For centuries, seafarers learned their trade by going to sea. They began as young as 12 or 23 and learned by copying their elders and trying to do what they were told. In time, they picked up enough knowledge to become competent seafarers in their turn. By the 18th and 19th centuries training had become more formalised and many seafarers ? especially those wanting to become officers ? spent some time at training establishments on shore. These were sometimes operated by governments, sometimes by the industry and sometimes by individual shipping companies. But by the second half of the 20th century it was recognized that something more was need. The shipping world had become more international than ever and there was concern in some cases standards in some merchant marines were not as high as they should be. This was important not only from the safety point of view, but also because training was expensive. Shipowners who could avoid the cost of training their crews would have an advantage over their competitors.
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Seafarers
According to statistics issued by the Baltic and International Maritime Conference (BIMCO) and the International Shipping Federation (ISF) there are more than 1,200,000 seafarers in the world today. Its 2000 Manpower Update is described as the ?most comprehensive study of the global supply and demand for merchant seafarers that has so far been undertaken? and is a follow-up to studies made in 1990 and 1995. The Update shows that while there is a shortfall in the supply of officers, there is a significant overall surplus of ratings. The shortage of officers is likely to get worse in the years to come.
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For centuries, seafarers learned their trade by going to sea. They began as young as 12 or 23 and learned by copying their elders and trying to do what they were told. In time, they picked up enough knowledge to become competent seafarers in their turn. By the 18th and 19th centuries training had become more formalised and many seafarers ? especially those wanting to become officers ? spent some time at training establishments on shore. These were sometimes operated by governments, sometimes by the industry and sometimes by individual shipping companies. But by the second half of the 20th century it was recognized that something more was need. The shipping world had become more international than ever and there was concern in some cases standards in some merchant marines were not as high as they should be. This was important not only from the safety point of view, but also because training was expensive. Shipowners who could avoid the cost of training their crews would have an advantage over their competitors.
According to statistics issued by the Baltic and International Maritime Conference (BIMCO) and the International Shipping Federation (ISF) there are more than 1,200,000 seafarers in the world today. Its 2000 Manpower Update is described as the ?most comprehensive study of the global supply and demand for merchant seafarers that has so far been undertaken? and is a follow-up to studies made in 1990 and 1995. The Update shows that while there is a shortfall in the supply of officers, there is a significant overall surplus of ratings. The shortage of officers is likely to get worse in the years to come.
