Why to work on a cruise ship?

About the benefits of working on a cruise ship with comparison in hotels and restaurants in Europe.

• Recently, young people have often considered leaving Slovakia. It is certainly not easy to leave your family, home and venture into the unknown. 25 years ago, working on a cruise ship was very popular because young people mainly wanted to travel, which was quite expensive at the time, and this was a way to get to know the world and earn money. They did not have to leave their home altogether, they traveled for six to eight months and then returned home. Some come back like this all the time, some have settled. The conditions on the ships have also been adjusted and in Europe they work for 2 to 3 months and then there is the possibility of going home for 10 to 14 days. Young Slovaks today have a lot of options and offers, and sometimes it is difficult to decide what is the best.
• For example, young people respond to offers of hotel staff advertisements in EU countries and go there with great expectations. Most young people under the age of 22 are already fluent in English or German. The ads promise that you don’t need a language, that you will work among your Slovaks. And so you will go on a nice journey. You borrow from your parents for a trip and with little or no knowledge of work and conditions, you go „out into the world“. I have a friend who went to Germany for work like this. They will warn you before that you have to arrange a trade licence, because they do not accept a permanent contract. And this is where it begins.
• In the best case, your new employer or agency will transport you there, but the costs will be deducted from your first paycheck. Upon arrival, everything was beautiful, accommodation in a house with several workers – mostly women, but there was also one married couple. The work was supposed to be in the hotel – cleaning the rooms, helping in the kitchen, landscaping the surroundings of the hotel. They work for 6 weeks and then there are 14 days off when they can go home to Slovakia. The salary was more than tempting – 3 thousand Euros per month – the first month they only give the basics, which is 12 Euros per hour. The first day was a kind of familiarization with the environment and the system. She worked 9 hours, half an hour was a break, so 8.5 hours were written in the record. Pretty good, but she already have 102 Euros. The next day, in addition to cleaning the rooms, they had her wash the floor in the restaurant. She worked 6 hours because the hotel was empty. You’re here to clean, so do it. On the third day, it was necessary to throw a truck of soil with a shovel and a wheelbarrow on the planting flowers around the hotel. That was for 7 hours. The next day they gave her a day off, because she had to have a rest after the hard work in garden. On the fifth day, she was sent to the kitchen to prepare breakfast. However, everyone can prepare eggs and the permanent cook will teach. When there were no orders, she washed the dishes after last night’s event. After 6 hours of work, it stopped, because it is Sunday and you only work half a day. On Mondays, the hotel and restaurant are closed. On Tuesday, she cleaned a complete set of 14 rooms in 8.5 hours. And on Wednesday morning, she came to work with the idea that she was supposed to sweep the floor in front of the hotel, wash the restaurant after the weekend and wait for instructions. After 3 hours, the owner of the agency called her that the 7-day probationary period was over and she could go to the provided house accommodation to pack, because the owner of the hotel decided that she was not suitable for this job. So she worked 39 hours in 7 days, for which she invoiced 468 Euros as a self-employed person to an employment agency. She paid nothing for accommodation for the probationary period. The way back home cost her 100 Euros by night train and now she is thinking about what to do next. Yes, it was more than she would have got it at home, but when you do the math, the 3 thousand a month still doesn’t work out, as a self-employed person she has to pay insurances and taxes herself. She is certainly not the only one to whom this has happened, except that it is not talked about. The agency continues to work, every week new self-employed people come and every week they leave disappointed. A friend of mine told me that they changed 10 people there during the week. There are certainly reliable hotels and permanent places, but this was an example that happened and I used it in the article for inspiration.
• And now let’s move on to why working on a cruise ship. From day one, you are an employee of the company and you are entitled to insurance. When it is an ocean liner, it is health and pension, when it is a river ship, it is social, health and pension. Plus, there is a fixed salary, which depends on the job position, and tips, which can make up more than half of the salary in the hotel and restaurant part. Accommodation and meals are free on both types of ships. According to your experience and job title, you are doing a qualified and only your job. No one will send you from the restaurant to clean the hotel and vice versa. Only qualified personnel work in the kitchen. There is a 3 month trial period for which you get paid, so you know you have 3 months to decide whether you want to stay or not. The employer – the shipping company can also dismiss you, but they must have a serious reason for this. It is not a decision of one person or a supervisor .
• You have to work everywhere and performance is evaluated. However, it is also appreciated on a cruise ship. Financially and promotionally. My friend asked in that hotel in Germany at the beginning what was the possibility of promotion in a job position. She was told that if she will be good, she would only iron the tablecloths……. The decision is up to each of you.
• However, if you feel like you want to start something new, whether in a hotel, restaurant or kitchen, maybe a cruise ship is for you. The cruise lines are different and you have a choice of English or German speaking company. It doesn’t matter how old you are and what kind of education you have. Of course, professional work requires expertise, but everyone can learn to clean the rooms or cabins, and it doesn’t matter if they are a man or a woman. It’s never too late to start and reach out to an agency in your country. And those who really want to work will find a job and defend it. Are you still hesitating?