Newsweek article

[scdreamer]

Did anyone besides me read this week's edition of Newsweek article describing what goes on "below decks?" It was a scathing description of how the crew is treated and paid. Conditions make me think twice about cruising. What do you think? :confused:

[Seago2]

Here's the link: http://www.thedailybeast.com/newsweek/2012/07/15/concordia-aftermath-what-to-know-before-boarding-a-cruise-ship.html

[stbird]

Wow, that is really sad!

[startwin]

I'm beginning to feel really uneasy about some aspects of cruising. And being a long-time HAL fan I'm also sad to see deterioration in service and upkeep but not surprised, given the fares remaining relatively reasonable. Something has to give.

[PathfinderEss]

Thanks for posting the link to the article. Its certinly not a great life for these hard working people but in their countries there are no jobs. No way to earn money and this works for them and ofcourse the cruise lines too.

[Fb_cruiser]

Thanks for posting the link. Here's an interesting book about crew life if anyone wants to read more...

 

http://www.amazon.com/Chronicles-Cruise-Ship-Crew-Member/dp/1477482415/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1342685675&sr=8-1&keywords=Cruise+crew

[Krazy Kruizers]

Thank you for the link to the article.

Some time ago we had heard about the conditions below decks. Not a pretty picture. And as was said, in their own countries there are no jobs and they turn to the cruise lines to make some money. Very sad.

[Seago2]

I'm beginning to feel really uneasy about some aspects of cruising. And being a long-time HAL fan I'm also sad to see deterioration in service and upkeep but not surprised, given the fares remaining relatively reasonable. Something has to give.

 

Have you read Devils on the Deep Blue Seas or Cruise Confidential? You should.

 

I was a waitress in a resort community for a long time. My family has a cottage there so I got good digs, but everyone else? Communal living, zero space, sweltering, staff meal that we called "staff laugh" or "staff infection", insanely high prices for other foods, and work? The kitchen crew worked from 8am to 2am. Many hours were unpaid- for all of us. And we all bonded and loved it/hated it, tried not to need medical attention, lasted for as long as we could, made a lot of cash (to us) and spent it all, and there are others in our places now. So- as the article says, most of the crew re-ups for new contracts. I wish it could be better for them but it isn't that bad and it's their choice. I've been down in the crew areas and they are fine (not the engine room but some very hot and cramped areas). My father was a submarine architect- I've been in subs and they are ten times worse.

[hypercafe]

Working on a ship is a seven day a week job with long hours under the best of times. From what I have read the crew has pretty good quarters, especially on the new ships. The problem comes in because as the cost of everything has gone up instead of raising prices the lines have cut back on lots of stuff including staff. If you open your eyes you can see the room stewards have the whole hall way to do two times a day, that's why they used to talk with the pass and now just hurry to work. Same in the dinning room, two used to do only a few tables, now they can barely keep up, and you see the same faces morning till midnight. On my recent HAL trip the waiter said the new drink system cost the job,s of eight wine stewards. I am sure these people worked long hours doing lots of stuff during the day which is now done by other people. I am sure the cut backs are worse behind the scenes. We have a upcoming trip on Oceania on their new ship. I believe it will be what cruising was ten years ago only thing is the price is twice the mass market lines.

[FLACRUISER99]

Maybe I'm the only one that feels this way, however to me the article reeks of sensationalism and the desire for Newsweek to sell issues.:eek: The major complaint I have heard from crew members is that they have to be away from their families. I am of the opinion that working on a ship is a great opportunity for them compared to the jobs available in their home countries!.

[Gail & Marty sailing away]

Thanks for the info ...

[Opinions]

. I am of the opinion that working on a ship is a great opportunity for them compared to the jobs available in their home countries!.

 

But they are not working in their own country...They are working on a cruise ship where in many cases the passengers are U.S. citizens who earn U.S. wages, pensions, etc..In my opinion one should be paid for the job they do and not based on their country of origin.

[iancal]

It is not simply a wage issue. It is very much an employee workplace safety issue.

[cruisin'girl]

Maybe I'm the only one that feels this way, however to me the article reeks of sensationalism and the desire for Newsweek to sell issues.:eek: The major complaint I have heard from crew members is that they have to be away from their families. I am of the opinion that working on a ship is a great opportunity for them compared to the jobs available in their home countries!.

Certainly they are not going to complain to pax about their working conditions, illness among the crew or their employers! They have no idea who might overhear and report them. They could get put off the ship at the next port. Just because pax don't hear the truth of working on a ship doesn't mean all or most of what is in this article is not true.

[FLACRUISER99]

But they are not working in their own country...They are working on a cruise ship where in many cases the passengers are U.S. citizens who earn U.S. wages, pensions, etc..In my opinion one should be paid for the job they do and not based on their country of origin.

I respect your opinion, however in my opinion one should be paid by the law of supply & demand and BTW demand is very high for these jobs I understand.

[Viesczy]

About how the crew works/treatment received:

From a Western POV the work conditions/treatment/pay is an INSULT. The lines are working them to the bone, paying them little, giving them living conditions that make an over crowded Latin American prison seem luxurious!

 

From what the crews' POV, the conditions aren't too bad as compared to their opportunities at home.

 

The greatest insult of everything is that the very few @ the top are reaping huge bonuses off of everyone else's working in the company. Work those non whites to the bone they think, as it is only non whites. Those heads absolutely KNOW that all ends justifies the means of their bonus/salary. Just like all the rich men of the past, Astor, Chase & such, they have a sociopath's mindset about gaining wealth.

 

About the safety aspect, when the SHTF I am a true alpha pathfinder. Unless I've suffered a catastrophic injury, I'm acting to guarantee the survival of mine and then myself. I'm not going to put anyone else in the position to not survive while making sure mine survive, but I won't deviate from the course of saving mine. So keep up.

 

Derek

[iancal]

There are many people working on the ship that cruisers simply do not come in contact with such as kitchen staff, engineering staff, etc. You cannot judge how happy people are or what the working conditions are by what a steward says or does not say to you.

 

They live in constant fear of loosing their particular position or loosing their jobs.

 

The other part of the equation is that the US dollar has weakend over the past several years vis a vis many currencies. Those people who are paid in US dollars and sending it back to their home countries have essentially taken a pay decrease because of this. The one exception may be those from a few of the former eastern bloc countries whose currency has declined at a faster rate that the USD.

[rvk3314]

I was in the US Navy stationed on a destroyer (1965-1967). I regularly worked 16-18 hours a day (at sea) in the engine room without a/c and slept (3-4 hrs) in a room 20x30 with 30 ther sailors. There were weeks at sea where I was awakened at 3:30 AM and worked starting at precisely 3:45 AM in the engine room until 8 PM at night. On Sunday we only were in the engine room 10-12 hrs. By the way, I took home $112.00 a month. There were times we were out to sea for a month at a time. I had to endure this for 2 years. As bad as the cruise crews have it, there are those in the military who have it worse.

[iancal]

I hardly think that you can compare your navy experience to cruise line crews. Just think about medical coverage, pension plans, etc.

 

It is oh so easy for those of us with good jobs, good working conditions, lifestyle, who come home to our families every night to say that those on cruise ships don't really have it so bad.

 

Try trading places for six months. No thanks.

[sail7seas]

I dunno.....

 

I don't believe everything I read.

I'm not so sure there isn't a bit of exagerration. How do any of us really know what the 'true' conditions are?

 

[hypercafe]

There was a lot of US flagged ships in the past where the crew worked human hours and made a good wage. In fact I think they belonged a seafarers union so they had a rep for working out problems. They are all gone because people want to talk with their mouth and not their money. People want to talk about how the crew are mistreated but still want the 499$ week trip. If the same trip was 1000$ so the crew worked 8 hour days, with a day off a week, and made US minium wage the line would be out of business. To say it's ok because there no jobs at home is like saying " No bread, let them eat cake "

[sail7seas]

The Filipino and Indonesian crews on HAL ships have a union.

 

[hypercafe]

It must be a bad one as they work 7 days a week, over 12 hours a day and had to go to court to get a fair shake on their travel pay. They do not make minimum pay and no overtime. In the US I am guaranteed rights and pay, HAL is a US company, I don't feel I am any better than a crew member on their ships, do you?

[Sir PMP]

Did anyone besides me read this week's edition of Newsweek article describing what goes on "below decks?" It was a scathing description of how the crew is treated and paid. Conditions make me think twice about cruising. What do you think? :confused:

 

Newsweek is anunreliable source and therefore toally irrelevant...

[Opinions]

The Filipino and Indonesian crews on HAL ships have a union.

 

 

I belonged to a union for over 40 years...Anyone who ever belonged to a union realizes there are good and bad ones...In my opinion a real union would have negotiated better working conditions for cruise ship workers.