CareerHub recruitment tool launched to help prevent seafarer exploitation

Hosted by The Hood Platform, CareerHub connects verified seafarers only with licensed and maritime labour compliant (MLC) employers and removes the backdoor access that has enabled unlicensed recruiters to prey on jobseekers, which often goes unpunished, the company explained.

The launch comes amid growing scrutiny of illegal recruitment practices in the maritime industry. The Hood pointed to a 2024 investigation carried out by TradeWinds and the Institute for Human Rights and Business, which found that nearly two-thirds of seafarers had been charged illegal placement fees. “These are not just unethical practices. They are illegal. Yet they persist,” said Josephine Le, founder and managing director of The Hood. “Cadets are particularly at risk. They are promised a future at sea but are forced to pay for access to a job that may never materialise.”

CareerHub has been designed to cut out the middlemen who, The Hood claims, are often facilitating this exploitation. Only authorised and verified companies can post vacancies, with each job traceable to a named company user. Seafarers receive real-time updates on their application status which reduces the chance of manipulation or absconding. If a recruiter is found breaching platform rules or operating outside the law, they can be permanently removed from the site.

The Hood posits that shipowners and charterers will also benefit from CareerHub, given that they can save finances that would otherwise be used on seeking out and recruiting seafarers thanks to direct communication via a single interface.

“These recruitment scams are one of the industry’s worst kept secrets. They thrive in silence and informality. The only way to end them is through transparency, accountability and zero tolerance,” said Le. “If we want the next generation to choose maritime, we have to stop treating the entry point as a free for [all].”