Crew welfare has become one of the maritime industry’s most widely discussed priorities. Yet despite growing investment in frameworks, assessments, and wellbeing initiatives, a central challenge remains unresolved: does the industry genuinely understand how life at sea is experienced by the people onboard? That question shaped this panel discussion. Moderated by Taner Umac , Head of Marine Excellence at RightShip, the session brought together perspectives from ship management, crew wellbeing, healthcare, and maritime sustainability: Capt. Soma Sundar Gollakota , CEO & Founder, BigYellowFish Loukia Pantelidi , Psychologist & Product Expert, OneCare Group Yofis Florentin , CEO, Learning Seaman Ellie Besley-Gould , CEO, Sustainable Shipping Initiative Konstantinos Petrakis , HSQR Director, Chartworld Shipping Corporation Catherine Prifti , HSQE Director, Laskaridis Shipping Co Ltd Konstantinos Marinakis , HSQE Director, Century Bulk Carriers Management Co. Throughout the conversation, speakers examined how crew welfare is being interpreted across the industry, whether current approaches reflect seafarers’ evolving expectations, and how data, trust, and operational realities intersect onboard. Welfare is moving beyond compliance toward experience One of the strongest themes to emerge was the growing disconnect between regulatory compliance and the broader expectations of today’s seafarers. While the industry has established important baseline protections through frameworks such as Maritime Labour Convention (MLC), several panellists reflected that compliance alone no longer defines what a positive onboard environment looks like in practice. Capt. Soma Sundar Gollakota described compliance as “the floor which is the base,” arguing that workforce expectations have evolved significantly beyond minimum standards. The discussion highlighted how newer generations of seafarers increasingly assess life at sea through the lens of overall experience rather than pur