Today I had a discussion with Glenn, the guy who, almost accidentally, got me into yachting. He was saying how ten years ago it was so much easier to get a good job. You have to know that Glenn is looking for a rotational captains job on a 30-35m sail yacht. I challenged his statement and said that he just became a lot pickier.
In another conversation a few weeks earlier, an experienced stewardess was telling me how difficult it is to find “the right boat”. She was unsure of how long she was supposed to sit it out before she was going to take a job in a ski-chalet.
So, while you would think that having lots of experience gives one lots of job opportunities, the opposite seems more true in yachting.
The more experience you have, the harder it is to find the right job.
I told Glenn that when we started out, we were open minded and free of obligations to be anywhere at anytime. That is probably a key element when looking for work on yachts. Is experience the only reason why an owner puts up with a captain that wants to be home every so often to check if he is still married and his kids don’t call him uncle?
Another friend of mine is at risk of missing the birth of his first-born because of a last minute charter… He is throwing his toys out of his pram and is about to spit the dummy. (yup, intended)
That’s when you realise we have a brain drain in our industry and that’s a right shame.
Glenn also worked on commercial crane and salvage ships for a while. Although his meathead colleagues and the conditions on board don’t exactly make it a dream job for him, he may go back to it because of the structured work regime.
Ahh, a structured work regime. I have advocated the benefits of rotation jobs for any role and size of yacht before, but I’m doing it again. Even if you are in the stage now where it works perfectly for you to work full time, I feel you should start raising the idea to the owner you work for. I’m a big believer that it will work for all parties involved. Owners will get more experienced crew and crew can continue their beloved career path without neglecting their beloved ones. Or maybe Glenn has to take on a seasonal job. A full-on summer but home for Christmas. Wherever and with whoever you will be celebrating, have a Merry one.
