What Happened when We Expected More of Ourselves

In 1975, the US Naval Institute reported on the status of the US Merchant Marine, then in its federally-subsidized heyday. Its officers, sons of the middle or stable working class, were disillusioned with the rambunctious, hedonistic crewmembers sent forth by the union hiring halls. Being manager, foreman, diplomat, and warden, these officers' skills could be put to productive use in business ashore, rather than a professional career at sea. In 1983, CJ Forsyth reported the same sociological conditions in a Louisiana State University thesis on the occupationally-induced marginality of Amerocan seafarers. Just a decade later, the carefree "sea daddy" was gone. Mandatory drug testing did him in. Initially, unions were wary of this mandate, believing it was another device in management's toolbox. Yet, with the higher standards implemented, safety, efficiency, and morale improved. In the past couple of years, a one-time in-service maritime training requirement on human resources came into full effect. This was a collection of coursework, which for seagoing engineers included a total of three weeks in human resource management, leadership and teamwork, and the management of electronic systems. Fpr the most part, unions and employers covered the cost of this training. Yet a one-time continuing education requirement drove a good number of senior-level American seafarers to take their retirement. Maybe it was for the better that these rigid and unchangeable individuals pursue satisfaction in another activity. Self-reflection and human insight has, for half a century, been seen as a critical part of safety-sensitive work. By raising the bar, counterproductive habits and people are whittled away.

The Fantasy and the Facts

In a suburb of Washington, DC, Tracy Rebello opened the "Piratez Tavern" after a career in corporate communications. Like many brick-and-mortar entrepreneurs, she sold the family home to start this restaurant, and keep it running for 8 years. As revealed in a memorable July 2012 episode of Bar Rescue, the establishment was a million dollars in debt; but the owner was found to be thoroughly living the dream as captain of a pirate ship eatery. Displeased with the sleek renovations aimed towards the white-collar lunch crowd, the family sang sea shanties while burning Jon Taffer's new furnishings (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PSPkbJohdyo). I never went myself, though. While I knew that the "pirate tavern" existed during my undergraduate days, it had a dive reputation, as seen in contemporaneous discussions on City Data forums. I celebrated my 21st birthday at Phillip's Seafood Restaurant in Downtown DC, before the Wharf area was redeveloped into its condo-friendly form. "Piratez Tavern" closed down shortly before my 22nd birthday. This episode hit home with me, not just for the nautical theme, but over our occupational identity as swashbuckling mariners. This attitude is more prevalent in the lower-compensated and less-regulated sectors of the industry, such as research ships and small government vessels; and non-existent in oil-and-gas. Between the oil price drop of 2015 and the Great Resignation, we hit an inversion point where college-educated marine engineers could get higher-paid work ashore in maintenance and R&D environments (power plants, Tesla, and others), despite the challenging lifestyle and working conditions. Fortunately, instead of blanky shouting "nobody wants to work anymore", new contracts between maritime employers and their unions have restored the supply-and-demand equilibrium of mariners to jobs. This experience is one more reminder to keep nostalgic sentiments at bay when thinking about business, personal or corporate.

Virginia Beach Rejuvenated

In Virginia Beach’s Oceanfront, the streets are alive with people at all times of day, which is how it should be during peak tourist season. I was pleasantly surprised by this summer’s rebirth, and I surmise that a reckoning moment had come in the city’s Tourism Bureau after a lackluster performance in the first post-pandemic summer of 2022. Much credit has been given to the return of the Summer Work Visa, in which young adults, mainly from Eastern Europe, share an apartment and work for the summer. I have heard them working- with Slavic language- in places ranging from a Japanese buffet to hotel lifeguarding work. I have realized that transportation is a barrier for getting locals to take these jobs. The neighborhoods closest to the Oceanfront are upscale, with the fact that those youth have other summer opportunities. The Virginia Beach Oceanfront is served by one through-bus line, which ends 90 minutes away in the inner city of Norfolk. (A daytime express service is geared to tourists). While there are many moderate-income families living near the downtown terminus, I would predict that the teenagers are already likely to have year-round after-school employment. Overall, it appears to be easier to commute across the ocean from Europe than from adjacent Norfolk. Credit should also be given to the tourists themselves, who have given Virginia Beach a new look. The city may have been overlooked during last year’s “revenge travel” trend, but being within a day’s drive of a quarter of the US population makes for a friendly destination in economically inflationary times.

Fitting the Mold

I came across the upcoming contract for Military Sealift Command's internal ship inspection contract. For once, I felt that an opportunity presented itself up my channel. When I was working in thr office (2019-2022), these ship inspections were a big topic. The civil service engineers felt that travelling to remote locations, to verify the ship's fitness to sail, was not part of their job description. A minority, including myself, felt otherwise. So did my predecessor in my own cubicle; I have good confidnece that he will be best suited to win the $20 million, 5-year contract. This feels like the adjacent possible, and not the first time I made an effort to fit into expectations. About two years ago, I reviewed what it would take to become a maritime program manager. A professional engineer's license, a master's degree, management experience with an USCG-issued Chief Engineer's License. So I took the effort to put myself in line for the Chief's license by goinng back to sea. I hope to obtain it this summer. I feel like I have made it through the wilderness of my '20s.

Run Times: Last Month Ashore

In contrast with union-hall hiring, Military Sealift Command mariners, like other salaried mariners, can be assigned to any ship in the fleet. While I have been working in and out of Norfolk, VA since January, where I have a home, this arrangement is unlikely to continue. After all, with the Pacific Pivot, there's a 60% chance that I go to a Western Pacific Ship, in addition to the probability of landing a ship based in the Persian Gulf. What needs to be done? Since travel to the ship can be short-notice, I have a checklist of standard tasks: place valuables in a safe deposit box, park thr car in long-term storage, and forward the mail. Having time in homeport has allowed me to have "capital maintenance" performed on my home. I am currently arranging for repointing my brick foundation; this was a task I did not complete immediately after purchasing my fixer-upper. I've also made my backyard more evening-habitable with a new firepit and light string. Navy Reserve duty comes up annually. This year, I helped activate a ship from the ready reserve fleet, taking it to sea for a week. We also have a medical check-up, which I completed in Washington, DC; and a physical fitness test that I did in Chattanooga, TN. After a long drive, the car likes an oul change and tune-up. Having spent much of the last ten years at sea of overseas, I also find it good practice to refresh friendships with gatherings and visits.

The Dobbs Genie

When the Dobbs ruling came out last year, I was surprised that the Supreme Court decided to scrap Roe vs. Wade precedent altogether, returning the abortion issue to the states. Initially, I considered the decision as a harbinger for a national return from “hustle culture” to a newfound domesticity. The COVID-19 Pandemic created an environment where this reshaping of norms became possible. Even while the overall birthrate declined, many high-earning professionals took the opportunity to begin families. In national discourse, the 40-hour workweek, going to the office, after-work cocktail hours, and in-person business conferences were dead and buried. Meanwhile, returning to a 1950’s understanding of social responsibility, the government surrendered individual liberty to the needs of the community for the duration of the Pandemic. Some legal scholars have pointed out that Jacobson vs. Massachusetts, a 1905 case often cited in enforcing Pandemic-era restrictions and vaccine mandates, predated the 1960’s focus on individual rights and privacy. The social and political environment made Roe vs. Wade ripe for reconsideration. On one hand, the Roe vs. Wade decision prematurely ended the political process of state abortion law reform that had begun in the 1960’s. Yet, it is naïve to think that the clock can be reset to 1973 without considering how much society had changed. The wage economy was structured differently in 1973, prior to economic deregulation. National policy favored robust wages and a commitment to full employment, instead of stockholder value and free market absolutism. The Nixon Administration supported employment for American seafarers in the post-Vietnam era by subsidizing the construction of merchant ships through the Merchant Marine Act of 1970; a program that was ended by Ronald Reagan in 1981. Reflecting this trend, Roe vs. Wade was a controversial decision in the morals of 1973, but accepted as a commonplace institution by the 1980s. This latter attitude is evident in the movie “Fast Times at Ridgemont High”, where a character obtains an abortion without on-screen commentary. In most professions today, the average wage-earner cannot comfortably support a family on a single income. Yet in certain areas, such as the military services and seafaring, there remains a critical mass of workers who refuse to accept less than family wages. For example, maritime employers are often paying officers a higher salary than agreed upon in “sweetheart” union contracts. Notably, these occupations are male-dominated and socially conservative in general, and were late to engage in political correctness. In the past year, about half the states have found a compelling interest in limiting abortion in the first or second trimester. Few of these states have offered remedies to alleviate social concerns arising from the effects of these restrictions. One promising example is a paid parental leave bank, a voluntary insurance program for employers in Virginia and New Hampshire. Notably, these two Republican-led states are unlikely to enact strict abortion limits. What other ideas could work? GI Bill for Mothers For military members and reservists, the relevant law instituted during World War Two is now known as USERRA. Under this act, a servicemember’s civilian job will be held until they return from military service, up to three years, even if the employer backfills this vacancy with a new hire. In the 1940’s and ‘50’s, these provisions covered up to a quarter of the American workforce due to the large number of war veterans. It is therefore able to scale to cover working mothers, who are currently guaranteed by Congress just 12 weeks of unpaid leave. Enhanced Child Tax Credit or Universal Basic Income plan Local governments invest between $10,000 and $20,000 per year for each school age child. With this in mind, a generous child tax credit would allowing working-class parents to provide infants and toddlers with early childhood enrichment, and offer a standard of living better than mere sustenance that is provided today through SNAP and WIC benefits. Eligibility for Child Support during Pregnancy Lack of paternal involvement is a leading factor in the decision to have an abortion. Especially in the third trimester, a woman’s ability to participate in the workforce may be reduced, and it is reasonable for a single mother to fear this loss of income. Currently, child support proceedings do not commence until the child is born, which often makes it difficult to track down a wayward father, who may have changed addresses or moved out-of-state. Some pro-choice people oppose this kind of policy, as it may implicitly recognize fetal personhood. This policy, however, would be inexpensive to implement.

Crowdsourcing the Answer

There are facts, and then there is reality. What do things look like on the deckplate of a ship, rather than from a textbook page? This is where internet forums play a big role. What does it feel like to work for a certain company? What is the likelihood of making the estimated salary? Is the mariner shortage real, or just a concern for low-pay employers? With a few general inquiries that I just listed, I could spend an hour or more browsing the maritime forums of Reddit, GCaptain, and even Service Academy Forums. While crowdsourced answers may not be definitive or scientifically rigorous, they do paint a broad picture, providing a qualitative view of the world. Right now, I am participating in a Turbo Activation, where old vessels are brought out of laid-up state and into operating condition at sea. While it took until thr last day, we crewed all the maritime officer billets, although I must say that the wages offered for the two-week excercise is enough to bring mariners back from their vacations. What is the real state of the maritime industry? One hypothesis is a happy equilibrium of demand for good-paying work, and a healthy dearth of interest in low-paid work. In other news, we hit a recent readership record with the last blog post, "Boston and the Sea". Hope to keep this trend going.