As companies compete for the biggest slice of this expanding market, cruising has become a huge growth industry with smaller lines buying more ships, major lines building bigger ships, and all these vessels needing crew members to work on them. Think of a cruise ship as a floating town and you will realise that many of the jobs and skills required on land are also needed at sea. The list is endless. And so are the opportunities because, unlike on shore, vacancies occur very frequently. A large cruise ship may employ over a thousand crew members, many of whom are only at sea for short periods.
People move on, settle down, get promoted, fall sick or simply go on leave.
Some crew members may use savings earned on ships to set up businesses back home. Others may get married or decide to spend more time with their families. But whatever the reasons, the turnover of employees is enormous. This, combined with the overall expansion of the industry, means that there are thousands of job opportunities, all ready to be filled by the right person. The Cruise Lines Merchant Marine Officers BP Maritime Services has opportunities for tanker officers in the BP fleet of ships.