not a perk; it is a pressure valve.

The human cost of being permanently confined

For seafarers, they can just as easily become places of confinement. Their cabin doubles as their home, workplace, and personal refuge, yet seldom provides a true psychological break. The latest Index highlights worsening scores for physical wellbeing and exercise, and many crew spoke openly of chronic tiredness, insufficient rest, and tightening cost constraints that affect even the quality of their meals.

These individual accounts form a broader pattern. If the maritime workforce is expected to remain competent, alert, and motivated, it must be given the basic conditions necessary for healthy living. Regular access to shore leave is at the heart of that requirement. Without it, the industry risks perpetuating a cycle of decline that threatens its long-term workforce stability.

Critically, a lack of rest harms individuals and undermines safety.

With up to 80% of maritime accidents linked to human error, limiting rest opportunities is a direct threat to operational integrity. Shore leave should therefore sit alongside maintenance checks and safety audits as a core requirement, not an optional extra squeezed out by tight schedules. 

Closing the gap in support

At the MtS, teams across more than 200 ports are working relentlessly to support those who cannot leave their ships. In 2024 alone, the MtS made tens of thousands of ship visits, providing everything from transport to Wi-Fi to pastoral care. Flying Angel Centres continue to serve as critical hubs for rest and connection. 

But even the best land-based support cannot replicate what a simple visit on shore provides – the chance to step away, clear one’s mind, and reconnect with the world beyond the steel walls of a ship. Welfare services can offer varied and crucial support, but they cannot substitute true freedom of movement.

The latest SHI findings should be interpreted as a direct call for action. To truly support crew welfare, the maritime community must reclaim shore leave as a right grounded in safety, wellbeing, and dignity.

This means scheduling operational windows that guarantee disembarkation time, ensuring ports provide safe and affordable access routes for crew, and recognising psychological wellbeing as an essential element of maritime safety protocols. It also requires easing access for welfare organisations so that no crew becomes trapped in isolation while docked mere metres from shore.

Shipping has shown remarkable agility in confronting decarbonisation and digital transformation. The same level of commitment must now be applied to the people who operate the vessels and machinery upon which global trade depends.

The Q3 2025 Seafarers Happiness Index is more than a report, it is a warning. When the wellbeing of seafarers deteriorates, the entire maritime ecosystem is placed at risk. Their safety, motivation, and mental health are inseparable from the safety of the world’s oceans and supply chains. 

Shore leave must once again become a protected, predictable, and universal part of life at sea. When seafarers are trusted with the chance to rest and reconnect, we uphold not only their dignity but the standards and safety of the industry at large. Reinstating reliable access to shore leave is one of the clearest steps the sector can take to safeguard its future, and honour the people who keep the world moving.

source : safety4sea