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Exploring the Seas

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Benefits of a Maritime Career

By Captain Bob Webb

High Wages

• The transport maritime industry pays above average wages. Very often, skilled blue-collar workers yearly income is more than white-collar management. Investment in ships, container yards and cranes are extremely costly and must operate 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. As a result, there is lots of overtime. Idle facilities are more costly that employee overtime.

• The scientific maritime industry does not have the time pressures that transports have, therefore, the annual wage level may be lower. However, the challenges they are confronted with makes their job exciting.

• The recreational maritime industry is for fun, for the sportsman at his convince. Wages are normal, except for specialty skills such as diving instructor. The up side is, it is fun to work with people who are paying to have fun.

Adventure Environment

• The maritime world is associated with the forces of nature, in this case, water. Water mixed with wind is unpredictable and this unpredictability creates an environment of adventure. Under the harshest of conditions, jobs still have to get done. Because 100 knot winds are whipping up the seas does not mean you can take the day off, one must assume responsibilities and deal with the situation at hand.

• In the marine world, contacts with interesting people and unusual projects are common, such as, connections to people diving on the Titanic or the Coast Guard's search and rescue missions. The maritime environment is man's last frontier and many want to be part of it.

• The maritime world attracts adventures, freelance and sponsored. Depending on the project, the paths of similar interested people cross in various ports around the world. Suva, Fiji is the crossroads of world circling yachtsmen. Panama is the crossroads of all types of mariners traveling from ocean to ocean -- it is also the crossroads of land adventures traveling north and south. Woods Hole Oceanographic Institute is the crossroads of maritime scientist. Adventure inspired visionaries are at these crossroads with wild ideas, willing to share their ambitions with fellow adventures. The seemly impossible suddenly becomes possible.

Exposure to Opportunity

• The maritime world is a mixture of many skills and professional trades. In this environment, there is exposure to other skills, such as, a marine machinist who is assigned to work with divers. Having a working relationship with divers increases the chances of becoming a diver. Connections create opportunity for advancement.

• Companies that adapt to fast changing technology offer opportunity for advancement. Businesses in the maritime world must adapt technology to stay competitive. High wages is one of the pressures for adapting, but new technology increases efficiency, if not creating possibilities that could not be achieved in the past. Finding the Titanic was only possible with newly developed equipment, and this equipment opened up a new frontier of exploration.

Opportunity to Promote Creative Concepts

• In the maritime world, people from the four corners of the world are exposed to different cultures and different ways of thinking. This helps  remove the barriers to creative thinking. In this environment, it becomes possible to think, talk about and promote unique ideas.

  • It was my goal to sail across the Pacific Ocean in a dugout canoe. I was supported by coworkers, the community and received support from top leadership of the company I worked for, The Panama Canal Company. The 5,000-mile voyage from Panama to Hawaii took 68 days. Before Panama, I was living in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. If I had dared express my sea adventure ambitions in this environment, friends would have encouraged me to see a doctor.

• Many people have unique concepts that are killed by the environment they live in. In the maritime world, many of these barriers are non-existent. If you are creative and like adventure, a career in the marine and maritime world is for you.

Education and Training (getting started)

• Attending the Merchant Marine Academy, Coast Guard Academy or Navy Academy will put you on the fast track for opportunity and advancement.

• There are various types of marine related colleges and schools where you pay the tuition, usually white-collar careers.

• There are apprentice programs in the blue-collar workforce where you are paid an hourly wage. Today, technical colleges are starting to replace traditional apprentice programs.

• For those not meeting acceptance qualifications, they can begin a blue-collar career as a laborer. In the industrial workforce, there is always semi-skilled work that needs to be done. A high percentage of trade professionals started at the bottom and worked their way up. Industrial businesses like this type of person, because they can hire naturally talented craftsmen at low wages.

  • For a laborer to advance, they need to be recognized. Attributes for recognition are  positive self-esteem, self-motivated, ambitious and can learn fast. Learning is related to dexterity and mechanical skills. Repairing diesel engines, is an example.