Image for representation purposes only Five years on, the Seafarers’ Rights Code of Conduct is driving more than 1,000 companies to participate in RightShip’s Crew Welfare Self-Assessment, resulting in measurable change in crew welfare standards; · For many crews, those higher standards are not yet a daily reality, according to research among seafarers themselves; · The next five years must be about scaling good practice across more of the global fleet; · Charterers, insurers and financiers determine which operators thrive. Good welfare needs to be visible, measurable and valued in their decisions. Singapore, 22nd September 2026 – Five years after the launch of the Delivering on Seafarers’ Rights Code of Conduct, a growing number of shipping companies are demonstrating real change in seafarer welfare. However, across the industry as a whole, welfare improvements are not always reaching many seafarers, according to a new progress report published today by the Sustainable Shipping Initiative (SSI), the Institute for Human Rights and Business (IHRB), the Mission to Seafarers, the Rafto Foundation for Human Rights, RightShip and TURTLE. The report, Five Years into the Code of Conduct: What’s Changed for Seafarers? draws on three previously unpublished data sources. Data from RightShip’s Crew Welfare Self-Assessment (CWSA), the tool through which ship operators self-assess against the Code of Conduct, reveals clear progress in many areas of crew welfare. More than 1,000 companies have now completed the CWSA, together accounting for over 13,000 vessels and around 300,000 seafarers, with participation increasingly reaching beyond the largest operators. Despite this progress, results of two new studies among seafarers themselves – commissioned specifically for the report – paint a less rosy picture across the wider industry. Both of these studies revealed that, for many seafarers, core aspects of welfare still fall short. The comparative insights from the report highlight: