I will be graduating from SUNY Maritime with my 3/M License and I was wondering how the NY MMP Hall is looking for an Applicant. Is there a chance of Night mating while I wait for a ship? Any other East Coast Halls I should be looking at?
Run away…
So try AMO?
Unfortunately shipping is not that great for mates out of the hall right now. MMP is a better union, but you may have a better chance getting out with AMO. However be prepared to work for peanuts
AMO was just at GLMA tonight and the guy showed us the online list of open jobs, 3rd mate job with Liberty Maritime for a 90 day hitch was on it and had been for a couple of days.
That’s a sign at least
[QUOTE=GLMASailor;67664]AMO was just at GLMA tonight and the guy showed us the online list of open jobs, 3rd mate job with Liberty Maritime for a 90 day hitch was on it and had been for a couple of days.[/QUOTE]
Those jobs were open for weeks when the MEBA had them. Man even the AMO guys dont want those ships. Don’t blame them I sailed on one a few years ago. Good crew, shithole run
I was out of the NY/NJ & Charleston MMP halls for about 5 years (Norfolk is a dead end). Too many 2nd & 3rd mates looking for too few respective jobs. Besides, being gone for that many months and then not knowing when I’d work again took it’s toll on girlfriends & fiancees. For me, tug and tow was the way to go, with short sea shipping. Month on/off schedule, steady pay and benefits.
“Arguing online is like running in the special olympics. Even if you win, you’re still retarded.”
Norfolk isn’t totally dead. I had good luck out of it pre losing a number of contracts. You can make a killing night mating but you will be waiting longer there for a job then you will in NY or Charleston. They had a good number of 2nd mate jobs roll through, but I only was a 3/m. But I left the union when amo started sucking up the jobs.
Just because you’re an applicant doesn’t limit you from working elsewhere. I was an applicant for about four years before I finally got a job off the board. I had steady work on non-union ships keeping me busy, and took advantage of night mate opportunities during my time off. Just don’t try to join both MM&P and AMO, they do frown on that…
Don’t try to work non union while apart of the union, they don’t like that neither.
As an applicant they don’t care, they know you gotta eat. In fact, when I joined they encouraged me to find work wherever I could so I could build sea time and upgrade my license, which paid off since the first job I was able to snag off the board was a second mate job. Once you’re a member they aren’t so supportive of that idea though.
Well when they got wind I was sailing non union they wanted to make an example out of me. I was only an applicant as well and went after non union jobs only after they lost a number of contracts in 2010.
Well I was an applicant and when they found out I was sailing non union, they wanted to throw the book at me. I only went after non union jobs once they started losing contracts to AMO and AHL went under, still they didn’t care.
Sorry about the double post. I received an error message saying my first post couldn’t be sent… Clearly it was.
in my opinion go work offshore in oil and gas industry thats where the money and jobs are. MMP is good if you can get work or get lucky enough but i wouldnt even bother with AMO that union is really a joke.
[QUOTE=ryanwood86;68102]Well I was an applicant and when they found out I was sailing non union, they wanted to throw the book at me. I only went after non union jobs once they started losing contracts to AMO and AHL went under, still they didn’t care.[/QUOTE]
Maybe times have changed, my experience was in the 90’s. If that’s the case, my advice would change. I wouldn’t go anywhere near the union if they don’t let you work on the side. As an applicant you would go broke (even as a member you won’t fare much better). My advice to any new mate is take work anywhere you can find it, sea time should be your primary goal.