Alcohol at Sea

[Unregistered]

My Dad has worked aboard Cruise vessels for most of his seagoing life spanning well over 30 years and has both seen and been involved with countless policy changes, not least of which has been the introduction of Zero tolerance for alcohol possession and consumption by Officers; guess it depends on the Company. Star Cruises for example which may still be the third largest (NCL plus) has this policy and random unannounced tests both breathalyser and urine samples from a shore inspection facility are not unheard of together with subsequent dismissal on the spot!. The regular crew on the other hand frequenting the Crew Bar were/are? allowed blood level of 00.4 which I think is around 2 light beers (I stand to be corrected)...I've no idea what the general rule is aboard non passenger carrying vessels; perhaps someone can contribute some input?
CHEERS!

[ETwhat?]

All of Stena is zero tolerance thats for both officers and crew and on all ships, ten days ago we had the random breath test where an email came from the office and the chief mate had 2 hours to test everyone. further to that theres the random people onboard to do tests every so often. Personally i think the trend is growing and I wouldnt be surprised that within our careers at sea that alcohol becomes a thing of the past.

[Unregistered]

All of Stena is zero tolerance thats for both officers and crew and on all ships, ten days ago we had the random breath test where an email came from the office and the chief mate had 2 hours to test everyone. further to that theres the random people onboard to do tests every so often. Personally i think the trend is growing and I wouldnt be surprised that within our careers at sea that alcohol becomes a thing of the past.

On one Cruise Ship some of the Crew were bringing cans on board in Pringles Container tubes and replacing bottled water with Vodka but the Ship hits the fan if on board security random test.
Following Star Cruises acquisition of NCL there were a lot of extremely unhappy Senior Officers when Star initiated their SE Asia Zero tolerance policy by sending people aboard in Miami to clean out all of the booze from their respective cabins meaning no more "wild party's" with passengers or staff, just not the same with soft drinks!

[GuinnessMan]

It is pretty quickly heading towards zero tolerance for alcohol on tankers now. Oil Majors are demanding it and if you don't follow it, then your management company slips down their rankings (they do have a ranking system)....

[RNR]

From what I know my company isn't totally dry which is a definate advantage in my book as I bet its sometimes nice just to relax with one bottle of beer when off duty.

[Martyboy]

My company is totally dry, and tbh, i really don't think its a bad thing. Sure I do miss a beer while away, but i dread to think how i'd respond to a fire or the likes if i were drunk!!

[Lewis]

So what companys are you with maybe we should make a list of who's dry and who's not?

[RNR]

I would list it but I can't be 100% sure until I go aboard for my first trip, which is very soon. Up until then its all just what I've heard over the grapevine .

[Martyboy]

Maersk are dry, 100%!!!! BBQ's, music, bin full of ice with cans of coke in them :P things can get pretty wild.

[ETwhat?]

I suppose the big question is would a dry company affect your choice of employers? personally no

[Martyboy]

I'm a raving alcoholic, but no, didn't effect my choice at all. TBH it helps with fitness when ur away, well it helps if you drink pint after pint at home

[RNR]

In all honesty I think it would affect my choice of employers. We are all adults and I think its up to us to know when would not be a good time to have a bottle or two (ie before taking over a watch), and when would be acceptable to have a bottle or two (when not due on watch for a set number of hours and when not pre-occupied with other ship work). Of course even when not due on watch the key is moderation and not over-stepping the mark. To ban alcohol on board all together seems a tad over the top, I mean these ships are are homes as well as our places of work .

[Chiefy]

Bad luck, the dutch tried the "it's my home so I can drink when off duty" approach....they lost.

Dry ships are a double edged sword BUT personally we are highly paid, highly trained AND get a **** load of leave....enough time to scupper **** loads of beer and then sobber up to work for a few months.....

If you chose a company on the basis of whether you can drink or not.........good luck...and let us know when they withdraw it


Insurance shipping companies are looking to save money / cut costs everywhere and there are BIG reductions for dry ships

[stronglead]

Well for me I don't mind as I don't drink much (yet) im sure college can change that but right now I can go months and months without a drink and it won't bother me haha

[RNR]

If you chose a company on the basis of whether you can drink or not.........good luck...and let us know when they withdraw it

I'm not just saying I'd choose a company just on the basis of thier alcohol policy but I would think about it when considering the companies policies, general values and attitudes towards their crews.