INTERNET access is something most of us take for granted. With the advent of iMessage and WhatsApp, it’s often hard for even text messages to function without it. Cafes and pubs are now bound to provoke raised eyebrows if they don’t provide wifi access — and display the password prominently.

But thousands who work at sea aren’t feeling the digital revolution. Though 88 per cent of mariners have some form of internet access at sea, a new report published today finds that just 6 per cent can video-call their loved ones. Internet access for large numbers of workers at a sufficient bandwidth is, many companies argue, just not worth the investment.

And when you’re away for months at a time, this is a big deal. Seafarers say they are missing family births and deaths.

Henk Eijkenaar, a ship’s master from the Netherlands, says: “I missed the death of my grandparents 15 years ago and the birth of my son three years after that.

“If I had good connectivity onboard, I’m confident that I would have been told about both events. I had no idea what was going on when I was at sea.”

On board Eijkenaar’s current ship, there is no wifi and emails can only be accessed from the two ship computers.

“One of the biggest problems is that people ashore don’t realise what it means to be at sea without internet and the importance that technology plays in communicating with your friends and family when working away,” he said.

“The company’s main argument for the lack of investment is due to the uncertain economic situation. Despite this, crews are reluctant to complain because if they do, the company could cut off access completely.”

Andrew Lindsay, a chief engineer based in the offshore sector in Brazil, says he is lucky his ship has no download limit. But that doesn’t solve the problems.

“I think the main issue we face when it comes to connectivity is the slow connection speeds, which can be a real struggle when video messaging family, for example,” he says.

The report, commissioned by maritime union Nautilus, surveyed 2,000 seafarers and bosses.

Only 57 per cent of crew say they have email access — and just a third can use social media at sea.

In news that will worry company executives, two-thirds of respondents (63 per cent) say they would consider moving companies if a rival provided better-quality internet.

Nautilus general secretary Mark Dickinson says the results were “shocking” and called on shipping bosses to step up.

“With very limited and regulated shore leave, increasing workloads, reduced crewing levels and reductions in the quality of social life onboard, it’s essential for the wellbeing of all seafarers that we have free, high-speed internet access,” he says.

Bosses surveyed by the union say they fear workers would access “adult and illegal content” and pointed to high installation costs. Some were also concerned it would prove a distraction at work.

But RMT national secretary Steve Todd, whose union also represents seafarers, says: “It’s absolutely appalling that in this day and age seafarers can’t contact their families and loved ones when they are at sea for weeks and months at a time. We join Nautilus in highlighting these concerns and would like to add our concerns.”

One worker with better experiences is Nicole Gardner, a second mate based in the dry bulk sector in New Zealand. “In general, the internet connectivity is intermittent and slow, but we normally have enough signal to check email or use Skype, Viber or WhatsApp for text and occasionally voice messaging for at least a few hours a day most days,” she says.

“This is much better than when I first started working at sea in 1996 on sailing ships with no private communication systems whatsoever for the crew.”

But no-one knows more about the potential impact of being cut off than Gardner.

“Last year, when a close friend dropped me off at the airport to join the ship, he told me he was planning to commit suicide while I was away, and said goodbye,” she reveals.

“When I joined the ship, I used the ship’s internet access to stay in regular contact with him, and eventually (after over a month) convinced him that suicide wasn’t the option.”

Companies will still point to the costs of good internet access in an uncertain economic climate.

But when you hear stories like this one, you realise cost-benefit ratios rarely tell the whole story.

• Conrad Landin is the Morning Star’s industrial reporter.