I dont really know the details surrounding obamacare but I know that if my travel to and from the boat is no longer paid for a 3 % raise is useless. In reality without travel, we are taking a huge paycut just like you mentioned. A few guys I work with said they would rather keep working under our old contract rather than take the new one. The idea being that we may not recieve a 3% percent raise but in reality we would still be coming out ahead in the long run.
SAY FUCKING WHAT?!?!?!?!?!?!
I make less than that as a mate with a 500 nc master of tow nc stcw and all that stuff. Its fucking ridiculous.
Im waiting until the end of the year so i qualify for my 401k match and im gone. I just finished my DP basic and im ready to go
Come to the gulf if you have ur dp man you’ll make alteast 500 on a heartbeat
I don’t like to hassle anyone about what they make but with a near coastal license for 500+ you need to be making more than 75k working equal time. I worked to crap money but that was in a crappier economy when the industry wasn’t doing as well.
Good for taking the next step! Only a matter of time then.
[QUOTE=z-drive;120500]I don’t like to hassle anyone about what they make but with a near coastal license for 500+ you need to be making more than 75k working equal time. I worked to crap money but that was in a crappier economy when the industry wasn’t doing as well.
Good for taking the next step! Only a matter of time then.[/QUOTE]
You are right. Get Oceans Bayrunner & you’ll make 6 figures, cause it will upgrade to 1600t with some seatime.
Oceans is next on the list. Hopefully early next year. Ill have to take GMDSS and ECDIS soon too.
Take it @ Cmti.
A little off topic, but…
DP is the $$$$$ ticket.
For some of us that have the Master of Tow that was suppose to be our $$$$$$ ticket…what happened?
I know, right… Tugs got left behind in the dayrate battle. Or its one of those catch 22s. You have to have oil barge experience before they will talk to you things. Well if you need people then you should give people the training they are seeking.
Maybe in a decade when a bunch of the experienced master of towing tickets are gone
[QUOTE=z-drive;120588]Maybe in a decade when a bunch of the experienced master of towing tickets are gone[/QUOTE]
I’ve figured out if you have tow wire experience, you won’t get on atb & they will put the kids fresh out of school on there.
[QUOTE=The Rover;120583]A little off topic, but…
DP is the $$$$$ ticket.
For some of us that have the Master of Tow that was suppose to be our $$$$$$ ticket…what happened?[/QUOTE]
What happened? Pay attention to any number of the industry rags. DP is oilfield and, just like the oilfield, is boom or bust. Next economic fit of diarrhea or another rig explodes and it’s going to be bust. Then most (not all) of those guys that chased DP and the $$$$ are going to be looking for a job in the towing sector and they will be few and far between, just like they were 3 years ago.
Edit: I should clarify, it’s not the rig exploding or the men lost, but the oil spill and environmental damage it can do that causes everyone to do a double take.
It always makes me smile to hear GOM people rant about unions. How they are “experts” on all things union, yet they aren’t even sure about how we get paid, meaning OT and vacation pay. Never been in a hall, or have a license big enough to even step foot on a bridge or engine room of a ship as a licensed officer, but seem to have “in-depth” knowledge of how unions work, knowledge that most certainly came from a boat mate that also has no first hand idea. There are both good and bad union contracts, just like good and bad boat companies. Let’s not bash everything union quite so fast, when it was only 3 years ago osv companies were stacking boats left and right and companies like Tidewater asked their engineers to stick around one extra day to pump off all fluids off the boats before shit canning them all. The Gulf is going well now, and thankfully so, but let’s pump the brakes a bit before crowning it the best thing ever. The way the osv companies keep flooding the market with new build boats only means their will be more supply than demand for them hence falling day rates they will fetch. And how unions are demonized for so called “throat cutting” to get the contract. Wait until Chouest, Harvey, HOS and others have a stockpile of deep water DP-2 boats on hand, probably will be some “throat cutting” of charter rates going on as well. While things are going well in the gulf some people seem to have amnesia when it comes to remembering how bad things can get in a hurry.
[QUOTE=“bunker305;121008”]It always makes me smile to hear GOM people rant about unions. How they are “experts” on all things union, yet they aren’t even sure about how we get paid, meaning OT and vacation pay. Never been in a hall, or have a license big enough to even step foot on a bridge or engine room of a ship as a licensed officer, but seem to have “in-depth” knowledge of how unions work, knowledge that most certainly came from a boat mate that also has no first hand idea. There are both good and bad union contracts, just like good and bad boat companies. Let’s not bash everything union quite so fast, when it was only 3 years ago osv companies were stacking boats left and right and companies like Tidewater asked their engineers to stick around one extra day to pump off all fluids off the boats before shit canning them all. The Gulf is going well now, and thankfully so, but let’s pump the brakes a bit before crowning it the best thing ever. The way the osv companies keep flooding the market with new build boats only means their will be more supply than demand for them hence falling day rates they will fetch. And how unions are demonized for so called “throat cutting” to get the contract. Wait until Chouest, Harvey, HOS and others have a stockpile of deep water DP-2 boats on hand, probably will be some “throat cutting” of charter rates going on as well. While things are going well in the gulf some people seem to have amnesia when it comes to remembering how bad things can get in a hurry.[/QUOTE]
I agree with you about the rants! If the unios, GOM, tugs, and/or any other sector of our industry is going strong it’s a good thing for all mariners!
The GOM (OSVs, Drillships, and DP rigs) has a lot of mariners with first hand experience with unios. In my boat alone half of the officers came from unios (5 to 10 years in them). So through truth, lies, or exaggeration the “GOM people” repeat what they here from ex union members.
As far as having a license big enough you probably right too! But that only gets you to “step foot in…” not to stay in! I seen plenty (well 3 or 4) of Unlimted Master freak when they don’t get a pilot going in (or departing) to/from Fourchon in what they called a little boat the first day onboard!
[QUOTE=PR-9;121013]I agree with you about the rants! If the unios, GOM, tugs, and/or any other sector of our industry is going strong it’s a good thing for all mariners!
The GOM (OSVs, Drillships, and DP rigs) has a lot of mariners with first hand experience with unios. In my boat alone half of the officers came from unios (5 to 10 years in them). So through truth, lies, or exaggeration the “GOM people” repeat what they here from ex union members.
As far as having a license big enough you probably right too! But that only gets you to “step foot in…” not to stay in! I seen plenty (well 3 or 4) of Unlimted Master freak when they don’t get a pilot going in (or departing) to/from Fourchon in what they called a little boat the first day onboard!:)[/QUOTE]
There is a segment of the general public that hate unions. And I mean talking about unions makes them red-faced, spitting mad. They believe that unions exist to extract dues from workers to support fat-cat union bosses and that unions will destroy American.
Some of these people are in unions and have good paying jobs.These union “union-haters” talk the same talk about unions in general but they make an exception for their own union. Not to say they don’t grumble a bit, everyone does but they are just as quick to take advantage of union benefits and protections as anybody but equally as quick to go into a standard general anti-union rant
The union “union haters” have sort of a split mind with unions in general as one category and the union of which they are a member as another.
I got first hand knowledge and I’m one of these dashing young lads in this photo. My first hand knowledge is unions are crooked as fuck. I’ll never change my opinion after all the things I saw.
[QUOTE=Fraqrat;121039]I got first hand knowledge and I’m one of these dashing young lads in this photo. My first hand knowledge is unions are crooked as fuck. I’ll never change my opinion after all the things I saw.[/QUOTE]
Yeah, but I can tell the port engineer to take a flying fuck.
Cool foto btw.
You can always say that. Only the consequences differ. 
[QUOTE=Fraqrat;121039]I got first hand knowledge and I’m one of these dashing young lads in this photo. My first hand knowledge is unions are crooked as fuck. I’ll never change my opinion after all the things I saw.[/QUOTE]
A little vague…but ok. Was the issues with the actual union or its members? Didn’t like the seniority system? Or the time between call outs? Sailing unlicensed? Crooked kind sounds to me like you’re meaning money maybe? Was it dues paying that pissed you off? Or did armed masked union rep gunman break into your room and steal your money…I’m not saying all things union are good, but blanket statements seem odd. Have you ever sailed with an officer’s union? MEBA? Or only unlicensed.
[QUOTE=captrob;121060]You can always say that. Only the consequences differ. ;-)[/QUOTE]
That’s right, truth be told I wouldn’t use that exact wording.