"Breaking the Glass Ceiling at Sea"... Transformation Driven by Partnership with the Ministry of Gender Equality and Family

No Female Crew Members Until Now... Winds of Change
Participation in the "Gender-Equal Organizational Culture Establishment Project"
Establishing Improvement Plans and Demonstrating Commitment to Action

The Korea Marine Environment Management Corporation operates over 70 vessels to protect the marine ecosystem, but for 24 years since its establishment in 1997, there was not a single female crew member. This was due to the unique characteristics of the maritime field and the male-dominated organizational culture, which made it difficult for women to enter the workforce. However, recently, the 'glass ceiling' at sea has started to break. The corporation hired its first female navigator in 2021, and last year, the first female engineer also joined. Currently, only 6 out of 327 crew members—just 1.8%—are women, but the corporation has set a goal to increase this ratio to 7% by 2030. There are also plans to introduce women-only cabins on newly built medium-sized response vessels going forward.

Before the "Gender Equality Organizational Culture Development Project Improvement Support Meeting" held on the 12th at the Korea Marine Environment Management Corporation in Songpa-gu, Seoul, female navigators and engineers within the corporation, along with officials from the Ministry of Gender Equality and Family, are taking a commemorative photo. Provided by the Korea Marine Environment Management Corporation.

Behind this change is the "Gender Equality Organizational Culture Development Project" promoted by the Ministry of Gender Equality and Family. Since last year, the corporation has participated in this project, diagnosing the level of gender equality within the organization and devising improvement measures through expert consulting. As a result, more than 20 improvement plans were devised, including: ▲Career development coaching for female leaders ▲Introduction of an advance management system for the promotion candidate pool ▲Expansion of women-only lounges and restrooms ▲Work environment inspections for female crew members alongside labor directors ▲Enhancement of the sexual harassment prevention and response system.

This year, the focus is on adjusting these plans to fit on-site conditions and establishing concrete measures for implementation. At the meeting held on the 12th at the corporation’s headquarters in Songpa-gu, Seoul, executives, employees, and officials from the Ministry of Gender Equality and Family gathered to discuss these issues. In particular, the view that a career development pathway should be established to enable female talent to advance to senior positions gained traction. This reflects the fact that the proportion of female managers within the corporation is only 7.9%, the proportion of female executives is just 9.1%, and in 2024, there were no promotions of female managers. In response, the "advance management system for the promotion candidate pool" was proposed, which would select women with high promotion potential from among mid-level managers and below, and prioritize them for leadership training and job rotation opportunities.

However, during the discussions, concerns were raised that "this system could spark controversy over reverse discrimination." Kim Suhyeon, the certified labor attorney and CEO of Yuyeon Labor Law Firm who provided consulting, emphasized, "Expanding female promotions is not a favor for a particular gender, but a strategic choice to enhance the competitiveness of the entire organization. Building this consensus must come first." Kim Wonsung, Head of the Safety Management Division at the corporation, also said, "Changing long-standing practices and perceptions cannot be achieved in a short period of time, so continuous attention and effort are required."

Meanwhile, since 2020, the Ministry of Gender Equality and Family has been promoting the Gender Equality Organizational Culture Development Project for the public sector, including central and local governments, based on the Framework Act on Gender Equality. The project proceeds in three stages: organizational diagnosis (year 1), improvement support (year 2), and implementation management (year 3). A total of 724 institutions had participated in the project as of last year. A survey of 26 local governments that completed the project last year showed that the proportion of female managers at grade 5 or higher averaged 30.9%, a 7.5 percentage point increase compared to two years ago. Jorin, Director of the Gender Equality Culture Cooperation Division at the Ministry of Gender Equality and Family, stated, "We will continue to provide consulting and support to fundamentally change workplace culture by putting voices from the field at the center of policy."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.