Cruises Undercover - the Truth Channel 4

[jeanlyon]

Channel 4 - Monday 1st October 8pm

 

The truth below decks.

[dorsetlad]

I wonder if it will actually be the true truth, or journalistic truth, which tends to be better for viewing figures.:eek:

 

Brian

[jeanlyon]

Oh probably Brian, depends. It's Dispatches, so must be someone undercover.

[Dreamgirl1957]

Have put a note on the calender!

[jojo67]

Just set Sky+

:)

[balcony queen]

Channel 4 - Monday 1st October 8pm

 

The truth below decks.

Thank you for the early warning:)

[BEACHPAD04]

What station is this, Fox, NBC, ? :p

[mickatkirkby]

What station is this, Fox, NBC, ? :p

Beachpad04

Sorry but it's a British channel. You may be able to see it online after 1st October tho' if you can access from the US try http://www.channel4.com/programmes/4od

 

Setting Humax now as I'll be on Oceana Sunday bound for Venice.

[Aydogflipper]

Thanks, set the sky box for it.

[spanishlady]

Must remember , channel. 4 Monday night next , 9 our time :o

[Daftlad]

I would have thought that given most of the people on this forum are not novices to cruising, the content will hardly shock.

[silver service]

As daft lad says, all of us on here with an interest with all thing cruising,

Will already have a very good idea, of what goes on below!

However, should make for a entertaining, half hour.

[Thejuggler]

30 seconds in and the word 'exploitation' has been uttered. Expect 30 minutes of nonsense.

[davedex]

Has anyone mentioned that the wage is tax free? And that all the accommodation, food,etc is paid for?

 

 

Seven tenths of the world is covered in sea - that's a lot of cruising to do!

[jeanlyon]

The hours they work with no time off are horrendous. I would rather they put up the price of the cruise and paid them a decent wage or gave them some rest time.

[dorsetlad]

Those conditions certainly don't appear to be the norm on P&O. Many a time we have seen crew members on shore leave when in port. I really doubt the authenticity of some of the points covered, else why do so many staff seem to keep working the cruise ships, and there seems to be no shortage of people waiting to join them. Some amount of journalistic licence seems to have been used. Still, I guess it's good for viewing figures.:rolleyes:

 

Brian

[dthompsond1]

A couple of thoughts,the wages are very low for somebody living in the UK, as the undercover reporter does, however they never mentioned how they compare to the wages in the countries the majority of crew members come from. Also Celebrity Eclipse was flying under the Maltese flag. Isn't Malta a member of the EU? in which case surely the crew should be sailing under EU regulations regarding wages and conditions. Why was this not mentioned.

[Tarquin]

A couple of thoughts,the wages are very low for somebody living in the UK, as the undercover reporter does, however they never mentioned how they compare to the wages in the countries the majority of crew members come from. Also Celebrity Eclipse was flying under the Maltese flag. Isn't Malta a member of the EU? in which case surely the crew should be sailing under EU regulations regarding wages and conditions. Why was this not mentioned.

 

 

You beat me to it;)

 

The worlds economy has never been fair and to draw comparisons between UK minimum wage and those in eg the Phillipines was mindless.

 

It does seem that agency recruitment plays a big part in the way staff are employed and a closer look at the employee contracts wouldn't go amiss.

 

I always wonder how they quantify the amount of tips a worker will receive? We left a tenner for the cabin maid following our 2 day cruise with P&O. That was on top of the compulsory charge added to one's bill. If she picked up a few pounds from each cabin it could be quite lucrative and only misplaced honesty would see it declared to the bosses wouldn't it?:confused:

[simonpjd]

Sorry I missed the program but from the comments it is obvious what they were showing. And valid points made all round. With regard to Indian crew:

1 There is always a queue at the agency doors in India for people wanting the job.

2 The wages, while low by western standards, are high by Indian standards.

 

As an example. As a cadet at sea my wage was £55 / month. Not a lot but no tax, free food and accommodation meant it was effectively pocket money so I thought it was fine. I was paid more than any member of the crew (Indian). But they were all wealthy men back in their towns in India. I had many a long chat with them talking about it and they all knew the score and most were sending back most of their pay to keep their family going. They signed on for a year then would have around 3 months off before joining their next vessel.

I lost my job at sea when companies realised that the officers could be Indian too and their pay was about a third that of the UK officers. That is what economics is all about.

[old git]

We've all cruised before,we know what the pay is(or should)but when you talk with them they are a lot better off than working in their home country and it gives them and the family a good standard of living.

 

How much pay rise you want them to have depends on the price you are prepared to pay.

 

keep smiling:D

[wales4ever]

Its still a whole lot more pay than they would be getting in the Philippines or India where a lot of the staff on cruise ships are from - which is why they are on there.

 

And they still earn enough to be able to send money back home to their families.