Laying Up the Ships (Crewing Challenge, Part 2)

To obtain a merchant marine officer’s license in the previous century, one could choose to attend an academy or apprenticeship, or simply accrue enough time at sea to take the tests. Around 2002, all new deck officers were required to attend classroom instruction before obtaining their licenses. While it was more difficult to upgrade without a college education or registered apprenticeship, there was little impact in workforce numbers, as the maritime academies were churning out new mates. Between 2014 and 2017, new training requirements brought the minimum required course of study to that of a two-year degree. For the first time, these requirements also applied to engineering officers. The Military Sealift Command increased hiring of officers, to allow its workforce more time off the ship to focus on their continuing education. It was also predicted that many of the retirement-eligible officers would retire, instead of return to the classroom for three weeks of training (on the engineering side). This lesser requirement applied to anyone who began their maritime career before 2014. A downturn in the offshore oil industry meant fewer mariners were leaving government employment. Two of the crew-heavy warships inherited from the uniformed Navy were retired (USS Ponce and USNS Rainier). In some cases, twice as many officers as the Military Sealift Command intended to keep on the books. Work-Life Balance was good, and the horror stories of the past didn’t dissuade young achievers from staying. In 2017, they offered early retirements, drafted layoff letters, and stopped bringing new officers onto the payroll. A certain number of ships in the homeports of Norfolk, San Diego, and Guam were known as homesteading vessels, where the majority of personnel maintained as close to a 9-to-5 schedule as one can maintain in the industry. If the ship was in port, which it was most weekends, they would go home at night. Then came the COVID-19 pandemic. In a faulty version of the telephone game, the Admiral at the time believed that a total lockdown to the ship, or “gangway up” was in order. The mariners, as he understood, worked a 4-month tour, then rotated into a monthlong vacation. They didn’t need to go home at night, for the time being. Although the ballistic missile submarines were an exception, stateside uniformed military personnel were not locked onto the ships at night; the military spouses would not accept such a proposal. The tours were rarely 4 months, more likely 6 months and growing as the most skilled mariners found other employment (I was working in the office at this point). While conditions slowly became more palatable, the threat of lockdown permeated for two full years. Where the Military Sealift Command had been able to coax new officers of the Class of 2018 and 2019 to accept a lower rate of pay; bonuses in the amounts of $36,000 were needed for the Class of 2022. Promotions for officers’ positions were open continuously, so that anyone who had the ability to promote, did so. Maritime academy enrollment has not been as robust as it had been in the 2010s. Due to the use of federal training ships, a drug-free policy is imposed, which is at odds with the culture of the states where the academies are located, such as California, Maine, New York, and Massachusetts. More young people are opting out of college, as well as careers overall, in favor of self-directed work-life balance. Fear of falling behind economically isn’t such a concern with Gen Z. Which brings up the new Admiral’s Force Generation Reset. By crewing fewer ships, the ships that remain will have larger crew sizes; this opportunity was forsook in 2017. This will allow for mariners to attend training and take their earned vacation, and build a work life balance. PS: I know this post is a couple days late, but I have managed to be maximally busy at training for my day job, and in overseeing renovations at my rental condo. Over the hump for this week, though.