Better Health for All

Royal Caribbean experienced a Salmonella outbreak in September 2024, affecting 8.29% of passengers on the Radiance of the Seas

, and a Norovirus outbreak in April 2024, affecting 3.36% of passengers and 0.22% of crew on the same ship . Another Norovirus outbreak occurred on the Brilliance of the Seas in January 2023 . These incidents indicate severe safety and food safety failures. In response to health concerns, the company launched a comprehensive Norovirus Eradication Campaign across its fleet in June 2023, which resulted in zero norovirus outbreaks for the remainder of 2023 . Royal Caribbean also enhanced its air filtration systems to intake 100% fresh ocean air and established health screenings and contact tracing processes onboard . For mental health, an onboard speed dial (00) was launched for crew members to instantly connect with a mental health counselor across all three brands , and a mental wellness program was initiated for new crew members . During the COVID-19 pandemic, Royal Caribbean Group co-convened the Healthy Sail Panel in June , which submitted 74 detailed best practices to the CDC on September 21, 2020 , demonstrating leadership in crisis response.

Fair Money & Economic Opportunity

The provided articles discuss Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd.'s general economic impact through tourism, including passenger spending and job creation, and note concerns about competition with local businesses

and limited local employment opportunities . However, the company's core business is cruise vacations, not financial services. As such, the KPIs for 'Fair Money & Economic Opportunity' are not applicable to its operations, and the company does not offer the financial products or services that these KPIs are designed to evaluate. Therefore, all relevant KPIs are assigned a score of 0, indicating that the company does not engage in the financial activities covered by this ethical value.

Fair Pay & Worker Respect

As of December 31, 2022, 88% of Royal Caribbean's shipboard workforce was covered by collective bargaining agreements.

Voluntary employee turnover for shipboard employees was 6% in 2019, while for corporate employees it was 19% in the same year. The company has faced legal actions resulting in penalties of over $23.9 million since 2000, including $14.2 million for a wage and hour violation. In 2019, Nautilus International criticized the company for offering third officer positions with monthly salaries as low as $2,000, which was below the UK National Minimum Wage for under 18-year-olds. A crew member sued Royal Caribbean over serious injuries caused by inadequate safety measures and violations of seafarer rest hour regulations. In 2014, the EEOC challenged the company over alleged discrimination related to an assistant waiter's contract. Royal Caribbean complies with the UK's Modern Slavery Act of 2015, endorses UN and ILO principles, and prohibits forced and child labor. , The company promotes an inclusive workplace through seven employee resource groups and maintains a global non-discrimination policy. It offers paternity leave, expanded bereavement policy, tuition reimbursement, adoption assistance, and an employee stock purchase plan. Royal Caribbean was recognized by Ethisphere as one of the World's Most Ethical Companies for the fifth time in 2020 and scored a perfect 100 on the Human Rights Campaign’s 2018 Corporate Equality Index. ,

Fair Trade & Ethical Sourcing

Royal Caribbean Group (RCG) has various certified inputs. As of 2023, 31% of wild-caught seafood was Marine Stewardship Council (MSC)-certified, 69% of farm-raised seafood was Aquaculture Stewardship Council (ASC)-certified, 54% of eggs were cage-free, and 96% of chickens for U.S. operations were Global Animal Partnership (GAP)-certified.

Additionally, 39% of RCG-offered tours were provided by GSTC certified tour operators as of year-end 2023. RCG has reported zero substantiated forced or child labor incidents in the last three years. The company condemns all forms of forced and child labor, prohibits recruitment under 18, and maintains a comprehensive supplier review process to ensure ethical practices.

Honest & Fair Business

Royal Caribbean was fined $475,000 by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) in 2024 for inadequate reporting of solid and hazardous waste management.

This fine covered a period between July 2019 and July 2024.

Kind to Animals

Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. has publicly endorsed specific animal welfare reforms, announcing its support for eliminating gestation crates from pork operations in 2012 in conjunction with the Humane Society of the United States.

The company is actively eliminating gestation crates from its pork supply chain. Additionally, its North American chicken supply chain will meet animal welfare standards set by Global Animal Partnership (GAP) by 2025, and the company will ban live-shackle slaughter. As a service-oriented company, Royal Caribbean does not have products requiring cruelty-free certification, nor does it engage in animal testing or related R&D.

No War, No Weapons

Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. operates a cruise business with no reported revenue from arms or defense contracts, nor does it develop or sell dual-use technology or AI systems for military use. The company strives to comply with applicable trade laws and regulations, including economic sanctions.

It has Supplier Guiding Principles consistent with the UN Global Compact and International Labor Conventions, and a Supplier Code of Conduct expecting suppliers to prevent, mitigate, and remediate adverse human rights impacts. Royal Caribbean endorses the principles of the UN Declaration of Human Rights and the International Labor Organization, integrating these into annual employee training on its Code of Business Conduct and Ethics and reporting human rights actions in its annual Sustainability Report.

Planet-Friendly Business

Royal Caribbean Group was fined $473,685 by the EPA for alleged violations of the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) between July 2019 and July 2024.

These alleged violations included failures to revise RCRA notifications, file accurate biennial reports, keep adequate hazardous waste records, comply with land disposal restrictions for incinerator ash, and meet large quantity generator obligations. This follows a previous $18 million fine in 1999 for 21 federal felony counts related to dumping waste oil and hazardous chemicals and lying to the U.S. Coast Guard. In contrast, the company diverted 87% of waste from landfills in 2023.

Respect for Cultures & Communities

Royal Caribbean Group supported over 140 community partners in 2024.

The company has not had any reported cultural appropriation incidents. Furthermore, Royal Caribbean Group actively contributes to cultural site protection, as evidenced by the restoration of the community hall’s roof in Lelepa, Vanuatu. The company also sponsors cultural events like the Yatsushiro Cruise Festival in Japan and the Celebration Festival in Alaska, and supports programs like 'Locals Onboard' which brings Alaskan artists to offer cultural experiences.

Safe & Smart Tech

Royal Caribbean Group experienced a data breach between February 6-18, 2021, due to unauthorized access to employee email accounts by a third party

, with notification provided on November 13, 2024. The company explicitly details user rights under various privacy regulations, including the right to opt out of data sale and targeted advertising in certain US states , and rights to access, correct, erase, and request data portability in the EU/UK and China. Royal Caribbean states adherence to GDPR and other privacy laws , and was found not in breach of protection obligations by the Personal Data Protection Commission in Singapore following a 2018 data disclosure incident involving 526 individuals.

Zero Waste & Sustainable Products

Royal Caribbean Group achieved an 87% waste diversion rate from landfills in 2023.

The company has reduced single-use plastics onboard its ships by 60% and aims for an 80% reduction by 2025. It has set additional targets to reduce solid waste offloaded to landfill by 90% from a 2007 baseline by 2025 and to reduce food waste across its fleet by 50% by 2026. Waste reduction initiatives include implementing waste-to-energy systems , food waste reduction programs (including an AI-powered monitoring platform) , the Green Hubs program, and the 'Save the Waves' initiative. For hazardous waste, 98% of ships utilize advanced wastewater purification systems , with purified water discharged at least three nautical miles from land. Customer waste education is provided through onboard recycling bins and advice to dispose of waste onshore and avoid accumulating unnecessary items.