Truck dispatcher thinking about going back to sea.....please help me

Professional Mariner Forum
21

if Morty has mellowed and doesn’t shitcan entire crews because they forgot to empty the trash can in the galley then wonderful! Our guy should go there to get restarted in the business. Once reestablished with recent experience, he should be able to do well. Any man with a PIC and a mate’s ticket can go far these daze…

Raises negotiated and coming soon on my tug!!! Not osv cash but the money is coming up. Non-union with no representation…just guys that refuse to eat the shit sandwich as a whole.

and that is why it is not necessary to have a union if the mariners do have a common purpose and have the courage of their convictions. everyone seems to think all I do is want to unionize every nonunion vessel out there which is not true…like many others here, I am a nonunion mariner who has had no tolerance for the thievery and strongarming of the union thugs in the AMO. Haven’t worked in any other union either. I only think in times like these when the companies (especially in the GoM) are all rolling like they are, the mariners deserve more than they get. I have no idea whatsoever why others here have a problem with that but since they do they get what they get…

22

Right on. The trick I feel is getting your shipmates onboard as well as those throughout the fleet on the same page. bypass the rats and office dicklickers. they are happy to get the raise but will rat to joe boss in advance and won’t do shit to fight for it. You do not need a union if everyone takes the crew mentality towards wages and conditions. Most important in my book is being reasonable in what you bargain for. If I wanted to make large osv money, well i’ll go take a step or two down and make that move. What we have been working towards it to get our wages moving in the same general direction as the rest of the industry which joe boss fortunately went for. What they couldn’t (wouldn’t) give us in raises we gained in benefits as an alternative. Example would be rather than a %10 raise you get 8% with a bigger 401k contribution and cheaper insurance premiums. Guys can’t just focus on a day rate if you’re still walking away with more money in your pocket at the end of the year.

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[QUOTE=c.captain;144464]Annapolis?[/QUOTE]

Damn, that was King’s Point!!! How did you know where to find that? I remember when that song came out, alongside the hype was talk about how the USNA performed a parody, hence my Annapolis assumption. Sorry shipmate, I have to humble myself against your breadth and knowledge of pop culture parodies.

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[QUOTE=TrainMan;144476]Damn, that was King’s Point!!! How did you know where to find that? I remember when that song came out, alongside the hype was talk about how the USNA performed a parody, hence my Annapolis assumption. Sorry shipmate, I have to humble myself against your breadth and knowledge of pop culture parodies.[/QUOTE]

Thoroughly lampooned that one quite some time back…

you obviously did not get the memo!

For that you’re FIRED!

25

[QUOTE=Red.Right.Return;144385]Thanks c.captain for your post. Thanks for being nice to me, too. I’ve followed some of your posts, so thank you for being considerate. I’m not dumb, just wasn’t mature enough for the job. As you know, just because these young guys go through the academies and pass the test doesn’t mean they have the mental capacity to actually stand a bridge watch. Going through the academy gave me a taste for what ship operations were like, but once you’re actually out there, it can be scary and overwhelming - time is money and people expect you to do your job and do it confidently and be assertive. Easier said than done. I knew a guy who sailed as a 3rd mate for 10 yrs because he knew he needed time under his belt before he could upgrade to 2nd mate. By the way, I live in New England.

What about Seabulk Tankers? I know they’re with Seacor Holdings. Seabulk has a small fleet of tankers, though.[/QUOTE]

Seabulk = AMO = NO, NO, NO.

You would actually have a very good chance w/ MMP at getting off the board jobs as 3/M. You’d have to go to either NY, CHAS, or Norfolk and roll the dice for a while, but there are lots of jobs right now. And a lot of the east coast jobs are at least 56 - 70 day runs. Not telling you it’s going to be great and “Go MMP,” because you probably would not get an “A” book for 5-7yrs if you shipped 6 mos a year. BUT the opps are there. 30 days work will get you health care and access to MITAGS.

If you come down to LA, no shortage of OSV operators that would hire you as either a mate or an AB. But it won’t happen over the phone or online.

Honestly, a job as 3/M job on a car carrier would be a good idea. Lots of sea time (plenty of which to gain confidence as OICNW) and cargo is pretty mindless. VPDSD or VSO endorsement is definitely a huge priority. Jumping right onto a containership after so many yrs off (especially if you’ve never worked box boats as mate) may not be the best of ideas, especially if you are re-building your confidence. I do not say that to scare you, there is just not time for hand holding, whether it is pre-dept/arrival gear tests, carg ops, etc. Everybody hates the coast-wise, and can’t wait to sail foreign (just for the break at sea before it starts all over again)

I do understand your comments about the TAPs trade. As a 23 and 24yr old 3/M standing watch in Valdez loading at 82kbbls/hr with nobody but me and 2 ABs, I was scared shitless most times before taking the over the deck watch. At that age, anyone who isn’t a little scared going on watch taking on that responsibility is someone whom the other mates and certainly the master should be very wary of.

Good luck to you!

26

Johnny Canal:

Wow, thanks for your post! Thanks for being real and honest, too. Yeah, I took a TPIC course down at MITAGS before and I liked the place. Basically, a maritime academy for adults. I sat down for lunch with some deck officers and felt like I became the center of conversation because I was the only one at the table who wasn’t currently sailing. They were all asking me questions, “What have you been doing?” “Do you want to sail again?” It felt good cuz I just had the mindset that I would just sit alone or something because I’m wasn’t really a sailor, but I WAS once a sailor. I said, “I haven’t done cel nav, chart plotting, deck logs, touched a sextant in 10 years.” An MMP rep was standing at the table and said, “Don’t worry, we could get you on a ship as a 3/M.” I started laughing! But then, he went on to say, “No, we’d start you off by doing some observation to get you re-acclimated…training and stuff.” I was like, “Okay?”

Yeah, maybe I should look into MMP.

I always like taking the commercial maritime courses and doing the introductions before the class starts. Invariably, you usually end up meeting some really interesting people with a ton of interesting sea stories. At MITAGS, I thought the instructor was really good. He helped me in the class and respected me for who I was even though I wasn’t currently sailing. MITAGS was a great experience. I was impressed with the place.

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[QUOTE=Red.Right.Return;144498]Johnny Canal:

Wow, thanks for your post! Thanks for being real and honest, too. Yeah, I took a TPIC course down at MITAGS before and I liked the place. Basically, a maritime academy for adults. I sat down for lunch with some deck officers and felt like I became the center of conversation because I was the only one at the table who wasn’t currently sailing. They were all asking me questions, “What have you been doing?” “Do you want to sail again?” It felt good cuz I just had the mindset that I would just sit alone or something because I’m wasn’t really a sailor, but I WAS once a sailor. I said, “I haven’t done cel nav, chart plotting, deck logs, touched a sextant in 10 years.” An MMP rep was standing at the table and said, “Don’t worry, we could get you on a ship as a 3/M.” I started laughing! But then, he went on to say, “No, we’d start you off by doing some observation to get you re-acclimated…training and stuff.” I was like, “Okay?”

Yeah, maybe I should look into MMP.

I always like taking the commercial maritime courses and doing the introductions before the class starts. Invariably, you usually end up meeting some really interesting people with a ton of interesting sea stories. At MITAGS, I thought the instructor was really good. He helped me in the class and respected me for who I was even though I wasn’t currently sailing. MITAGS was a great experience. I was impressed with the place.[/QUOTE]

RRR,

While I admire your desire and willingness to re-train at any school prior to rejoining the sea-going ranks, I advise you against doing anything that you don’t NEED to do in order to actually get a job.
I really would not worry about cel nav or sextants. I am not telling you they are not important, just not as relative these days. For shipping, just make sure you can do azimuths and sunrise/sunset as a minimum.

The cost of a classroom only,(books/lecture/powerpoint) STCW required or branded course is usually a grand for a week. Example: Leadership and Managerial Skills course required for Master, C/M, C/E, and I believe 1A/E by 12/31/2016 is $1195. Unless you work on OSVs or some ancient wreck (insert Horizon Lines joke here) after 12/31/2016, you will also need ECDIS.

Unless you’ve got a bunch of cash laying around, get work first; then deal with some area of nav, cargo, celestial, etc. you feel weak in.

If your insistent on the classes, then I say ship off the board MMP. Access to MITAGS, excellent Health Plan (way better and way cheaper than my current BC/BS Texas from OSV operator. AND while you are at MITAGS it is also possible to ship OTB for anything that is unfilled and goes “open board” from USEC ports, GOM and then USWC. If you do consider that route just get all the details on the front end. Just don’t get your info from NY/NJ hall. Dispatcher “Jay Tripladi” is a complete prick and, admittedly, what gives unions a bad name. Can’t be trusted. Still trying to get rid of that guy.

28

this one on Rigzone today…

good luck Red

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@ c.captain:

Cool. Thanks for posting the screenshot of the job posting. I just checked out Rigzone. Seems like a good website. I’ll certainly keep an eye on this website closely for other recent postings. Yeah, maybe tugs might be the way to go. Your stints aboard are shorter and for someone like me it might be a good start once I get all of my paperwork squared away (need VSO endorsement) instead of being thrown on to a tanker and being away for 2 - 3 months.

I don’t know how those foreign guys do it (stay onboard for 8 - 9 months). I’ve always been interested in the foreign ships. Lot of big names out there like Teekay, Pacific Basin, NYK, PACNAV, YA SA, Tsakos, Torm, Bernhard Schulte.

But American guys rarely pursue that route. I know that it’s very complex to pursue something like that and you’ve got to ask yourself, why would you want to do it? I bet the experience would be incredible and you’d have endless sea stories to tell. I’ve been onboard some foreign ships and they’re very interesting. Mixed nationalities and mixed cultures. I didn’t think the food was all that great, but I guess you’d get used to it. Licensing process seems convoluded, too. I don’t think Americans are allowed to get a Hong Kong CoC (Certificate of Competency), but Americans can get a Liberian certificate, Marshall Islands, Singapore and Bahamas.

The other thing about foreign-flagged that I’ve always wondered about (if you’re American) is how would you get paid? Do they pay you in a foreign currency and then your paycheck gets converted over to USD and then you’re taxed accordingly. Seems like it would be such a mess when it comes time to filing your tax return.

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[QUOTE=Red.Right.Return;144583]@ c.captain:

…

The other thing about foreign-flagged that I’ve always wondered about (if you’re American) is how would you get paid? Do they pay you in a foreign currency and then your paycheck gets converted over to USD and then you’re taxed accordingly. Seems like it would be such a mess when it comes time to filing your tax return.[/QUOTE]

You get paid in one of several major currencies.

USD
Euros
GBP
CHF

My contract is in foreign currency, but the equivalent is deposited in USD in the US.

Direct deposit to account of choice.

31

A couple of thoughts for when you go back to sea. The Captain gets paid to make the hard decisions on a ship. If you are debating calling him, you already should have called. Thirds aren’t expected to know much more than how to wipe their own ass. If you land on a ship that isn’t willing to help you through the “new” period, find another ship. Show up on time always. If you don’t understand something, ask. Listen more than you talk.

You sound like you have a good head on your shoulders. I had a rough couple of trips on costwise tankers starting out but, I hung in for a third trip and became part of the crew. Some of the assholes I hated became close friends. You need to be there to prove yourself. There is no instant credibility in this industry. You should never be mistreated but don’t expect to be welcomed until you prove yourself. You probably know most of this already but it bears repeating. 3M PICs are in demand right now. If you aren’t totally useless, you’ll get a second trip. If you get a second trip, you will probably get a third. If you get a third, you will be eyeballing my job before you know it. Good luck.

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@Radiocheck:

Thanks for your advice. I appreciate it very much. Like your dog picture, too. Notwithstanding my great experience at Mass. Maritime, my first ship was rude awakening. I loved Mass. Maritime. Didn’t like the school at first, but I loved it in the end. I hated my first ship, it was like trying to drink water through a fire hose! I’ll never forget it, too. I joined a tanker at the Chevron Richmond Long Wharf in California on a bright sunny July day. I flew from Boston to San Francisco and I was trembling as I walked up the gangway. I was nervous, I was homesick and to tell you the truth, I didn’t even want to board the ship. I felt something in my gut like it was going to be a bad ship and it was. I was even dubious of my career choice, ironically. But it was something I always wanted to try because not many people get the opportunity to see what it’s like going to sea, right? I’m still fascinated by the industry (probably because I’m not working in it right now). Working on a ship is like a cross between a blue collar job and a white collar job. I do think that some people are generally fascinated by ships. Think about New York Harbor. Tourists and business people alike - they see all of those ships coming into New York and probably ponder, “I wonder what it’s like to be on one of those?” There’s something about a ship - when it enters a harbor, it is a sight to marvel at that commands your attention.

You’re absolutely right - there is no instant credibility in the maritime industry. You do have to prove yourself and at the end of the day, if your fellow officers and the company trusts you to operate the ship, it is a good feeling. Might not be the most glamorous job, but if they trust you enough to fall asleep at night, it feels good.