Would the 20yrs, of service rate a retirement be outdated ? I mean in previous yrs. like 1900-1999 maybe having people work for a company for 20yrs. before they rated a company retirement is/was considered a retention incentive. To get people to stay…However fast forward to the year 2021, and the only certainty is uncertainty. The USCG is constantly attacking the merchant mariner to end our careers prematurely and prior to sailing for 20yrs. Companies like the term " revolving door ". Every new event that comes up, companies try to exploit it by replacing those with experience with those without experience as a way of lowering wages. So in other words companies are doing everything they can to lower wages and or ramp up medical as a “new” subtle way of age discrimination. In the wake of it all, merchant mariners that sail 180 days per year essentially give up 50% of their lives to work for rich people who benefit the most from a mariners’ life. How much is your life worth ? I mean after watch, can a mariner go home and visit their family - NO right. Should’nt employers that reap the most benefit also share in the “Risk” ? My proposal is make the retirement system(s) on 5yr intervals. Every five years of service, a mariner receives a portion of the retirement benefits. After say 5yrs. of service though a mariner will receive the full pension as if they did sail for 20yrs should a mariner’s career be prematurely ended due to no fault of the mariner.
If you disagree with my proposal of the “new” retirement system, respond with your version of what a future retirement system should look like
All the more reason to just hire on contract, no bennies. Be careful what you wish for…
The standard reply for any such problem and/or proposal … in ANY industry, not just our own … is nobody is holding a gun to your head.
Don’t misunderstand me. I understand your point. We all live longer and can work until we are older. Is “retirement” a function of age? Or years of service? Or do you get brownie points for doing BOTH for a long time of committed loyal service?
I’m certain a few longstanding union boys out there may have something to say about that, either way. But non-union companies present a different challenge.
Consider this; if you work hard, do your job, rise up through the ranks and continue your loyalty to a single employer, why would they want to push you out? If an individual has an actual health issue or problem that impacts his/her work, I can see the desire by the employer to let you go sooner than later. We might not like that. But what would you do if it was your company and you had people lining up to work for you …only to walk in after a few weeks of being employed and saying to you “I got to go to the hospital for long term care” and then they’re sending you the bill?
These challenges are not hypothetical, they are why many companies do what they do.
Whether you or I or anyone else agrees with it, the reality is, we individually have problems and businesses do, too. If you can figure out a way to happily satisfy everyone’s version of retirement and benefits, that suits everyone’s needs, you are awesome!
Meanwhile, on my waterfront, the vast majority of the people I know who have worked long and hard for the same company for many years most of their career, have retired happily and enjoying it as far as I know. Most are union members. But not all.
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The standard reply for any such problem and/or proposal … in ANY industry, not just our own … is nobody is holding a gun to your head.
While it is true no one puts a gun to our heads. However when you factor in basic necessities like food, clothing, shelter, along with health care and the only way to pay for those necessities is either to just be born very rich, or work for the money to pay those things. So if one does not work, we won’t be able to take care ourselves and die off slower but none the less premature. How much CHOICE do we really have ? Work or die
In terms of loyal service / commitment. That echoes loudly believe me ! My point is loyalty and commitment is a two way street ! An employee can show all the loyalty in the world and then a company might fail due to their irresponsibility. Or if union the company could just up and get union busted, Or the union loses the contracts with a stated company. So what then ? Say someone is with a union, works for company A for 15yrs. of loyal service did everything they could to be a great asset to the Company A and then the union loses the contracts with Company A. What then ? Or even in current times. Say someone worked for oil & gas company A for 18yrs. non-union stayed with that company through thick and thin. Could not find a more loyal and committed employee. However due to current events that company let that loyal and committed employee go with 18yrs. of committed service. What then ? Or even take people who went to pursue a career in oil & gas spent 8yrs. in college graduated in 2012, found work but now find themselves in a position where those 8yrs in college were all for not because Politics is forcing a “Green new deal” and working to shut down the oil and gas industry. Can one just simply, go from $100,000 in student loans and over 8yrs. of their life and just change that off to renewables we’ll there goes another 8yrs in school plus another 100,000 in student loans and not even have the earning potential to payoff 200,000 in student loans. Not to mention they have break into renewable when they are over 40yr old and no one wants an employee over 40yrs. old. At least in 2021 they don’t. So with the uncertainty of the labor market, I am asking the question are old ways outdated ? Changes are coming we can’t stop that, maybe slow them down a little would be nice. But no one is pushing the thought of slowing down the changes. Federal Minimum wage going up to 15/hour is being fought hard. However if it were to happen there would be a long phase in period. However when the change negatively impacts the rank n file the changes happen faster than anyone can adjust. Should’nt those driving the changes share in the consequences of those changes ?
Welcome to life as we know it.
I’m sorry, I don’t want to sound flippant. I’m not intending to be. But your contribution is in total, what everyone realizes about their own lives and we each make individual decisions about how to manage choices that suit us in our own unique circumstances.
I don’t believe any person starts a business and has the intention or idea they will fail someday and says to themselves, “I’ll just walk away from all this and screw my employees”
In fact, i believe just the opposite. I believe most people have a positive outlook that have the dream of growth and success and specifically intend to WANT to hire more employees and share in that success.
Who would have thought in January 2020 that their businesses would have folded up four months later and they would have had to lay off all their employees due to something called COVID 19 ???
That has nothing to do with your loyalty and/or commitment. It’s the realities of owning a business.
I know tug crews that were laid off because their companies were not hauling as much cargo. So with reduced service, is the consequence of fewer crew needed. Look at all the Ship Pilots that work in Southeast Alaska during summer cruising season. An entire industry shutdown. Not a single Pilot who works seasonally on cruise ships in Alaska worked last year. Glad that wasn’t me!!!
I don’t disagree with much at all about your post in general. But I think you underestimate the “impact” of the downturn of any business in general and what it does to the owner(s) or management.
I am NOT talking about big corporations or hedge funds or investment firms that have a connection to a business, but remain removed in their structure of day to day operations. I’m speaking about most of the maritime businesses you and I (and most others) are connected to on a daily business.
I’m all for trying to figure out a way to improve retirement in general for everyone. But I also appreciate it is impossible to invent anything that will make everyone happy in all circumstances. The only thing I truly do believe that will help young people today to better understand their own future tomorrow, is to teach them basic economics in high school/college so they have a better idea whats ahead. The gov’t is NOT going to give you all that you need or want. The sooner you understand that and live your life in a way that cares for yourself and family now and into the future, the better off we all are. Gov’t is there to support people when needed. The system is not design for cradle to grave care. It was never intended to.